Let’s Learn from the Masters

What is doublespeak? Let us learn from the masters. But beware these masters can be tricky. Obviously, I am not in the same league as these experts. I had a hard time deciding which is which…so confusing. Sometimes, rather most of the time, to me their statements encompass all the attributes of doublespeak, which according to William Lutz are the following:

• misleads (from Inquirer website)

DUREZA: “The Palace was forced to use executive privilege to defend its officials from ridicule and detention during Senate hearings.”

“It is pathetic that some members of the Senate justify their constitutional excess by grandstanding as if they are paragons of truth and transparency. Unfortunately for them, the Supreme Court saw through this and struck them down.”

“Let’s hope they will come around and show respect to thee highest tribunal and submit it its final ruling.”

• distorts reality (from Inquirer website)

DUREZA: “The executive privilege issue was not about transparency.”

“The invocation of executive privilege was not to cover up facts or put a lid to the public disclosure of vital information,” he said.

• pretends to communicate (from Sun Star website)

SUPREME COURT’S VOLTES 9: “No matter how noble the intentions of respondent committees are, they cannot assume the power reposed upon our prosecutorial bodies and courts. The determination of who is/are liable for a crime of illegal activity, the investigation of the role played by each official, the determination of who should be haled to court for prosecution and the task of coming up with conclusions and findings of facts regarding anomalies, especially the determination of criminal guilty, are not functions of the Senate.”

• makes the bad seem good (from ANC website)

APOSTOL: “There is no abuse of executive privilege in this case since the matters involved topics on the economy that could not simply be disclosed. There was no wrong doing in the controversy so it cannot be said that they are hiding something by invoking executive privilege.”

• avoids or shifts responsibility (from Inquirer website)

DUREZA: “May I remind the good senators that it was their palpable abuse of their privilege to call on Cabinet members to appear and subjecting those who voluntarily appeared to public ridicule and even arrest and detention that triggered the availment of that privilege.”

• makes the negative appear positive (from government website)

DUREZA: “The Supreme Court ruling upholding once again the right of a cabinet official to invoke executive privilege reaffirms the time-honored principle of separation of powers of the executive from the legislative, and hence keeps the Senate within its own constitutional boundary without intruding into a co-equal branch of the government.”

“Any intrusion into the other, as what the Senate was poised to do, should, as the SC has just done, be stricken down. Straying beyond such limits is anathema to good public order, and staying within constitutional bounds is as good a rule to the Palace as it is to the Senate. We must perforce submit to this ruling.”

• creates a false verbal map of the world (from Reuters website)

ARROYO: “On our part, we will hold officials accountable, if they are found to be corrupt after due process,”

“Let the chips fall where they may as investigations are concluded and friend and foe alike are brought to account for their actions in the proper courts.”

• limits, conceals, corrupts, and prevents thought (from Sun Star website)

SUPREME COURT’S VOLTES 9: “Considering that the information sought through the three questions subject of this petition involves the President’s dealing with a foreign nation, with more reason, this court is wary of approving the view that Congress may peremptorily inquire into not only official, documented acts of the President but even her confidential and informal discussions with her close advisors on the pretext that said questions serve some vague legislative need.”

• makes the unpleasant appear attractive or tolerable (from Sun Star website)

NERI: “I have always put my trust in the collective wisdom of our Supreme Court. As I have said before, their decision upholds the rule of law and respect for human rights.”

• creates incongruity between reality and what is said or not said (from Herald Tribune website)
  

SALUDO: “The government is committed to curbing corruption and was working with the World Bank to address the issues of transparency in all projects.

“We expect that anti-graft agencies will look into and act on any solid evidence of corruption.”