Wednesday, December 16, 2015

James Bartholomew: "I Invented 'Virtue Signalling' And Now It's Taking Over the World

Do read the whole thing. 

"To my astonishment and delight, the phrase ‘virtue signalling’ has become part of the English language."

"I coined the phrase in an article here in The Spectator (18 April) in which I described the way in which many people say or write things to indicate that they are virtuous. Sometimes it is quite subtle. By saying that they hate theDaily Mail or Ukip, they are really telling you that they are admirably non-racist, left-wing or open-minded. One of the crucial aspects of virtue signalling is that it does not require actually doing anything virtuous. It does not involve delivering lunches to elderly neighbours or staying together with a spouse for the sake of the children. It takes no effort or sacrifice at all."

"I guess the reason that ‘virtue signalling’ has been used so much is that it fulfils a need"

"For years, people have noticed the phenomenon but did not have a word or phrase to describe it. One person tweeted, ‘Love it when you find out something that’s irritated you for years has a name #virtuesignalling.’ The lack of a phrase obstructed open discussion of what was going on."

"Newspeak, the fictional language created by George Orwell in his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, limited the number of words people used with the intention of restricting the ability of people to express themselves and even to think. New phrases and words are the opposite of Newspeak. They make expression and argument easier."

The Mother of Virtue Signalling Images:
Imagine If This Woman Had Contacts With Powerful World Leaders, Just Imagine What She Could Do!