Posts tagged as:

Congress

NEED-TO-KNOW: information restricted to those who require involvement

May 12, 2013

  This whole faux-controversy over the Bengazi tragedy is reaching the level of comedy.  The event was a tragedy, but the inquiry into the circumstances has left the tragedy behind and is fast moving toward the ridiculous. Clearly the confusion over the initial statements from the government at the time of the attack on the [...]

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EXPEDIENT: fit to fulfill a purpose

April 28, 2013

Every now and then I discover that I’ve been using a word incorrectly.  Being somewhat of a wordsmith, this is embarrassing, to say the least. Such is the case for the word expedient. I have been using this word for years, thinking that it meant speedily, or in good time.  For some reason, there was [...]

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VIOLENCE: an unjust or unwarranted exertion of force or power, as against rights or laws

April 22, 2013

It has been a tough week in America.   Terrorist attack, factory explosions, poisoned mail, shootings, strong public words, and  countless acts of aggression throughout the nation. This all comes at a time of conflict in Congress over such issues as gun control and  immigration. The mixing of these elements has caused me to say to [...]

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MORIBUND [MAWR-uh-buhnd]: dying, near death

April 5, 2013

I came across a comment the other day that struck me as incorrect.  The person wrote that the issue of gun control legislation in Congress was moribund.   As I read on, I discovered that the writer was saying that it was “dead on arrival” on the floor of Congress.   Had he not used this term, [...]

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IGNOMINY [ig-NOM-uh-nee]: shame

April 4, 2013

This word, ignominy, has a variety of pronunciations, but I have chosen the one with which I am most familiar, the emphasis coming on the second syllable.   It is a Latin word which came into English through the French language in the 15th century.   Commonly, it’s meaning is applied to a person or a group [...]

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OLIGARCHY: a government which is dominated by a small group of people

February 25, 2013

The standoff between the White House and Congress is so frustrating to the average person that it is almost debilitating.  Faced with a major cut to the financing of government agencies, some of which are vital to the safety and security of this nation, people have stopped scratching their heads and begun to reach for [...]

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SEQUESTER: to remove or separate

February 22, 2013

     I’ve been waiting for several weeks to tackle this word, hoping that it wouldn’t be necessary.   But it looks as if the inactivity of  Congress on the matter of finance is going to make sequestration a reality, so let’s take a look at the word.  Check out this historical piece from Online Etymology Dictionary. [...]

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ANACHRONISM [uh-NAK-ruh-niz-uhm] : something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time*

February 8, 2013

In another era of my life I had friends who belonged to a group called the Society for Creative Anachronism.  It was a fun-loving band of people who met regularly to recreate Medieval events, including concerts, feasts, demonstrations, and simulated battles from the Middle Ages.  Their costumes and simulated accents, including archaic language patterns, were [...]

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HIGHFALUTIN [hahy-fuh-LOOT-n]: grandiose, pompous, pretentious

January 3, 2013

Highfalutin is one of those words that I didn’t think was a real word.  I thought it was just a nonsense term, but it turns out that it’s legitimate.   Bryan Garner lists the word as an Americanism which dates from the mid-19th century.  That’s about as much about the origin of the word that I [...]

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CLIFF DIVING: a Mexican sport involving huge risks

December 31, 2012

I have to say it clearly and loudly:  I’m afraid of heights.   I always have been. I remember when I was just a kid and went swimming with my best friend and his parents at a place where there was a high dock for a tourist boat to tie up.  Everyone loved to jump off [...]

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