but you also cannot just make up your own stuff, at least not without explaining it.

because then people will not understand you

and you will be isolated

Languages do evolve, thus we need language reforms now and then

But we also need the "standard" language to conduct business without misunderstanding

reporting back.... yeah its not that lefty, lol was jsut conservatives that ken burns is a left himself XD

the vietnam war

Language needs to evolve for utility. When you reduce utility (figuratively using literally) you are not growing the language

You are actually making it harder to communicate certain ideas

languages simultaneously increase and decrease in simplicity in different areas

Sure, but you need to be cognizant of where that's happening and why, or you might find your future a little doubleplus ungood comrade

languages have generally evolved very organically, if something would ruin the language it simply won't catch on

unless you force it

Have is not an assurance of will

although sometimes you do end up with tibetan, and nobody ever wants their language to turn into tibetan

given the amount of time languages have been evolving, i can confidently say we will not fuck up any language unless we start manually fucking with it

Right, and that's the danger I'm rather specifically referring to

so, manually fucking with language??

Do you remember the "old" definition of racism?

oh yeah, the trend of trying to intentionally redefine words is certainly very very bad

Yes, and to that extent I think keeping terminology in the clear is important

sorry, i jumped in in the middle and, given your figuratively/literally example thought you were talking about the excessive use of hyperbole in english, not the malicious redefining of words

No I just mean redefining at either the loss of utility wholesale, or for partisan purposes

I honestly don't think we gain anything by losing the word literally to emphasis, but it was just an example of how utility can be lost

well, for the literally example, it will eventually reach the point where literally and figuratively will be synonyms and we will be using a new word that means something similar enough to the current definition of literally

and then at some point either literally or figuratively will probably fall out of use

language is a big dumb ride that usually doesn't actually go anywhere lol

I think it *can* go somewhere

It just goes there occasionally, and in spite of the userbase

yeah, it takes an absurd amount of time though. most changes are just going in circles

There's also organic changes in a word that are not so good.

Like the continual redefinition of violence to where now words are violence

that's not organic, that's one of those changes that are being forced

Yeah, very few people actually believe that, but the loud socjus minority make it seem bigger than it really is

But that's things functioning as intended

I disagree. Violence has overgone *braodening* as it's called in linguistics.

https://www.thoughtco.com/broadening-semantic-generalization-1689181

Only within a clique

This is convenient for some people, but the mental-health nuts on Tumblr seem to *honestly believe* that words and ideas that cause distress are equivalent to physical violence (and will point to psychology stuff to try and make that point)

It's a growing clique though.

I don't think it is, tbh

The lefty purity spiral is real

They hemorrhage moderates the more hard-line they get