Saturday
June 29, 2024 
At Chatterbox, we’ve talked before about the delights of the well-spoken word, as well as colloquialisms, slang and popular expressions of the moment. We should be clear, sometimes only slang will do, but it has its place.
When Fred Flintstone and I were teenagers, the expression, “Cool” was out. If something was cool, it was “swift.” That’s was just a popular expression: short-lived, teen slang of the moment. That’s not the same as new lingo, which is more a current expression that people feel quickly captures and communicates a particular descriptive.
We’ve got some popular jargon today that is grossly inaccurate, and much of it is being “done to death,” as they say. Other expressions, though gaining momentum, are just plain old, bad English. Catchphrases that are “trending” might make people feel “in the loop,” but they actually make people appear less “in the know.” So, when being “in” is wrong, it’s better to be out.
Today, we’re seeing some expressions that are as ubiquitous as they are straight up wrong. That gets old fast, especially as respected speakers, reporters, and political pundits expand the use to places they don’t really apply. Decades ago, the expression, “boots on the ground” became popular, creating an image of troop power and numbers. Still in use, it dehumanizes every soldier whose real life fills those boots, people with parents, spouses, and even children, all who love them.
Now, we’re hearing other people being referred to as “on the ground.” News anchors always throw the mike to, “… our reporter on the ground.” Reporters used to be described as, “on site,” “at the site of…,” maybe “at the Capitol building.” Now, they’re just “on the ground.” Well, we would hope they’re on the ground. Gravity rules. Where else would they be? Reporting with a jet pack? Of course, one could be in a helicopter or hanging from a chandelier. This former military expression is now annoyingly overused; it seems to make many hosts feel very “in.” It should be kicked to the curb.
Other popular expressions are just wrong. Many of us watch the home shopping networks; with quarantine, they’re catching on big time. Has anyone bought “a jean” or a “pant” lately? One can only hope the “jean” comes with two legs. How about “a pant”? Isn’t that what dogs do when they’re hot? Oh … they mean pants, as in “a pair of …” This isn’t cool lingo; it’s a popular pulverization of our language.
What’s “for free”? Free means, “for nothing” so “for free” is redundant. Clearly incorrect, it caught fire anyway. Now, even advertisers don’t realize it’s straight up wrong. How about “discombombilate” … say what? I always wonder how Bob felt about having lost his status to Bill in “discombobulate.” “Orientated” … now that one will set you looking to the East. Traditionally argued, it’s frowned upon as a fill-in for “oriented.”
Don’t even mention “snuk.” Let’s conjugate that, shall we? Sneak, snak, snuk? That horrid slang has really sneaked in as legit … ahem, legitimate.
None of us is perfect in our use of the language. Besides, colorful speech is great fun. Many comedians made their living with it. If we’re at a comedy club or watching an evening sitcom, language’s timing and articulation score big-time chuckles. However, we can’t compare stand-up comedians with today’s hosts selling slacks, or news reporters and pundits discussing critical issues (okay, sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between pundits and comedians, but we’re not going there today). Let’s just agree that Walter Cronkite never said, “snuk in for free,” though Diane Sawyer did – tsk, tsk.
Everyone has strong suits, habits, pet peeves, gifts, penchants ... even OCD has its perks when you’re wall art is off-center. My oldest grandson has perfect pitch. It’s very entertaining. I can’t keep track of Cabinet members but I can recognize 1940s singers after one bar of “Melancholy Baby” – though that may be more annoying to others than fun.
Any person who loves language doesn’t regard its misuse as colorful, and when misuse earns status as new colloquialism, it can be really grating. That’s especially true when we’re expecting something wise and informative. However, even if we’re only shopping for a “pair of pants” and hope to get both legs and not a hot dog (the barking type), we’re entitled to language that doesn’t make us want to hurl (hmm … that one really makes me show my age). And that’s my take.
Have a safe Turkey Day, America – Eat at home.
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