Names

I was reading a post about how what we name things influences how we think about them and what they are.  Since I'm a SAHM, I started thinking about this in relation to parenting topics.  For example, I love that cloth nappies are referred to as "real nappies" here.  By comparison, then, disposables would be considered somehow less "real".  Now, I don't think people often really think of them in these terms, but it's what the language indicates.

I also see a disconnect in the language regarding SIDS.  In England, SIDS is referred to as "cot death", which would seem to indicate that it is an event happening when the child is in a cot, and yet it is bed-sharing that is vilified.

I guess my thoughts on this are that our language should reflect the thinking on something, yet it seems, at least with these examples, that there is a disconnect between what the language says and what the perception is.