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Many political epithets are obtained by joining an otherwise neutral description of a political movement or group with a pejorative term questioning the groups's sanity or motives, or associating the group with hated political movements or leaders of the past.
Arguments about the use of these epithets often follow a pattern in which proponents of the epithets insist that the term is intended to be construed so narrowly as to be inoffensive while opponents insist that the term as heard by a typical listener will be construed more broadly. Examples of such arguments are visible in the sections below, but a general pattern may include, for proponents:
- The claim that a term (e.g., feminazi) is not intended to apply to all members of the group (feminists), but only those who exhibit some of the attributes suggested by the pejorative part of the term ("Nazis").
- The claim that the pejorative part of the term is intended to be construed narrowly (e.g., Nazi as short-hand for anybody who shows contempt for individual rights or the democratic process) rather than with its full connotations (e.g., Nazi as in Nazi Party).
For others the countervailing claim is that whatever the stated intent of the users of the term, combining a term identifying a group with a pejorative necessarily creates an association between the group and the pejorative, leading many listeners to assume that all members of the group have all of the attributes suggested by the pejorative. This claim is arguably based on a naive associationistic view of human cognition that underestimates a typical listener's reasoning abilities. It is argued that such naïve associationism is the basis of many standard techniques in public relations, and that the use of an epithet by persons trained in public relations techniques is reasonbly interpreted as an attempt to create such an association while maintaining deniability: a subtle example of the fallacy of equivocation.
Regardless of the intent of the author, the possibility that political epithets will be construed more broadly than expected creates the danger of alienating a large part of one's audience. Thus, except in cases where the epithet is being used as a shibboleth to closely identify the author with a particular political movement, a wise writer or speaker will generally adopt more neutral terminology. Conversely, in classical rhetoric, the principle of charity demands that when making an argument one assumes the most generous interpretation of one's opponent's statements, so that one's own argument is not derailed by simply claiming that the opponent's statements were misconstrued. This principle suggests that the most principled response to another's use of epithets is to ignore them, accepting at face value the user's claim to a narrow interpretation while again adopting more neutral terminology in one's own arguments.
A list of political epithets and pejorative political slogans with a brief description of each
Abortion on Demand
Used by opponents of legalized abortion to refer to those supporting the legalization of abortion for any or no reason.
Aid and comfort to the enemy See Traitor.
U.S.: Judges whose decisions violate the traditional constraints of constitutional law, or who craft decisions to produce a specific outcome.
Al Qaeda/Queda wing of the Democrat Party Used in the United States by detractors of the far left, to associate the social policies/political beliefs favored by parts of the United States Democrat Party as anti-American and anti-democratic. These members of the far left are seen as being just as potentially destructive to the United States as members of Al Qaeda/Queda.
Sometimes used by Jews in America and Europe as a term of abuse for those who refuse to be held accountable for the Holocaust.
From (Soviet) Russian terminology, meaning simply a member of the political organisational apparatus of Soviet Russia, it now has a meaning in English which implies bureaucratic over-zealousness and/or slavish (to the point of mindlessness) devotion to a cause.
A recent example from the Washington Times: "Mr. McCain said commission Vice Chairman Ellen Weintraub is an "apparatchik" of the Democratic Party [...]"
Bible thumper A negative term describing an evangelical or fundamentalist Christian who believes the Bible is the literal Word of God and that its enclosed laws and precepts should strongly guide public policy.
Bleeding-heart liberal U.S.: Used by conservatives to refer to liberals, in particular people liberal on social issues such as the death penalty or the drug war. Conservatives see these people as "soft on crime," thus enabling crime and causing harm to society, through wilfully ignorant naïveté and/or gullibility.
Derogatory term applied by extreme conservatives to anyone who was interested in even the slightest bit of leftism, such as the formation of labor unions. It also implies a connection with Communism
In Nazi Germany the phrase was used against enemies of fascism, for example in Nazi propaganda posters.
Insult used by communists against capitalists, but also by relatively centrist left- and right-wing critics of the upper middle class, perceived as materialistic, decadent, politically naïve, or hypocritical. The term derives from the French bourgeois, meaning a well-to-do person who was not a member of the aristocracy.
Bushwhacker U.S: civil war era: Term used by certain folks, mostly Anti-slavery, to denote the various groups of pro-slavery or simply opportunist bandits and militants who raided and killed people in the Arkansas, Missouri, and other areas in the Bleeding Kansas period.
Capitalist Roader People's Republic of China: Used against Deng Xiaoping by radicals in the Chinese communist party (the Gang of Four in order to purge him 3 times; he was later rehabilitated into the party thrice and led China in the 1980s and 1990s).
