Language Games

As the media struggles to not offend readers in its descriptions violence, it walks a language tightrope. So far the bias clearly remains in favor of Israel/ Jewish/ Zionist victimhood. For instance, there is an obligation with every article to always reference the Oct. 7 "slaughter" or "massacre" of Israeli citizens. But the Israeli missles sent into Gaza merely "kill" Palestinian citizens. Obviously, to "slaughter" is something uncivilized, barbarians do, while "killing" is how all brave soldiers win righteous wars. The other aspect of this narrative ploy is to suggest Hamas uses innocents as "human shields" so that the blame for their deaths falls on them. That Israel put settlers on the edge of or in Palestinian territory, putting them in grave danger, is never mentioned. Of course both governments are guilty of atrocities and both populations can share that guilt. There is plenty of religious fanaticism to go around, Islamism and Zionism being two sides of the same ethno-state coin. That fact is a hard pill for the media to swallow. It is also hard for the Left and Right, whose supporters often want a good vs evil narrative. You won't see Zionism mentioned, because people might want to learn the history. You won't hear political Islam mentioned much either. We can talk about just and unjust, one state or two, but there are no white hats. Like pretty much everything now, it is "hold your nose and choose". Meanwhile, The Ukrainian Offensive has stalled and despite Nikki Haley's best efforts, the American public is bored and doesn't want to support yet another loser. Sorry. Other conflicts around the world are just the price of doing business.