SCHOOL RELEASES 2008 LIST OF USELESS WORDS

NOTE TO SELF: AS A *WORDSMITH*, *IT IS WHAT IT IS* USING CERTAIN WORDS OR PHRASES


Go figure that someone would create a list subscribing that certain words and phrases are useless. We're talking words that most of us have used over time and now they're - Lake Superior State University - suggests that we find others.

In all there are 19 words or phrases that appear in its List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness.

The school in Michigan's Upper Peninsula released its 33rd list Monday, selecting from about 2,000 nominations. This year's list derives from more than 2,000 nominations received through the university's website, www.lssu.edu/banished. Word-watchers target pet peeves from everyday speech, as well as from the news, education, technology, advertising, politics, sports and more. A committee makes a final cut in late December. The list is released on New Year's Day.

Here is the 2008 list:

PERFECT STORM
WEBINAR
WATERBOARDING
ORGANIC
*WORDSMITH/WORDSMITHING
AUTHOR/AUTHORED
POST 9/11
SURGE
GIVE BACK
BLACK FRIDAY
BLANK
BACK IN THE DAY
RANDOM
SWEET
DECIMATE
EMOTIONAL
POP
*IT IS WHAT IT IS
UNDER THE BUS

If you surf on to the university's site here: http://www.lssu.edu/banished/current.php there's a list of who nominated the words i.e. ordinary people who claim they have a pet peeve against one of the above-mentioned words/phrases, and the reasons or rationale behind their distaste for them.

Looking them over can't say that any of them particularly upset me. For me the mere concept of accepting words nominated by...anybody for no good reason, is ludicrous and a reason not to take this seriously. Strikes me that the university is using their annual listing as a ploy to attract potential students.