Capitalist Pig Used by communists to insult capitalists by the supposed connection between pigs and greed.
Card-carrying member of the ACLU U.S.: Used most often by conservatives to insult liberals who advocate the separation of church and state and/or the right to flag burning and/or the right to legal abortion, supposedly reflecting the policies of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Post-Civil War U.S.: Politicians who move to a new jurisdiction in order to meet a residency requirement for holding public office. Originated from the fact that such short-notice travelers packed their belongings in a large bag made out of cheap, carpet-like material.
U.K.: Supporters of the conversion of mutual building societies into banks purely for reasons of personal financial gain.
U.K.: Someone who claims to be a socialist while retaining the trappings of a wealthy lifestyle. Critics on the right may highlight contradistinction of their views to their apparent class or social interests, whereas critics on the left use it to taint such individuals as insincere, dilettantish, or naïve.
Similar terms in other countries include limousine liberal or East-coast liberal (US), chardonnay socialist (Australia), and gauche caviar.
Chauvinist Pig Used by feminists to describe a man who hates women—or thinks it obvious that men are better than women—and is not afraid to show it in his behavior and speech. Also Pig, Male Chauvinist, and Male Chauvinist Pig.
Mocks French military failures for the last two centuries. Also mocks French opposition to the U.S.-led 2003 invasion of Iraq.
This term in and of itself became a slur during the Cold War. See pinko.
Corporate Feudalism Term used in discussions with or about proponents of "less government" where the perception is that the government is actually acting as the agent for private corporate power. The term implies that "public good" or "public interest" have no place in the world of "corporate feudalism." See Also: Neofeudalism
Used in communist countries, especially the People's Republic of China during the Cultural Revolution, to refer to people whom others felt were betraying the communist revolution. Also used in the Soviet Union. Notice, however, that the term is not necessarely an insult in and of itself
Dhimmicrat Conservatives have branded Democratic opponents of the 2003 Iraq War as traitors in the War on Terrorism and thus referred to them as dhimmicrats (from dhimmi) - Variations include Dummycrat and Demorat
Dirty Hippy Used by conservatives to refer to certain liberals. Comes from the mode of dress of many hippies during the 1960s, including unshaved beards, long hair, and no bras.
U.S.: refers to one or more stereotypes of left-leaning denizens of the Eastern Seaboard, particularly journalists or academics.
Environmentalist wacko and Econazi and Ecoterrorists are phrases that right-wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh uses to describe what he considers to be extremely radical environmentalists; he does not use them to describe people who merely care about the environment. More...
1930s: Used to describe people who were thought to support Hitler, Mussolini, and other Fascists. Late 20th century: Used by leftists to refer to conservatives, arguing that many conservative policies and philosophies resemble those of the fascists. Also used to refer to members of the Ku Klux Klan. The term "Left Wing Fascist" is used by conservatives to describe liberals.
Fellow Traveler U.S.: Term used to describe those who spent time with communists, during the McCarthy era. The artist Norman Rockwell made fun of this idea with a painting of two children walking in the country, entitled 'fellow travelers'
Feminazi Feminazi is a term coined by conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh to refer to feminists. To Limbaugh, a feminazi was originally a woman to whom "the most important thing in life is seeing to it that as many abortions as possible are performed". This definition could include advocates of some forms of population control. The term "Feminista" is also used.
Others now use the term more loosely to describe almost any active and militant feminist. The term is also sometimes used to describe politically correct movements, such as those who draw attention to supposedly sexist language in daily life.
Film Actors Guild A modification to Screen Actors Guild but with the acronym F.A.G. Used as a label for the far left Hollywood crowd, known to espouse radical views inconsistent with mainstream America. Term coined by Trey Parker, one of the creators of South Park.
Gay Agenda U.S.: Phrase used by conservatives to oppose any new extension of legal rights and privileges to homosexuals, on the grounds that homosexuals are supposedly working gradually to abolish all sexual morality.
Godless communist U.S.: Used by right-wingers to insult communists, referring to the fact that Marx referred to religion as the "opiate of the people" and State support of atheism and opposition to organized religion have been the policies of most communist countries, including the People's Republic of China [10] ( http://www.tibet.ca/wtnarchive/1999/1/21_1.html ), and the former Soviet Union.
Gun grabber U.S.: An accusation by opponents of gun control that advocates seek to remove all effective firearms from civilian hands. See Gun politics in the United States.
