Words Acting Badly

Some of the biggest words in the English language actually have relatively few letters. Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is undeniably a big word in terms of letters, but the "big" thing I'm talking about is meaning. 

Many words in our culture are overused, misused, and misunderstood. Being something of a logophile, I thought I would attempt to rescue a couple of the more persecuted ones.

Hero: We sometimes say a person is "our hero" because they have done something nice for us, perhaps getting our broken-down car started, or finding a lost dog.
   The term rightly refers to a person who displays exceptional courage, especially in a dangerous situation. Today the term is frequently, and wrongly, applied generally to police officers, firefighters, and military personnel. Anyone in any of those professions could be thrust into a situation requiring genuine heroism, but not everyone who dons a uniform is a hero.
   In the United States military the highest award is the Medal of Honor, awarded for conspicuous "gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty." During WWII 473 military personnel were awarded the medal out of some 16 million who served. That's how rare true heroes are.

Desecration: This is a terribly misused and misapplied word. It means "to make unsacred," and usually pops up in reference to a flag or other national symbol. 
   The problem is, you can't desecrate something that wasn't sacred in the first place. "Sacred" and its related words have very narrow definitions, all related to religion. Neither the flag nor any national emblem nor the Constitution is sacred because they were not created for the purpose of worship. The Founders would be horrified by the thought that someone might venerate the flag as a sacred, that is to say, holy, object.
   Owing allegiance is far different from expressing reverence. This nation was created "in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty" for those who live here, whom the not-very-religious Founders believed deserved "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." 
   We salute the flag. We do not bow to it. We pledge allegiance to it as the primary emblem of our country. We do not pray to it. It is a symbol; nothing more.


--- Diogenes, 6/23/2020