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Loot, a despicable word, was evidently among the first few Hindustani expressions to enter the British lexicon. It aptly illustrates the brand of British colonisation like no other word. On a chilly evening in the first week of December in 1862, British Empire’s railway engineer E.B. Harris reached a small riverside market village called Sultanganj on the south bank of Ganges some twenty miles west of Bhagalpur. Here his 4,771 workers were excavating a vast mound of bricks on the hillside to build a railway yard. Harris, recognised among the railway engineers for the construction of the challenging Jamalpur tunnel,...

Several weeks ago we offered our first installment of Power Line’s Lexicon of Leftist Terms, and it is time for an update that includes several worthy suggestions from readers. Taking it from the top: Populism: When the wrong person or cause wins a free election, like Brexit or Trump. Racism: Any kind of resistance, conscious or unconscious, to the political program of the left. Democracy: Any institutional design or voting system that enables the left to get what it wants. Updated version: “Our” democracy—the version of “democracy as the left defines it.” “Threat to democracy”: When Republicans win an election....

I’ve been promising to collect our own lexicon of the real meaning of key leftist terms—an undated version of Ambrose Bierce’s Devil’s Dictionary, for a while now. So here goes. Readers are encouraged to propose additional definitions and terms in the comment thread, and we’ll update this lexicon from time to time. Populism: When the wrong person or cause wins a free election, like Brexit, Trump, or a Soros DA recall. Racism: Any opposition to the agenda of the left. Democracy: Any institutional design or voting system that enables the left to get what it wants. Threat to democracy: When...

Mansplaining is the tip of the iceberg. Many of the experiences of women in the workforce are so patterned and commonplace they have spawned an emerging vocabulary, which includes terms like bropropriation (when a man takes credit for a woman’s idea). Here, we propose a number of additions to the vernacular, which are likely to remain relevant for the foreseeable future.

The picture is taken from Q drop #531. This chess game (i.e., Capablanca Vs Marshal 1918) is a favorite of mine; before Q Anon, I never HAD a favorite chess game. This chess match, played 100 years ago, illustrates a battle in which all hope seems lost, defeat is assured, and then the nearly extinguished enact an unanticipated defensive strategy that wins the game. Sound like anyone we know? :) Among chess players (i.e., not me) some say that match was "beautiful" and "among the 3 finest chess games played in history." At the time of this Q drop,...

This thread is a friendly collaborative place for FReepers to analyze information and share opinons. FReepers have a wide variety of reasons for investigating Q Anon content; this is not the appropriate place to criticize or badger those who choose to use some of their time in this manner. This thread is a continuation of the prior Q Anon thread located here: http://freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3636549/posts I plan to post one thread at a time and ping new drops posted to it. The current schedule is to post new threads Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. When I post each (new) thread, the prior thread...

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton walk in to a bar. Donald leans over, and with a smile on his face, says, "The media is really tearing you apart for that Scandal." Hillary: "You mean my lying about Benghazi?" Trump: "No, the other one." Hillary: "You mean the massive voter fraud?" Trump: "No, the other one." Hillary: "You mean the military not getting their votes counted?" Trump: "No, the other one." Hillary: "Using my secret private server with classified material to Hide my Activities?" Trump: "No, the other one." Hillary: "The NSA monitoring our phone calls, emails and everything Else?" Trump:...

There is a tendency that any group has to use words that make sense to some of its members, but are often unintelligible to outsiders. I have sometimes had to coach recent converts in “Church speak”.For example I may proudly announce that “RCIA classes will begin next week….so if you know anyone who is interested in attending, please fill out an information card on the table just outside the sacristy door.” Thinking I have been perfectly clear, a new member approachs me after Mass to ask what “RCIA classes are….and also what is a sacristy?”I have had the same reaction...

CLEMENTE: “No, there is a way. We certainly have ways in national security investigations to find out exactly what was said in that conversation. It’s not necessarily something that the FBI is going to want to present in court, but it may help lead the investigation and/or lead to questioning of her. We certainly can find that out. BURNETT: “So they can actually get that? People are saying, look, that is incredible. CLEMENTE: “No, welcome to America. All of that stuff is being captured as we speak whether we know it or like it or not.” >Snip< “All of that...

First the Associated Press announced that it would continue using “Illegal Alien” instead of “Undocumented American”, “Accidental Border Crosser” or “Beautiful Dreamer” on the grounds that it was well… technically accurate. Now the AP is throwing out Homophobia and Islamophobia on the grounds that they are inaccurate and conflate prejudice with mental illness. And that has led to outrage hysteria from the usual organs of the left who like sticking to their politicized words once they’ve made enough people aware of them. “Ethnic cleansing is a euphemism for pretty violent activities, a phobia is a psychiatric or medical term for...

