Kos has been posting some great essays about George Lakoff's book, and the importance of words, and frames.
I for one would love to see progressives bury the term "Privitization" when speaking of Social Security, Medicare, Education, etc.
It should always be referred to as "Commercialization," or perhaps "Pirate-ization."
"Privitization" has such a nice sound to it. We all like our privacy, right? Privitization sounds so innocuous. It hides so much.
But any time you take a social service or program that is run by the government, and you turn it over to a corporation that seeks to make a profit providing the same service, that is, plain and simple "Commercialization."
How does any commercial venture increase its profits? By raising prices and cutting services.
The Social Security Administration is one of the largest bureaucracies in Washington, administering the most succesful anti-poverty program in world history. And how much of the taxpayer's money does it eat up in overhead? Two percent.
Do you think that Merrill Lynch, et al, will be happy with a two percent markup? Folks in other nations that have seen their social security programs commercialized are seeing up to thirty percent of their money diverted to profits.
Start using this terminology now. George W Bush and the Republicans want to commercialize your Social Security.