Everybody should stop saying these things:
"I could care less"
"It's besides the point"
"Nucular"
Any others?
"Poor kids are as talented as white kids."
share
MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Everybody should stop saying these thing...
i've accepted that 'nucular' will never die. i think it just has to innately feel right in some linguistics way i don't understand. i still hear it all the time, from smart people who you'd think would know better, and i still flinch just a bit every time...but i think that's one where we should maybe make peace with its use.
shareNever give up the battle against mediocrity.
sharei guess you could look at it that way, but i think there are things worthy of correction & concern and things you can let slide.
i guess you could take a 'broken windows' view and say that if you let that slide, you're just opening the door for all kinds of malapropisms. it's not a malapropism in the true meaning of the word, but it's like that. maybe. i dunno. but if feels to me that nucular is one of those verbal quirks that have worked its way in and won't die.
now if you wanna go to war over the correct use of i & me, i will march in lockstep with you, cuz that is something that needs some serious work.
all i am really saying ultimately is that, in life, it's usually a good idea to not sweat the small stuff, and this seems like small stuff.
shareYep. Don't sweat the petty things, and don't pet the sweaty things.
shareha! that's a new one for me. i will absolutely be using that in the future. i'll be sure to give you full credit.
sharea few weeks back, i was listening to a podcast with damon linker, who's a smart guy & bursting with insight & knowledge on all kinds of big topics.
yet he said 'nucular' at least three times during the show.
so if a smartypants like damon linker can't stop himself from saying nucular, then i'm prepared to say 'let's make our peace with that one.'
Nevah!!!
shareA local TV/radio personality is contemplating a run for governor. I happened to have his morning radio show on one day. There was a comment by his producer about the British Royal family. I forget which person they were talking about, but the possible-run-for-governor guy said he'd never heard of that person. I don't remember now exactly which family member it was, but it was someone such as Prince Philip or Prince William - obviously known to most people. They may not know much about them, but at least they know who they are.
I was stunned to hear the guy say he didn't know who they are. All I could think was, "You're in the broadcast media and you don't know who this particular prominent member of the British Royal family is?" Wow. 👀
It’s not small at all. I will never yield to illiteracy. Ever.
Unless you favor continuing to breed stupid people, which is probably not good for either the species or the planet.
well, i think that seems a little harsh.
most people are average. by definition. and average people will make an average amount of mistakes, and below average people will make even more of them. if that's the way it is then that's the way it is. you have to take the world as it's given to you, not as you want it to be.
there are some mistakes that are truly high-stakes & important, where you ought to apply all kinds of rigor & high standards for sure.
i want the best & brightest running nuclear plants, for eg.
this isn't one of those situations.
if you're above average and make no mistakes, then you're lucky. you're blessed. i wish i was as good as you. i'm definitely not that kind of person.
i think it's better to approach life with a bit more understanding of people who aren't as talented as you are.
Everyone makes mistakes. But some never learn. That's the difference.
Getting back to the OT of this thread... how many times have they been told that "nuclear" is not pronounced "nucular," yet they continue to do it?
but if they don't learn, that may simply mean they can't learn. maybe they're dim. if people who make mistakes are dim, they can't control that, & i don't think people should be held accountable for things they can't control.
and maybe the nucular thing is mispronunciation that is there because it feels like it should be pronounced that way. maybe it's similar to other words & that's carried over.
the fact that so many people make that 'mistake' suggests to me that it's just something that 'feels right' in a linguistic sense. maybe. i dunno.
what i do know for sure is that no one's life is materially made worse because someone says 'nucular.' it may grate on your ears. but it doesn't really hurt you.
i think it's better to be more accepting of such things. life is fleeting, and maybe you'll be a happier person if you try to be more accepting of things you can't control that don't really hurt you.
you can control that reaction you have, maybe. maybe not, but you can try. & you have better odds of changing that than making people say words correctly or stopping people from getting tattoos.
This discussion is not about tattoos. Why did you bring that up?
sharebecause we had a discussion about that recently too.
like this discussion, it's a case where people are doing something that you don't seem to like. fine. you're entitled to your preferences. but people wanting them, liking them. fancying girls with them...that doesn't hurt you either.
you may do things other people don't like. don't we all? you'd like it if people accepted your quirks, i hope. everyone should do the same imo.
i'm arguing for the golden rule, essentially. be cool. be accepting of differences.
serenity prayer and all that.
anyway, i'm off to get my teeth cleaned.
happy moviechatting to you in the meantime.
Good luck with the dentist.
"...it's a case where people are doing something that you don't seem to like."
If you are still referring to tattoos, it's a case where people are doing permanent damage to their bodies. I would classify that as a major issue, not a harmless "quirk." And I'm seeing celebrities and pro athletes doing this, which is further encouraging this destructive behavior. Someone needs to speak out about it.
but clearly they don't think it's destructive.
it's something they're consciously choosing for themselves. i don't know why - i can't see into their hearts and minds but i'm really glad they made that choice cuz looking at girls that have them is one of my favourite things to do.
you are not the template for how everyone has to run their life. the glory of living in a relatively free country with a relatively free market is that we all get to run our own experiments, live our own lives as we see fit.
it may be messy and chaotic, but it's the greatest way of bringing prosperity and satisfaction & happiness to the greatest number of people.
lots of people do things i think are bizarre. there are guys who get off by inserting toothbrushes into their urethra. now that's some weird shit. seems silly to me, but i am not the person who knows what will make them satisfied. they are the experts on how to run their own lives, & even if i don't understand or even sometimes respect their choices, i respect their autonomy & wish them the best.
