Language in Action

Slowly we see the nuances of Obama policy emerging. It’s all in the language apparently. We should have learned that basic truth of Ivy League lawyering when Bill Clinton redefined for us all the meaning of “having sex” to eliminate some of the activities which consenting adults have found inconveniently linked to the terminology previously. I’ve still not convinced my wife that the Clinton/Lewinsky dalliance wasn’t sex and I should be allowed to try it out occasionally with women I encounter if I can convince them it would be fun. She just won’t buy it.

If that redefinition didn’t do it for us, then the angels on a pinhead discussion of what the meaning of “is” is should have done it. Now the new kid on the block has eliminated the use of the term “enemy combatant” to describe those wonderful bearded folks living in mandated cleanliness in Guantanamo’s detention facility.

End Use of Term

It so far escapes my understanding whether that now means they aren’t enemies or that they weren’t apprehended in combat.

Now we’ve got Obama’s executive order removing restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. You know what I’m talking about here, the Bush administration restrictions against the government funding any projects that destroy embryos in the quest for stem cell data on possible human regeneration. I’m not particularly fond of restricting science in that manner, but that’s a discussion for another time. The Prez has been very specific about his position correcting this. But, there seems to be a conflict once again between what he says and what actually happens:

Buried in the Language

It seems that buried deep in the unread legalese of the money-dumping omnibus spending bill we’ve got the boiler-plate restriction to federal bucks going to just that purpose if embryos are destroyed. Traditionally acts of the legislature trump executive orders. So, if the Messiah really means what he said, then he would seem to be required to veto that spending bill. Or, if he considers the spending bill important, he will have to ‘fess up that he isn’t opening stem cell research for federal dollars. My bet is that he simply says he did the removal of restrictions but nothing really happens. That fits the pattern.