Gun nut U.S.: used by advocates of gun control to characterize gun owners as irrational and obsessive. See Gun politics in the United States
Half-naked Fakir Phrase used by Winston Churchill to refer to Mahatma Gandhi.
Hitler Used by virtually all sides of all debates to describe their opposition. Conservatives claimed that anti-war people were similar to those who appeased Hitler in the 1930s. Liberals claimed that conservative philosophy and actions were similar to those of Hitler. Free Software people claimed that Bill Gates' philosophy was similar to Hitler's.
See also Godwin's law.
Homophobe Term sometimes used to disparage persons and organizations that condemn homosexuality out of moral or religious beliefs
International Jewish Conspiracy, International Jewery An idea particularly favored by Hitler, Henry Ford, Charles Lindbergh, and other anti-Semites, that said that there was an international conspiracy of Jews to enslave the rest of mankind. A favorite piece of 'evidence' of this conspiracy was the book The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, allegedly written by Jews, but a known forgery which is believed to be written by the Okhranka.
Islamofascism, Islamonazism The terms Islamofascism and Islamonazism are used by advocates of the view that aspects of Islam are fascist or simply by those who are endeavouring to push this view for political reasons. Christopher Hitchens and Andrew Sullivan both wrongly receive credit in some quarters for coining the term. Radio host Michael Savage also claims to have coined the term. The term Islamofascism seems to have appeared first in the Washington Times in a reference to Islamist fundamentalists. Coined by Khalid Duran, a Muslim scholar seeking to explain Islam to Jews, the word was meant as a criticism of hyper-traditionalist clerics - who in turn denounced Duran as a traitor to the faith. The terms were popularised by writers like Andrew Sullivan during the 2003 debate over whether secular, Baathist Iraq was in collusion with fundamentalist terror group "Al Qaeda".
Some use the term "Islamofascism" specifically to refer to the Muslim Brotherhood and similar movements in Sunni Islam inspired by the writings of Sayyid Qutb, while others use it to refer to all highly politicized strains of Islam, including Shi'a radicalism as practised in Iran. A more common and less loaded term for these politicized strains of Islam, which seek to replace secular governments in Muslim countries with Sharia law, is Islamist.
See also: Islamophobia
External links: How the right played the fascism card against Islam (http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1405605,00.html) - The Guardian (4 February 2005)
Judeofascism Judeofascism and Zionazism are terms used by anti-Zionists and some anti-Semites who advocate the view that aspects of Judaism, Zionism or Israeli government policy are fascist or similar to behavior thought typical of Nazis.
Sometimes the target of these terms is a philosophy that only Jews should have political rights in Israel, or that Israel should be governed by the principles of Jewish law rather than Western principles.
Much more commonly, the terms are used by opponents of Israel's policies toward the Arab countries and the Palestinians. Many anti-Zionists and some anti-Semites employ terms like Zionazism in attempting to compare the Israeli control of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights to the German occupations of various European countries.
Most Jewish people find terms like Judeofascism and Zionazism to be deeply offensive to their heritage and to the memory of the victims of the Nazis. Many Jews would view a person who uses such terms as an anti-Semite.
Anti-Zionists often refer to the state of Israel as the Zionist entity in order to deny her right to exist. In the Arab world, Israel has been commonly referred to as the "Zionist entity", "the Zionist enemy", "the Jewish entity", "the Jewish enemy". Although the usage of such terms has greatly receded in the Arab governments' political speech during the 1990s, such terms are still dominant in the education system and culture.
Many anti-Semites have taken to using "Zionists" as a euphemism for "Jews", to avoid being branded "anti-Semites" and "racists". However, this doesn't mean that all anti-Zionists are racist against the Jews.
Know-Nothing Party U.S.: 1850s political party that was opposed to the Free Soilers, the Whigs, the Democrats, and the Republicans. When asked about its activities, members were directed to answer "I know nothing," providing seed for an insulting double entendre.
Limousine Liberal See champagne socialist.
Loony Left A name sometimes used for what is considered to be the far left. This was what several newspapers dubbed members of Michael Foot's Labour Party. (UK)
Manarchist U.S.: Term used by some feminists to refer to male members of the left wing who hold fast to several conservative viewpoints on women, and their worth and role in society, tending to the misogynist.
U.S.: Perceived persecution of someone holds Communist beliefs based on associations with left-wing groups. In a more general sense, attempting to remove someone from their position by exposing past political or other associations (a reference to Senator Joseph McCarthy)
Muckraker Journalists who spend too much time digging up nasty details, usually of people or organizations that wield much power. Derives from the early 1900s journalism from folks like Ida Tarbell and others, who felt the social cost of Industrial Revolution needed to be met by a Progressive Movement of politics and culture. Also Yellow Journalism
Sometimes used as a disparaging term for persons who look favorably upon the American South or southern culture. Accurately used for groups and persons that advocate southern secession.
