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The "fighting" and "battle" and "beast" metaphors being uncritically used by public health officials, epidemiologists, and political leaders has really been illuminating in terms of our ongoing dependence on military metaphors to respond to crisis. https://twitter.com/lldiedrich/status/1247665087495778306
Furthermore, defenses of the use of such language as "necessary for morale" or "the best choice of words we have" are pretty specious.
This is now well-trodden territory: this language presumes enemies and allies, borders and boundaries, selves and others, winners and losers.
And to anticipate the predictable response: "Well, what language should we use then?" Funny how we ask this instead of challenging ourselves to expand our metaphors, vocabularies, cultural imaginations.
