hgc
Penultimate Amazing
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2002
- Messages
- 15,892
I hate abuse of language -- when it is done for the purpose of misdirection, obfuscation and dissembling.
One grievous example is the use of the phrase "take out" to mean kill or assassinate. I don't know the origin, but the gimmicky little bit of slang, which might have fit nicely in gangster movies, sounds insipid in the mouths of politicians and journalists. Please, if you are talking about killing someone, use the word "kill." It may be appropriate to fine-tune the meaning by using "assassinate."
I lodge this complaint in Politics forum rather than Language, because this is an example of the use of language to obscure true meaning in the political sphere (and there is no Language forum). If what a politician or pundit supports, or even directly orders, so distasteful that he doesn't want to call it by it's true name, then that's a damn good clue that shame and/or mendacity pervades the message.
BEWARE THE MUMBO-JUMBLERS. IF A PUBLIC FIGURE USES "TAKE OUT" OR OTHER GOOFY SIDESTEPS, CALL HIM A LIAR AND A CHEAT!
One grievous example is the use of the phrase "take out" to mean kill or assassinate. I don't know the origin, but the gimmicky little bit of slang, which might have fit nicely in gangster movies, sounds insipid in the mouths of politicians and journalists. Please, if you are talking about killing someone, use the word "kill." It may be appropriate to fine-tune the meaning by using "assassinate."
I lodge this complaint in Politics forum rather than Language, because this is an example of the use of language to obscure true meaning in the political sphere (and there is no Language forum). If what a politician or pundit supports, or even directly orders, so distasteful that he doesn't want to call it by it's true name, then that's a damn good clue that shame and/or mendacity pervades the message.
BEWARE THE MUMBO-JUMBLERS. IF A PUBLIC FIGURE USES "TAKE OUT" OR OTHER GOOFY SIDESTEPS, CALL HIM A LIAR AND A CHEAT!