tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4683970826895755480.post5712723207769210493..comments2024-03-28T21:32:26.550+00:00Comments on Bruce Charlton's Notions: Try replacing the word 'equality' with 'the same' or 'identical'Bruce Charltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09615189090601688535noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4683970826895755480.post-57780691584922988812012-07-25T17:27:11.384+01:002012-07-25T17:27:11.384+01:00@PW - in a sense there is no such thing as a synon...@PW - in a sense there is no such thing as a synonym: all words have subtly different meanings.<br /><br />But these 'magic' words like equality, democracy, justice, freedom have the particular property that they cannot be replaced in a sentence without making it obviously absurd.<br /><br />e.g. "*Democracy* is the only acceptable political system" - "*Replacing the government by some kind of mass vote* is the only acceptable political system."Bruce Charltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09615189090601688535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4683970826895755480.post-75104179555036915012012-07-25T15:48:39.950+01:002012-07-25T15:48:39.950+01:00"Equal" and "the same" have di..."Equal" and "the same" have different meanings. 2+2 equals 4, but 2+2 is not the same as 4: one is a sum, the other is a number. I think "equal" can mean the same or identical in a specific attribute, not necessarily identical overall. But this doesn't really contradict what you're saying, because we still have to ask: in what sense are all men created equal? Which characteristic is identical among them?Paul Warkinnoreply@blogger.com