In light of the fact that the latest diary yelling at those who don't think Obama is all that we'd once hoped for and chastising us for not holding onto the hope he held out to us suggests that the latest replacement for "you want a pony" seems to be the word "nihilist", a word that I must have seen about 200 times thus far in that diary, I thought I'd make sure those using it have some glimmer of what it means. So here's the actual definition of "nihilism":
Nihilism (ˈnaɪ.ɨlɪzəm or ˈniː.ɨlɪzəm; from the Latin nihil, nothing) is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism, which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.[1] Moral nihilists assert that morality does not inherently exist, and that any established moral values are abstractly contrived. Nihilism can also take epistemological or ontological/metaphysical forms, meaning respectively that, in some aspect, knowledge is not possible, or that reality does not actually exist.
The term was popularized by Ivan Turgenev in his novel Fathers and Sons, whose hero, Bazarov, was a nihilist.[2]
The term is sometimes used in association with anomie to explain the general mood of despair at a perceived pointlessness of existence that one may develop upon realising there are no necessary norms, rules, or laws.[3] Movements such as Futurism and deconstruction,[4] among others, have been identified by commentators as "nihilistic" at various times in various contexts.
Nihilism is also a characteristic that has been ascribed to time periods: for example, Jean Baudrillard and others have called postmodernity a nihilistic epoch,[5] and some Christian theologians and figures of religious authority have asserted that postmodernity[6] and many aspects of modernity[4] represent a rejection of theism, and that rejection of their theistic doctrine entails nihilism.
You might want to read that again. Because it doesn't mean hopeless. It doesn't mean negative. It doesn't mean pessimistic. It doesn't mean critical. It's a philosophy about life or at least one entire aspect about life. Not about a person. Not about politics. Not about disagreement or disappointment.
Those who don't care about politics could conceivably be accused of being nihilistic about politics in they don't think politics matters. Someone who is opposed to positions taken by this administration, however, can hardly be accused of thinking those positions are meaningless.
So please, when you're coming up with these oh so catchy little slogans to toss like grenades into discussions, at least have the sense to figure out what they mean.
You know, like the "puritanical leftist" phrase or the "paranoid hyperbolist" phrase. You might think they sound really cool, but they truly end up making you sound like a fool.