It's that wonderful time of the year when we get to decide on words and phrases, such as "wonderful time of the year," that should be banned forever:
In its annual effort to protect the Queen's English, a Michigan university is insisting that "shovel ready" be buried, "tweet" be tossed and all "czars" be banished.
Lake Superior State University shamed those and several other words and phrases Thursday when it released its 2009 List of Words to Be Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-use, Over-use and General Uselessness.
Also on the univeristy's list of 35 banned words: transparency, sexting, teachable moment and app. Left alone this year: death panel and low-hanging fruit. The story notes that the university's word isn't final: "Those previously banished don't necessarily remain in the lexiconical hereafter. There is still life left, deserved or not, for '24/7' (which made the list in 2000), 'it is what it is' (2008), 'happy camper' (1993), 'LOL' (2004) and 'state of the art' (1993)."
My own list would be headed by "new normal," "Wall Street/Main Street" and anything to do with "green," especially "carbon footprint" and the detestable "green shoots." And we should all be thankful that some truly awful constructions won't hang around because they refer to specific, one-time things, e.g. "Balloon Boy" and "Octomon."
