Insights... ‘big girl’s blouse’, ‘girly swot’? The prime minister should choose his insults more carefully | Torsten Bell

US research finds that political rhetoric can serve to alienate whole sections of society

Words matter, something lost on a participant or two in last week’s political fandango. We’re not debating our opponents – we’re calling them surrender monkeys or fascists.

Jacob Rees-Mogg rightly apologised for equating a doctor disagreeing with him over Brexit with Andrew Wakefield’s false linking of vaccines to autism. Boris Johnson didn’t apologise for calling Jeremy Corbyn a “great big girl’s blouse”, but did at least make his “denigration via feminisation” policy cross party: David Cameron is, apparently, a “girly swot”.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ZQe8CW
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