vocabulary lesson
People seem to have a negative view of politics. Not just national politics, but the general concept of politics. As in, "I really like my job. It's just that, you know, the politics sometimes get to me." That authoritative source, wikipedia, says that politics is the "process by which groups make decisions." In other words, every one of us is involved in politics, unless, of course, we're an island. I'm no island, but I do believe that most group decisions manage to protect and preserve the interests of the populace. I imagine the alternative: "I really like my job. It's just that, you know, the anarchy sometimes gets to me." I like this definition of anarchy: "a theoretical state in which there is no governing person or body of persons, but each individual has absolute liberty" (wikipedia, citing OED). Call me crazy, but I prefer politics to absolute liberty. Watching the inauguration today, there were definitely moments that suggested that our new president shares that preference. That's good news for our country, I hope. I hope.
Vocab lesson, part 2. "Stricken," according to Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, is " afflicted or overwhelmed by or as if by disease, misfortune, or sorrow." So I suppose that the media was right to publish this breaking news headline: "Kennedy stricken at Obama luncheon on Hill." Other headlines also used the word "stricken" to describe Kennedy's unfortunate seizure. Somehow the word seems a poor choice. I understand the need to find an imprecise word for reporting an event which had not yet been definitively identified as a seizure. But "stricken" can also mean "hit or wounded by or as if by a missile," and I think the phrasing of the headlines seems to suggest that the Obama luncheon was somehow at fault for the senator's health issues today--like maybe he'd eaten some poisoned lobster bisque or something. The funny thing is, I can't think of a legitimate substitution. Even "fell ill" seems inaccurate for the event, and that phrase is usually a pretty ambiguous catch-all for health-related troubles.
Finally: "O-Bomb-Ah!" doesn't make for a very good chant, in my opinion. It just sounds dumb, I think. "Buh-Rock!" isn't any better, and "B! O! B! O!" is a bit unfortunate.
Vocab lesson, part 2. "Stricken," according to Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, is " afflicted or overwhelmed by or as if by disease, misfortune, or sorrow." So I suppose that the media was right to publish this breaking news headline: "Kennedy stricken at Obama luncheon on Hill." Other headlines also used the word "stricken" to describe Kennedy's unfortunate seizure. Somehow the word seems a poor choice. I understand the need to find an imprecise word for reporting an event which had not yet been definitively identified as a seizure. But "stricken" can also mean "hit or wounded by or as if by a missile," and I think the phrasing of the headlines seems to suggest that the Obama luncheon was somehow at fault for the senator's health issues today--like maybe he'd eaten some poisoned lobster bisque or something. The funny thing is, I can't think of a legitimate substitution. Even "fell ill" seems inaccurate for the event, and that phrase is usually a pretty ambiguous catch-all for health-related troubles.
Finally: "O-Bomb-Ah!" doesn't make for a very good chant, in my opinion. It just sounds dumb, I think. "Buh-Rock!" isn't any better, and "B! O! B! O!" is a bit unfortunate.
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