9 Supposedly Important Words (That Don’t Mean Anything) by The Cracked Podcast published on 2018-09-24T04:09:22Z <p>Have you visited America’s heartland? And if you have...why are you so sure? “The heartland” is not a defined thing, with borders or flags or land made of literal hearts. The term actually comes from a British geographer named Halford Mackinder (a fantastic name), who coined “heartland” in 1904 to describe one central part of pre-WWI Europe. So why do we use “heartland” in the present day, to describe an aspect of the U.S.? Is it to imply ideas about it, without letting you consider those ideas on their merits? And are there other words in our language that get used the same way?</p><p><br></p><p>On this week’s episode of The Cracked Podcast, Alex Schmidt sits down with Jason Pargin (better known as David Wong) to explore the most celebrated words in the English language that also trick us constantly. They’ll examine how throwing around the term “real” messes with everything from our gender roles to our dinner plate to our politics. They’ll uncover the creepy way certain words throw entire generations under the bus. And they’ll explore why philosophies like socialism and fascism are making a comeback in places like America’s Heartland (whatever that is).</p><p><br></p><p>Footnotes: http://www.cracked.com/podcast/9-supposedly-important-words-that-donE28099t-mean-anything/ Comment by iRadar666 I know I'm really late listening to and responding to this but one big thing that will lead the call against lab grown meat will be the loss of livelihoods from millions of people who rely on the industry. The lab grown meat will require completely different skills and be far less labour intensive. Lots of resistance to change is fear of what might happen to them. A new yorker may not care if their burger is grown in a lab or in a field but the person who owns the field certainly will! 2021-08-08T15:21:14Z Comment by pterantula We all know what they mean though - they mean "Conservative, White, Protestant". 2018-10-30T15:06:53Z Comment by Sarah Linares hey guys can u talk about the situation in venezuela? I find your podcast so interesting 2018-09-25T19:53:36Z Comment by Jaspertine Google "Morrisey" You'll probably find what you're looking for. 2018-09-24T20:04:15Z Comment by Jaspertine So I take it you didn't grow up with Anime? Actually, that could be for the best. 2018-09-24T19:47:00Z Comment by Pat Ormsby AND WE ALL THOUGHT THIS WASN'T A TRUMP EPISODE! 2018-09-24T19:33:24Z Comment by Angie Gutierrez i feel like i encounter this all the time. 2018-09-24T15:22:27Z Comment by Rachel Rexxx The no true scottsman fallacy! 2018-09-24T11:58:05Z