You're all in denial!

There is a phrase, if you will, that annoys the pants of me and many others, and that phrase is "climate denier". It's used to describe anyone who does not adhere strictly to the idea of man-made climate change or perhaps simply suggests other ways to tackle such a problem that is not in keeping with what the "green movement" believe; often it is levelled at people who simply ask a question that might seem to be straying from the accepted view.

It is of course an absolutely pathetic term that is levelled in order to stop and stifle debate or discussion, and it's purely political.

We now have, thanks to the Chancellor, an equally pathetic term for anyone that opposes what the Coalition may decide to do on spending cuts, which is "deficit denier". A term which, in the words of an article on Liberal Conspiracy,

leaves no room for argument, disagreement or different solutions to our need to cut the defecit [sic]. Instead [Osborne] forces language to fit his political arguments rather than using arguments to persuade us of his policies.

I can't say I really disagree with that, but there's always an amusing angle to these things when it comes to the way I look at the world, I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this.

Liberal Conspiracy you see is, amongst the UK political blogging world, is one of the sites that just loves to scream "climate denier" from the highest rooftops at anyone who does not agree with them, or anyone who simply comments in a way that does not wholeheartedly agree with a post they may have done on the subject of climate change.

Let me put it like this, Liberal Conspiracy's use of the term "climate denier",

leaves no room for argument, disagreement or different solutions to our need to tackle a warming planet. Instead it forces language to fit its political arguments rather than using arguments to persuade us of their solutions.

If someone ever asked me to describe irony in words I'd be hard pushed, but spotting it is so much easier. Thus it is that we now have two opposing political positions casually throwing the word "denier" around, and the side that started it is trying to use the same argument to dispute the term that it had previously errrr denied was valid.

Spotting these sort of hilarious contradictions in politics, rhetoric and argument really do make my day. It tickles me.