British Bill of Rights: for MPs this is code for riding a white horse to Brussels and on to Strasbourg, bayonet in hand, to declare war on the entire European human rights edifice. Anne Treneman, Times, February 16, 2011
Building Stable Communities: [Dame Shirley] Porter left the country, and is still essentially a fugitive from justice, yet her approach [moving council tenants to outer boroughs] would be extremely influential on later Conservative and New Labour policy, where wholesale transfers of council tenants from inner to outer boroughs would accompany the selling off of council housing. Porter called her gerrymandering Building Stable Communities; Labour called it Building Sustainable Communities. @owenhatherley
calm (as in “has appealed for calm”) = not hitting people
cooperate: “I mean obey my commands! That’s what cooperate means when you’re Prime Minister!” (Yes, Prime Minister)
downward adjustment in living standards: fall @goodcopybadcopy
firebrand = troublemaker
human rights = to a Daily Mail reader, means “treating prisoners and criminals too leniently”
marginalise: A lot of these guys were marginalised – ie imprisoned – as “incorrect philosophers” in the Soviet era, but now they have been rehabilitated. Tim Dowling on the Russian Cosmists, April 11, 2011
occupy: Language used by BBC hilarious. #Gaddafi "occupies" territory, rebels "liberate" it. Gaddafi kills "civilians" (who wear uniform) #Libya @politicsworld
people: Remember Ian Paisley's refrain “the people of Northern Ireland”? Meaning Protestant people of a particular party. @hughpearman
reprofiling: They decided instead on a “reprofiling” of Greek debt – a euphemism for rescheduling payments that many take to mean a debt restructuring. Week
restraint = please don’t fire on your own citizens (restraint is always "urged")
robust = sexist
stability = no wars or revolutions
strident views = unacceptable/controversial/batty/crazily right-wing views (no longer code for feminist)
More here, here, here, here, here and here.