Neofeudalism "Neofeudalism" is used in the United States to criticize policies of right-wing politicians, especially from the United States Republican Party. It compares their allegedly pro-plutocracy views to feudalism.
Neoliberal Similar to the way communist became an insult in the United States during the Cold War, the very term "neoliberal" has become a term of scorn in Latin America and other parts of the world where discontent with the Washington Consensus and neoliberal economics is widespread. Thatcherite is used in this vein in Britain, referring to former prime minister Margaret Thatcher.
Orthodox Taliban Serbia and Montenegro (and, possibly, other Orthodox countries): Those who want to introduce to everyday life religious practices supposedly in similar way as Taliban did, for example, religious education to schools or ban of abortion.
See also Taliban wing of the Republican Party
Peacenik Applied to advocates of U.S. withdrawal from the Vietnam War, to pacifists in general, and later to advocates of Western rapprochement with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, for instance through arms control. The Russian -nik makes reference to beatnik, implying the individual is impractical in outlook, but particularly the Soviet satellite Sputnik, implying the indivudal is a communist or sympathetic to that cause.
Pinko A person sympathetic to the Communist Party and Russia during the Cold War but not an outright Communist. Often used by people on the extreme right to describe anyone who doesn't share their views. Probably very similar in meaning but more insulting than "Fellow Traveller". Widely used in the USA and other countries. The identification of Communism with "Socialist" red (and with red being the primary color of the flag of the Soviet Union) led to such Cold War phrases as "the Red Menace" and "Red China".
Hence "Pinko," pink being a light red. Also "pinko commie."
U.S.: Political correctness is an effort to remove prejudicial terms from common usage. As an epithet, it means that such an effort is so broad that it is seen as stifling free expression or punishing members of historically dominant groups.
Pro-abortion An insult used by the "pro-life" movement against people who support the legal right to abortion. The term is meant to imply that those who support the legal right to abortion necessarily support and even encourage the practice of abortion.
Racist Used to indicate that the insultee's judgements of people are based on racial stereotypes rather than observation, logic, reason, or reality. Typically used by leftists, especially against white supremacists, and segregationists. Also used to describe media and art that liberals feel promotes a racist philosophy, or insults ethnic groups who may see the media or art. Sometimes used by members of certain ethnic groups to insult liberals, especially limousine liberals. Also used by conservatives to insult liberals, who consider liberals to be condescending and elitist towards other races, and hence, racist.
Typically used by communist countries and left wingers to refer to right wingers; the opposite of radical. However, this is not always an insult and has been used by many right-wingers to identify themselves.
Red Used to describe communists or people believed to be communist within or without United States, as with Red Dean Acheson, or Red China.
Red Agitator U.S.: early-to-mid 1900s. Especially used to refer to people who were trying to form labor unions or to help African-Americans get their civil rights. Typically applied to instigators of the activity, such as organizers, union representatives, leaders, and so forth. See Bolshevik.
Republicrat In the U.S., used by Greens, independents, libertarians, socialists, and others to indicate they believe that the Democratic and Republican parties are very similar to each other.
Rightist, Rightist Opportunist People's Republic of China: used by the communist party to refer to right wingers. Especially during Mao's Anti-rightist campaign.
Ronnie Raygun U.S.: Used to insult president Ronald Reagan by those who felt he was obsessed with high-tech weaponry and making a public show of military force.
Soviet Union: The Stalinists used this phrase to describe certain Jews during 1948-1953.
Running dog of the imperialists People's Republic of China: Enemies seen as doing work against China for the benefit of, or on the orders of, capitalist countries.
Scalawag A term from during and after the American Civil War in the U.S. Southern states against Southerners who profited from Reconstruction. See also carpetbagger.
Taliban wing of the Republican Party Used in the United States by detractors of the religious right, to associate the social policies favored by parts of the United States Republican Party with the radically repressive social policies of the Taliban. The term was less widely used after the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks, when comparisons to the Taliban, with which the United States was soon at war, became more inflammatory.
Tax and Spend Liberal U.S.: Used by conservatives to label liberals as favoring a cycle of continually increasing taxes and government spending, without regard to effectiveness or efficiency. High federal budget deficits during the Reagan Administration afforded Democrat Michael Dukakis to label his opponents "spend and spend Republicans."
