Jump to content

Phrases or words that indicate to you the contents of an 'article' or post are going to be garbage..


Recommended Posts

goosey-goosey Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I'm super sad when I read "super" used as an

> adverb.



Yes!!! Do you pronounce it with a "gee golly gee" gormless American accent whenever you read it? It's become such a commonly used little helper, especially in "youth" publications, social media etc.... These nachos are suuuper nice, just sayin', amirite?...

When articles quote percentage increases in something without actual numbers - i.e. "so and so is up 20% (yeah, but from an extremely low base, such that to be meaningless / statistically insignificant)".

miga Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> re: "Big State"...here's a handful from the

> quickest of googles, used as a phrase.

>

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cam

> eron/9171481/Brick-by-brick-were-tearing-down-the-

> big-state.html

> http://www.reform.uk/reformer/the-return-of-the-bi

> g-state-incomes-policy-and-the-trimmings/

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/9

> 559810/Douglas-Carswell-Bad-news-for-the-big-state

> .html

> http://www.jubilee-centre.org/all-in-this-together

> -the-big-state/

>

> Or do you mean that it never annoys you when you

> see this frequently used phrase?



No. I meant that those who bang on about big Pharma, big business, big etc seem to be anti-big apart from the state which they seem happy to run almost anything, dictate how we live our lives, think they know best how our money is spent etc. big is bad...apart from government where suddenly big transforms into efficient, benevolent, paternalistic, force of good and dictator of what's best for the likes of us

>>Yes!!! Do you pronounce it with a "gee golly gee" gormless American accent whenever you read it? It's become such a commonly used little helper, especially in "youth" publications, social media etc.... These nachos are suuuper nice, just sayin', amirite?...


It comes down to us living in an age where hyperbole rules...the most mundane singer is 'awesome', the most average talent is a 'genius', something sad is 'heartbreaking' and a crispy chemical-laden snack is 'super nice'. I can't work out whether it is because people can no longer distinguish between mediocrity and genius/great talent or it's just a lazy way of using a rich and varied language.

???? Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> miga Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > re: "Big State"...here's a handful from the

> > quickest of googles, used as a phrase.

> >

> >

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cam

>

> >

> eron/9171481/Brick-by-brick-were-tearing-down-the-

>

> > big-state.html

> >

> http://www.reform.uk/reformer/the-return-of-the-bi

>

> > g-state-incomes-policy-and-the-trimmings/

> >

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/9

>

> >

> 559810/Douglas-Carswell-Bad-news-for-the-big-state

>

> > .html

> >

> http://www.jubilee-centre.org/all-in-this-together

>

> > -the-big-state/

> >

> > Or do you mean that it never annoys you when

> you

> > see this frequently used phrase?

>

>

> No. I meant that those who bang on about big

> Pharma, big business, big etc seem to be anti-big

> apart from the state which they seem happy to run

> almost anything, dictate how we live our lives,

> think they know best how our money is spent etc.

> big is bad...apart from government where suddenly

> big transforms into efficient, benevolent,

> paternalistic, force of good and dictator of

> what's best for the likes of us


Ah, I see. I guess I don't get wound up by ideas as much as oversimplification.


The way phrases like "big state" or "big pharma" are used isn't dissimilar. It's shorthand for a scary idea that cuts out a lot of thinking for a receptive audience. Fair enough, the audiences might be on different parts of the political spectrum, but the nuance killing phrases have a similar effect. For every time a naturopath rails against "big pharma", there's a died in the wool libertarian crying "statist". The trick, in my view, is to skip over the yellow press and CiF nonsense. Although I suppose it is nice to have one's prejudices confirmed, it's one of the pleasures of getting old.

tfwsoll Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> >>Yes!!! Do you pronounce it with a "gee golly

> gee" gormless American accent whenever you read

> it? It's become such a commonly used little

> helper, especially in "youth" publications, social

> media etc.... These nachos are suuuper nice, just

> sayin', amirite?...

>

> It comes down to us living in an age where

> hyperbole rules...the most mundane singer is

> 'awesome', the most average talent is a 'genius',

> something sad is 'heartbreaking' and a crispy

> chemical-laden snack is 'super nice'. I can't

> work out whether it is because people can no

> longer distinguish between mediocrity and

> genius/great talent or it's just a lazy way of

> using a rich and varied language.


Yeah, probably hyperbole is a part of the picture. There's also the obligation people feel to be positive.

How can an accent be 'gormless'? It's an accent. Some may think your accent is 'gormless'. Gormless comment.Picking on Americans is a national pastime here. Don't think it's justified. Garbage in fact.

Perhaps I didn't express myself clearly. I didn't intend to describe the whole set of American accents as gormless sounding, but rather one particular gormless version of the same. Think Frank Zappa's "Valley Girl".


But thanks for being super defensive.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Latest Discussions

    • Aria replaced our stopcock valve as it started leaking over the weekend. Came to do the work on a Sunday, very responsive to messages and efficient work - explained what he was doing and what went wrong. Highly recommend!  
    • Brilliant emergency weekend service from Aria from AFE Plumbing to replace our stopcock valve as it started leaking heavily on Saturday. He explained everything clearly and completed the job efficiently. Kind and well-mannered, would highly recommend!
    • Hello everyone, We have lost our wonderful moggie, Cookie.  She's been missing for over a week now and was lost around the back of our house on rail track land around Croxted Road/Turney Road junction. Please do keep an eye out for her and if you see her please let us know urgently as she isn't familiar with the area at all, we are very worried.  She has a microchip (with my brother's contact details) She's black with ginger/brown markings, very distinctive. If you have had sightings of her or seen her at anytime please let do let me know, Henna 07941 047094 If you could post on your local/street groups too, I'd be very grateful. Thank you!
    • Police Officers aren't permitted to strike, so why are all the other emergency services allowed to?
Home
Events
Sign In

Sign In



Or sign in with one of these services

Search
×
    Search In
×
×
  • Create New...