I was listening to the morning radio show on the local pop station this morning, pretty-much because it always reminds me that I'm smarter than most of the sheepish population of our city. I know, that's arrogant, but it's the truth. I'm assuming most of the people who read this blog are pretty smart, or at least life-savvy as well, therefore you shouldn't feel as if I'm talking down to you.
So the morning show has this thing called Dumb Question Amnesty Day... Where basically listeners can call in and ask stupid questions, and not be laughed at for not knowing the answers.
Well, this particular morning, before the DJs even started taking calls from listeners, the female lead "on air personality" posed her own question: "Why do we say 'lambasted', when we really just mean talking smack". Now, I'm paraphrasing a bit, but you'll get the gist. She then went on to say, "I mean, doesn't the word 'lambasted' make it look like we're talking about basting lambs?"... Yes, people, she said that, to which the male lead "on air personality" responded. "Well, I mean, who TALKS like that anyway?! I mean, who would say 'oh, you lambasted him', when you can just say "man, I was doggin' on this guy!"....
Really?
Well, Mr. On Air Personality, I talk like that, you daft troglodite! I use words like "lambasted", "enunciate", "cerebral", "aforementioned", etc in my every day conversation, and that does not make me a pretentious dick wad. It means I read, am educated, and have an appreciation for the English language; which, might I add, I do not wish to see devolve in to nothing but l33t speak and street slang. Oh, by the way Mr. On Air Personality, 'devolve' means to de-evolve, to spiral down, to become less great. Okay? Thanks.
I'm sorry, but ignorance and the propagation of ignorance are things that really "grind my gears" ( thank you Seth MacFarlane ) when it comes to society in general, and especially to the preponderance of bombardment of Pop-Culture hoopla, which seems to be rife with some form of anti-intellectual "newspeak".
Everybody, please, read or watch 1984, and maybe you'll start to be concerned about this kind of thing as much as your humble bloggist.
that is all for now
end of line ( yay Tron )
Chris
I agree whole-heartedly.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the "newspeak" issue. It really is very scary.
ReplyDeleteUGH. It's like the people I talk to who have no idea what I'm saying. They ask me to ""speak english because I say things like "ergo", "nonchalant", "corporeal" in normal conversation.
ReplyDeleteI shouldn't have to dumb myself down just to function around people too ignorant to understand that education and mentally oriented past-times (like reading) aren't for "geeks" or "over achievers". Losers, if you will.
The real loser is someone too stubborn and wrapped up in the media-society that tells them who to be and what to enjoy to actually better themselves in a meaningful way.
I'm glad you've brought this up. Too often people grow complacent with what MTV tells them and they end up losing out. We're the ones who pay the immediate price, we intellectuals (or anti-dumbasses).. but I'm glad to say that, in the end, we are the ones to make it out on top.
I'm going to be an English teacher so I can try to nurture this newer generation to enjoy reading and enjoy spelling "you" and "are" with all of the correct letters. I'm doing my part to better society.. Most people just make it worse.
UGH THANK YOU. I love 1984, though its stern warning of the future seems to be quite ignored. It seems like it's taking less and less to be considered an intellectual these days; the fact that our ever-advancing technology and scientific knowledge is constantly overshadowed by the mass propagation of misinformation and ignorance never ceases to astound me.
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