Originally the Whigs were proponents of, and Tories the opponents of, moves to exclude the future King James II from succession to the throne of England; Richard was a Roman Catholic and was eventually ousted when he tried to reintroduce his religion to England. Tory is derived from the Irish word, "toraidhe", which translates as 'pursuer' and means an outlaw or rebel, specifically a Roman Catholic who preyed on the Protestant Settlers. The name stuck to the conservative side of British politics even beyond the formation of the British Conservative Party in 1830. Today, the term is used widely to refer to that party or its members, and also in Canada to refer to members of the various Conservative parties. In neither case is the name pejorative.
Tory was also used in USA to describe the loyalists during the American Revolution.
The term Whig was originally used to mean a Scottish Presbyterian, particularly a Covenanter in rebellion against the Crown. The origin of the word is obscure but it may refer to a group of seventeenth century Scottish rebels whose attack on Edinburgh is called the Whiggamore Raid. Alternatively "whigmaleerie" is an old Scottish word meaning a silly idea.
Traitor Someone who betrays or is seen as betraying their country. This term is often used by staunch supporters of a country's actions in a war or international conflict to stigmatize opponents. For example, before the 2003 Iraq War, conservative radio host Sean Hannity claimed that anti-war protestors were traitors.
Tree hugger Used to describe environmentally minded activists. It originated from people who tried to prevent logging by putting themsleves in danger such as chaining themselves to threatened trees.
Trotskyite Used by certain Stalinist communists to insult communists who do not follow the party line. Named after Leon Trotsky, a communist who was opposed to Stalin and claimed that Stalin had betrayed the Russian Revolution.
Troublemaker Often use by people in power to insult people who criticize those in power. Examples include labor union organizers, in which the phrase is in the spirit of 'red agitator'. However it was also used by the Chinese Communist government to refer to dissidents such as Harry Wu, who wrote a book entitled Troublemaker.
Uncle Tom U.S.: a black American whose political views or allegiances are seen as detrimental to black Americans as a group. This term was used in the 1960s by certain black militants to refer to Martin Luther King, Jr. and any similar protest movements, which had a philosophy of non-violence.
Useful Idiot This term was coined by Vladimir Lenin to refer to those who assist some moves towards Communism while in ignorance of its full programme. Contemporary usage is predominantly by right wingers such as talk show host Michael Savage who use it to refer to liberals.
Van party or Taxi party A political party that is supposedly so small that their entire membership could fit into a van or a taxi. Expression "van party" (kombi stranka) is used in Serbia and Montenegro, "taxi party" (partido do táxi) in Portugal.
Vast right-wing conspiracy An alleged conspiracy espoused by Hillary Clinton and other prominent Democrats. See main article: Vast right-wing conspiracy.
Woman hating Term used by feminists to insult conservative and/or right wing statements or actions that they consider to be in their essence motivated by a hatred of women.
Wowser A New Zealand term, almost obsolete. Originally it meant an alcohol Prohibitionist. It also came to mean a killjoy, someone whose opposition to alcohol extended to all social jollity.
WASP WASP is an acronym for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant. It was coined in the early 1960s to describe the ruling elite of the United States, implying that they were almost exclusively drawn from a very narrow social group. There was possibly the further implication that as WASPs they had little or no sympathy for other social groups. Today it is more generally used by antiestablishment social critics who may wish to put an ethnic label on their political opponents. In practice, as of 2004 there are not many Americans, percentage-wise, of real English descent, and even fewer of them are actually practicing Protestants.
The modern-day targets of the term are pretty much all white Americans as well as the successful Asian-Americans whom the critics may deem a dominant, allegedly fairly homogenous, pro-"establishment" social group. The term is used largely by liberals, especially those belonging to ethnic minorities.
WASP is also used in historical writings about the turn of the 19th-20th century United States to distinguish white Americans who have lived in the country for a long time, and hence were relatively wealthy and fluent in English from the recent immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe.
Yellow Dog Democrat U.S.: Term frequently used to describe die-hard Democrats so fervently loyal that they overlook issues and attributes of the candidates. In colloquial speech it is used as "He would vote for a Yellow Dog, if the was a Democrat."
Yellow journalism U.S.: see Muckracker. Derives from the yellow color of pages that the early 1900s newspapers used to print Muckracking journalism articles. Used as an insult by people who tend to be targets of this journalism. An example would be William Randolph Hearst
A young usurper, but more commonly in current useage refers to a younger person within a corporate environment pushing for major change.
Zionist, Zionazism See Judeofascism.
References [bushwacker (http://www.rulen.com/partisan/partisan.htm)] | 
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