ABSTRACT
That is why clarity and openness in public language are so important. Sloppy, dishonest sentences in finished speeches, books and articles are sometimes the results of sloppy thought, and lead to, in turn, sloppier thought still, and at other times are the result of very precise thought aimed at deception. I once said to an Italian in a hotel swimming pool in his own country how beautiful his language is, and he replied that yes, it was, and it was a good language to lie in. To some extent this is true of all language: politicians and advertisers use the attractiveness of language: its rhythm, its alliteration, its rhyme, its assonance, its repetition, to persuade us, and often the elegance of language is being used to stop us looking at other aspects of the subject that might disturb us.
