Monday 20 February 2023

Euphemisms in Short Quotes



He now spouts respectably opaque management-speak.
 (Times on Saxondale, 2007. The ex-roadie also opined that "Sometimes it's time to hand in your gun and badge".) 

"Simple" is sometimes a euphemism for a really bad idea. (@Doctrine_Man)

"Disagreeing agreeably" is just agreeing. (@mynnoj)

I've said it before and I'll say it again – "Be kind" is "Shut up" with a pink bow on. (@bar_jen)

Men can have interests and hobbies, women "obsess"(@library_fae)

What’s the difference between assertive and aggressive? Your gender. (@DrProudman)

Gritty can mean something close to grotty. (Anne Treneman)

Hang on who decided that woke people are a brigade and twitter people are a mob?
 (@davemacladd)

The term ‘socialising’ actually means drinking heavily, it has emerged. (Daily Mash)

UN staff told to use “military offensive” and “conflict” instead of “invasion” and “war”.
 (Mar 2022)

Educational preparedness is usually code for white middle-class norming(@DrBritWilliams, paraphrase. He prefers the "earnestness" of poor and black students.)

Interesting how all the “free thinkers” have the same opinions on everything. (@Seerutkchawla)

Admin” is often code for “boring tasks”. (@AutisticCallum_)

I think "nuanced" is the "get out of jail" card. It's to academics what "just bants" is to footballers. 
(@RowlesDavis)

"Complex realities"? "Wildly conflicting claims", more like! (@thames_pilgrim)

'Tough decisions' never seem to involve tax havens, tax avoidance, tax evasion etc. (@RedJohnBounds)

Never forget how much lifting “get over it” does for “get away with it.” (@KirosAuld)

It’s not quite what I had in mind.” Translation: What the bloody H is this? (@SoVeryBritish)

Continuing our deliciously mischievous series by a top celebrity writer. (Daily Mail. Dirt, scandal.)

V.S. Naipaul belongs to the late 20th century triumph of that cult of sophistication which worshipped the artist as a “complex human being” (ie bastard). (James Marriott, Times May 2022)

Absolutely not a Windfall Tax, goodness me no, it's a Non-recurring Opportunity Levy, I'd appreciate your cooperation in this sensitive matter. (@BrynleyHeaven. And a “windfall tax” is a “windfall tax rebate”.)

'It's time we moved on' really does mean 'It's time we pretended this never happened'. (Justin Lewis @WhenIsBirths)

On the day after the Uvalde shooting, Ted Cruz says people shouldn’t “politicize” the event or offer “immediate solutions” – like tightening gun laws. 

"Lazy workers" is a fun way of saying "effective unions which mean people aren't treated like garbage". (@PerthshireMags)

God helps those who help themselves? Sometimes a polite way of saying people shouldn't be so lazy! (Noreen Marshall)

We can vote for non-scary sounding "home rule" as opposed to scary-sounding "independence" as much as we like. (@PeterArnottGlas)

The United Kingdom? There wasn’t a union. There isn’t a union. There is a colonial power and colonies. (@gourockianoutl1)

We need a new narrative about nuclear power. (The Register. As we used to say, “Nuclear power needs a new image”.)

The demand to keep politics out of art is too often a demand for art to conform to conservative politics. (Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, headline)

What many people call “shadow banning,” Twitter executives and employees call “Visibility Filtering”. (@bariweiss)

PSA: If your job advert lists ‘resilience’ as a pre-requisite then there’s a serious problem.  (@lisaharveysmith. They once asked for candidates who were "used to dealing with difficult people".)

Do not ask others to be more resilient if what you mean is to suffer more quietly. (@dremilyanhalt)

More here, and links to the rest.

No comments:

Post a Comment