The term "evangelical" is likely the most abused term in the entire religious lexicon, says one Christian leader. Phil Johnson, executive director of Grace to You, which is led by Pastor John MacArthur, believes "evangelical" has been so abused that he wonders whether its original meaning can ever be recovered. "These days it's been redefined in sociological terms, political terms; everybody seems to have their own concept of what it means," he said on the "Janet Mefferd Show" this week. A few years ago, best-selling author Rob Bell defined (to The Boston Globe) "evangelical" as a belief in working together...

Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan) Infiltration and Influence in America  "Allah is our goal; the Messenger is our model; the Koran is our constitution; jihad is our means; and martyrdom in the way of Allah is our aspiration."  "It is the nature of Islam to dominate, not to be dominated, to impose its law on all nations and to extend its power to the entire planet." --Hasan al-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood What the Muslim Brotherhood means for the US: Memo lays bare group's plans to destroy U.S. from within By Ron Dreher, Dallas Morning News   "Our strategy...

Conservatives cannot talk about "food stamps" because it's code for some evil racist message. In a refreshing, much-needed moment, Newt Gingrich smacked that one down quite nicely. Conservatives cannot talk about "Chicago" because that's also racist. Conservatives must not say the word "angry" when referring to the president, because, well, by now we all know where this leads....racism! Conservatives cannot talk about the president and "golf." Because, apparently, when you think about Obama and golf you think about Tiger Woods and sordid sex and it's all very demeaning and, well, you know the rest. Who would have guessed? There are...

Independence Day provides all Americans with an opportunity to celebrate the many freedoms that make our country both great and unique. Our Declaration of Independence was breathtaking in scope and written in precise, plain, unequivocal language. When read in townships across the Colonies, crowds listened in hushed silence and then broke out in applause when the reading was complete. Our Founding Fathers felt no need to dilute or cloak their intentions to form a government. As you celebrate the 4th, it might be appropriate to contrast the straightforward language of our founders and other great American leaders with the weasel...

Whats up with the bold fonts size 4?!

Whereas, being a pre-millenial freeper, do propose the following changes to The 2010 and subsequent FreeRepublic Lexicon (Lingo, Dictionary, Lore Handbook) Pic Rule - Unofficial, but strictly enforced rule that pictures of unpleasant liberal women must be accompanied by pictures of beautiful women; if beautiful women are mentioned a picture must follow (and inevitably controlled by Helen Thomas) (thanks NonLinear and dinasour). Specific rules follow: 1. If your post mentions Ann Coulter or Michelle Malkin, you must post a pic of her. Example: ......"Ann Coulter"=..."Michelle Malkin"= 2. Female equivalent to the Ann Coulter rule. The Bibi (Netanyahu) and Bill Sammon's...

This is about the use of language in politics and political activism. Consider the two words, "misanthrope" and "populist". For instance Sarah Palin is a populist but the hell of it is, at least as far as I can discern, so was Eva Peron whom Most would consider a leftist. There were both left and right wing Peronistas; a populist is somebody who wishes to aid and help his fellow man and there are those who would try to do so via left and right political ideas. A MISANTHROPE on the other hand is somebody who hates humanity and the...

The 2009 FreeRepublic LexiconAKA "The Freepism, Freepology, Lingo, Dictionary, Terminology, Lore Handbook" A revised and condensed version of The Lexicon of FreeRepublic, culled from Lexicon of FreeRepublic - 4th Edition and Freeper Lingo Thread (the history and meening of 'Freepisms' including pictures). Thanks to the many Freepers who contributed, especially Bugbear and Risky Schemer, the originators of the first lexicon! (see also The 2008 FreeRepublic Lexicon) I have attempted to include all definitions and histories provided to me and give credit to those who provided me the information. I apologize, in advance to those I failed to credit, but please...

In the debate over his top environmental goals, President Obama is backing away from "cap and trade." Not the policy. It's the phrase itself, deemed confusing by Democratic pollsters, that has all but disappeared from the president's vocabulary of late. Now when Obama talks about forcing companies to bid at auction for the right to emit greenhouse gases, he is more apt to mention "market-based" proposals and "clean energy jobs," hinting at a rich new employment source. Control the language, politicians know, and you stand a better chance of controlling the debate. So the Obama administration, in its push to...

The 2008 FreeRepublic LexiconAKA "The Freepism, Freepology, Lingo, Dictionary, Terminology, Lore Handbook" A revised and condensed version of The Lexicon of FreeRepublic, culled from Lexicon of FreeRepublic - 4th Edition and Freeper Lingo Thread (the history and meening of 'Freepisms' including pictures). Thanks to the many Freepers who contributed! (see also The 2007 FreeRepublic Lexicon) I have attempted to include all definitions and histories provided to me and give credit to those who provided me the information. I apologize, in advance to those I failed to credit, but please understand that it was very difficult to keep up with all...