The definition of hyphen has been “a punctuation sign to divide or compound words, word elements or numbers.” (Merriam-Webster). In the Twenty-first century we’ve seen an obsession by some with the hyphen.
We’ve seen how it often divides more than it links. Take for instance the word Democrat-Socialist. Ostensibly it would appear to link two political philosophies-the traditional Democratic Party of Wilson, FDR, JFK and Hubert Humphrey with the current political beliefs of Bernie Sanders and those who follow him.
A careful comparison of what Democrats of the past believed compared to the policies of Bernie Sanders reveals a much different picture.
The hyphen used now in the term Democrat-Socialist, like so many increasing uses of that punctuation mark divides far more than it unites. It’s intentional and it is sometimes hidden until a candidate is elected.
Sanders’ Socialist views are the same old mendacity Lenin ranted from a soap box in Moscow over a hundred years ago. Because many Democrats are sliding to that way of thinking, Scoop Jackson and Daniel Patrick Moynihan wouldn’t recognize the party they represented forty years ago.
It’s in fact so opposite their party ideals that two Princeton University professors say the name Democrat no longer describes the party in 2020. Writing in National Review, Klainerman and Londregan suggest a name change as many in that party want to “erase the symbols and exemplars of American society.”
We should be very careful about how we cast our vote this year. From school board races to the legislature, Congress and President, we should know if a candidate is a Democrat-Socialist or privately holds those views. Ask your candidates for school board, state and national offices if they are or ever have been a Democrat-Socialist. Our future as an American culture depends on it.
Ralph Miller