Words Matter: "Stranded," "Senile," and "Hostage"
What They Really Mean, and Whether They Are Appropriately Used
Hi, kids! Welcome back to class. You can take off the masks now. You won’t need them here.
Our first lesson of the new school year is entitled, “words matter.” And today, people in our media and government gave us three words yesterday. We will look at each word, what they mean, and whether it was fair or correct to use them.
When you work in government or the media, the words you use are significant, especially when dealing with a crisis. For example, the crisis in Afghanistan right now. There will be a quiz.
“Stranded”
Let’s start with the word “stranded.” A Fox News Reporter, Peter Doocy, asked this question at the White House yesterday: "Does the president have the sense that most of the criticism is not of leaving Afghanistan it's the way that he has ordered it happen by pulling the troops before getting these Americans that are now stranded. Does he have a sense of that?”
That made the White House Press Secretary, Jen Psaki, very angry: "First of all, I think it's irresponsible to say Americans are stranded. They are not. We are committed to bringing Americans who want to come home. We are in touch with them via phone, via text, via email, via any way we can reach Americans to get them home if they want to return home."
We have all heard that thousands of American citizens are in Afghanistan and are having trouble getting to the airport to be evacuated. Reports suggest the invading Taliban have beaten some Americans. The US government has told these Americans that they cannot guarantee safe passage to the airport. Are they “stranded?”
Let’s consult one of our favorite dictionaries. “Stranded” is an adjective. It describes a situation that the Free Dictionary defines as “left helpless, as without transport.” US Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR), a former Iraq and Afghanistan war infantry officer, says Americans are “stranded.”
So who is correct, the Senator and the Fox News reporter or the Press Secretary?
If you said the Senator and Peter Doocy, you are correct! Yes, that was easy. Now, being “stranded” is not permanent. It is not the same as being “deserted” or “abandoned.” We’ll see if that happens. We must hope not.
“Senile”
Our next word is senile, an adjective used by a legendary broadcast news reporter and anchor, Brit Hume, in a Fox News radio show hosted by Guy Benson yesterday. Here’s what Hume said, in full context:
Not just “senile,” but “manifestly senile.” What does that actually mean? He followed up the assertion that Biden was “too old,” in his opinion, to be president. He’s not alone.
But again, let’s ask, what does “senile” or “senility” mean? Let’s consult the Cambridge Dictionary: “showing poor mental ability because of old age, especially being unable to think clearly and make decisions.”
It should not be confused with the term “dementia.” Let’s read what a respected health website says about the difference.
The common use of the word senile loosely references the loss of cognitive abilities or the inability to think clearly. Although still occasionally used, this term has lost its popularity, partly because it has a negative, disrespectful tone, as in, "The old man is senile."
Senile was used more commonly in the past, especially when memory loss and confusion were thought of, by some, as a normal consequence of getting older. The view used to be that the body and the mind both could be expected to decline together as someone aged, and that poor mental functioning was just a normal part of aging.
An individual was often described as having "senile dementia" or "senile Alzheimer's," meaning that the disease and its associated mental decline developed in older age.
Science now understands that significant memory loss, disorientation, and confusion are not normal parts of aging but rather are symptoms of a neurocognitive disorder such as Alzheimer's, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia, or Lewy body dementia.
Senile is sometimes used to describe the plaques that build up in the brain as Alzheimer's disease progresses. These senile plaques are often described as one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease, along with neurofibrillary tangles.
So was Brit Hume wrong to use the word “senile?” After all, Joe Biden is 78 years old, far and away the oldest man ever elected to the presidency. Age affects us all differently. Is Biden as loquacious and “with it” as a US Senator, or even during his years as Vice President? Just go on YouTube.com and search for speeches by Joe Biden. Pick your years. There are lots of them.
Was Hume wrong to refer to Biden as “senile,” or was it an expression of a personal opinion within the bounds of civil discourse? Hume didn’t suggest Biden had a disease but was exhibiting symptoms of “old age.” Hume would know. Hume is also 78 years of age. We’ll leave this one for you to defend or oppose, but Hume wasn’t wrong.
“Hostage”
Back to Fox News, this time one of its most popular evening broadcast shows featuring Sean Hannity. Hannity, this past week has been opening his show with an update on the number of days of “Americans held hostage” crisis.
How does a dictionary define “hostage?” Merriam-Webster gives us three definitions: “a person held by one party in a conflict as a pledge pending the fulfillment of an agreement; a person taken by force to secure the taker's demands; or one that is involuntarily controlled by an outside influence.”
It is entirely possible that Americans are being held hostage as a bargaining chip over a set of demands or will be. We hope not. But it has happened before in this part of the world, specifically in Tehran, Iran, 1979.
In fact, Ben Affleck directed and acted in an Academy Award-winning movie (Argo, Best Picture, 2013) was made about a rescue of six Americans who were not among the others actually held hostage for 444 days, released on the day Ronald Reagan was sworn in as President.
But was Hannity correct to refer to “Americans Held Hostage?” Sean’s over the top here, but he may ultimately be proven right. We hope and pray he is not.
So there you have it. Americans are definitely stranded in Afghanistan; it’s fair to opine that Joe Biden is senile; but Americans aren’t being held hostage, as far as we know. Class dismissed.