Islamophobia and Europhobia

[RNReindeer]

If you don't want posters to 'chip in' to your threads, don't start them.

You're imagining things again.
Or misinterpreting my comments, or deliberately pretending that there was some detail there that clearly isn't.

 

[EFLImpudence]

What I will take issue with is blatant misrepresentation of facts and/or duplicitous and deceitful subterfuge to further some agenda

Then, with regard to your original question, you must take issue with the media and politicians.
They, whether through ignorance or intention to mislead, frequently misuse words to confuse the general public.

Phobia does, indeed, mean 'an irrational fear of something'.
It should relate only to things like claustrophobia or agoraphobia when it properly means an irrational fear of something which cannot harm you.
Arachnophobia can therefore be said to be a condition in, for example, Britain, where spiders do not harm you. It follows that it would not be arachnophobia in a place where the spiders are venomous; this would be a true and justified fear.

Islamophobia is wrong on two counts. Firstly because that fear is not entirely irrational and secondly because it is used to describe those who hate islam (not a phobia).
Homophobia is also wrong when used to describe those who are against homosexuality when it is not a fear of it, irrational or otherwise, just a hatred.
Passing a law giving homosexuals equal rights can no more eradicate true homophobia than can claustrophobia or agoraphobia be cured by legislation.
As I have written before, the suffix 'ist' can mean either for or against.

This is a common ploy among the media where, for example, contradictory reports and programmes are used in order that the population be mislead as to what is really happening.
Dictionaries do not help by 'modernising' meanings of words because, presumably, more than fifty percent use a word wrongly.
There is a difference in, say, youngsters using 'wicked' to mean good (a sort of code) and 'literally' referring to something which is not literal (just wrong) but no distinction is made by those in charge.


The fact is we are governed and 'informed' by the not very bright and the English language so misused it is frequently difficult to know what any of them really means.

 

[Micilin]

Just to comment on EFL's interesting post on the language without quoting it, I find the term 'Homophobia' a funny one as literally I think it means 'fear of the same' ?

Also I think a lot of people confuse the 'homo' (same) with 'homo' (man/ human) , when used in 'homosexual' - hence the correct pronunciation is 'hommo' rather than 'hoe mow'.

Not that anyone was wondering

 

[EFLImpudence]

Not that anyone was wondering

Knowledge is power.

 

[handyjack]

A phobia is an overwhelming and debilitating fear of an object, place, situation, feeling or animal.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Phobias/Pages/Introduction.aspx

I just hate the religion of Islam, so I don't have a phobia after all. What a relief.

 

[JBR]

Homophobia and islamophobia are now quite deeply embedded in the English language that it would be difficult to change them, or would it?

If 'dislike' is intended:

homoffensus
islamoffensus

If 'hatred' is intended:

homodium
islamodium

If 'distaste' is intended:

homocolus
islamocolus

You heard them here first!

 

[Dextraneous]

It's like having a walking Roget amongst us

 

[JBR]

Who's Roger?

 

[Dextraneous]

Who's Roger?

A rabbit

 

[handyjack]

Who's Roger?

A rabbit

Idiot, he said Roget, that famously intelligent chap (Peter Mark Roget) who wrote Watership Down.

 

[Dextraneous]

Bright eyes.....

 

[handyjack]

Bright eyes.....

Thank you for noticing.