Words Are Our Friends: Bipartisan

Bipartisan is a loaded word. We say it like it's a good thing, that it's a neutral concept. But that's a falsehood. The word is supposed to be the ultimate word in non-biased democracy. The word, however, is neither non-biased or democratic. Bi means two, twice, or both, or derivatives thereof, I think we can agree upon. There are two sides. It is a word that admits defeat in democracy. There are two sides. It is a two-party system.

"Well, I believe I'll vote for a third-party candidate."
"Go ahead, throw your vote away."

Third parties are often little more than a joke in today's politics. More so in the United States than in Canada, third parties are little more than wild cards, acting as spoilers by stealing votes from other parties on the same side of the political spectrum. When they actually garner enough support to garner a role of representation, they lapse into political alliances with those same like-minded parties. In the language of politics, bipartisanship is a lie. In the politics of language, bipartisan is a political, biased word.