Social Justice and Humpty Dumpty squared
4th August 2008
Social justice is a term that trips off the tongue of politicians when they are at their most earnest and their most evasive. “What can you do for me?” asks the man of the parliamentary candidate, the candidate looks him in the eye, lowers his voice and says in his most reassuring tone “I will bring you social justice.” Just two words act like Rennies after a vindaloo, all burning is negated and the hope of a good night’s sleep is increased. How can these words have that effect? The answer is simple, because they do not have an established meaning and, therefore, can be interpreted by the listener to mean anything he likes.
A reminder that the fight for the meaning of words is the most important fight there is.