& i'm glad we all get to live in a place where we get to navigate our own paths.
"...but clearly they don't think it's destructive."
de·struc·tive: (adjective) causing great and irreparable harm or damage.
(source: Oxford Dictionaries)
The definition speaks for itself.
There have been plenty of ridiculous fads and fashions in the past, but for the most part they were harmless. A silly hairstyle or dye job grows out, and goofy-looking clothing can be sent to the thrift store. But this stuff we are now seeing (mainly within the past five years) has crossed the line into the point of "irreparable harm or damage", as the definition states.
With "freedom of choice" comes the responsibility to make the right choices. Destructive behavior is not one of them.
I post these comments because I am concerned about the direction our society is headed. Somebody needs to speak out about it and counter all the rubbish seen in the media.
Or maybe I should just stop caring and let society flush itself down the toilet. I had thought the 21st Century would have been an era of forward progress. I guess I've been reading too much science fiction.
you are not the final authority on what the right choices are for anyone other than yourself.
for the people who get them and the people who enjoy looking at them, there is no harm.
some people might come to regret them i suppose. we all have to live with regrets. i've got lots of those myself. i'm not gonna itemize them for you, but if i had a tattoo i regretted, i promise you it still wouldn't stack up to a tenth of the impact of my biggest regrets.
i know lots of people with tattoos, some modest, some covered in them. i don't know anyone who's expressed regret, including the ones well into middle age.
so for those people there isn't anyone being harmed. no one is damaged.
the only damage we've established is your unhappiness, because you don't like them. & that leads me back to suggesting that you worry less about things that don't hurt you and don't hurt anyone else.
there are lots of things i worry about. people doing things they enjoy that don't hurt anyone else isn't one of them.
"...no one is damaged."
Do I need to post the above definition again? We're talking about permanent damage to someone's skin. And injecting an unnatural foreign substance (ink) into ones body could have eventual side-effects. Has anyone ever considered that?
"the only damage we've established is your unhappiness..."
Thank you, Dr. Sigmund Freud, but I didn't ask for your amateur psychoanalysis.
I'm coming to the conclusion that you just like to argue, or like to hear yourself talk. I'm not going to waste any more of my time on this discussion. Bye.
If you wish to discuss movies or other topics, that's fine.
i'm not here to argue. far from it. anyone can look at my posting history and see that's not what i'm here for.
bad arguments exist to be criticized. as it should be. the alternative is to give all points of view equal footing, which is a path to madness only.
calling something that people like doing, that makes them happy and more attractive, damage is a misuse of that word, plain and simple.
damage means impaired.
in their eyes, and in my eyes, they're improved.
that is a matter of taste, not a matter of fact.
de gustibus non disputandum est.
happy moviechatting to you anyway.
"Dollars to donuts" Donuts have cost more than a dollar for a long long time now.
Maybe "Benjamins to Biscuits" should get fetch.
"It happened on accident".
"Don't you have anything better else to do?"
"You did really good."
I don't think I've ever heard anyone say the second one. But the others? Yep.
My petty thing is "I'm waiting on the mail" or "I'm waiting on Jim." Whatever happened to "I'm waiting FOR the mail" or "I'm waiting for Jim?" In my book, if you're waiting on someone it means you're a server or a sales clerk.
I know a few people who say the second one. One guy specifically and it drives me insane.
shareI can't stand that "waiting on" expression either. It means to assist someone, as you said.
sharePerhaps because the phrase "I'm waiting for Jim" could imply that Jim needed to wait for something but lacked the time so you are doing the waiting FOR him.
sharei swear i'm not trying to be difficult, but i actually like those. i don't know why, but it feels like a really appealing twist - 'i'm waiting on that rice cooker.' 'i'm waiting on that site to refresh.' it has a nice, casual flow to it.
shareI'm tired of everything being "amazing" - such an overused word.
share1) "My body my choice" (do I need to explain?🙄)
2) "That's too bad" (shows a lack of decency, empathy, and compassion).
3) "I can do what I want" (childish response used mostly by bratty kids angry over not getting their way).
4) "That's a stupid Question". (That response is stupid leadership and stupid communication skills. Don't say it, it's childish).
I thought you wrote "awesome." That's one that's sure overused.
share"unprecedented" - We learned a new word because of the COVID-19 pandemic reports and now have to use it everywhere. Like a child with a new toy.
"snowflakes" - This quickly became tiresome and should have been retired long ago.
"besties," "whatevs" and other lazy, childish expressions. You are "best friends." And the word is "whatever." Are people really that lazy that they can't pronounce one extra syllable?
I don't like 'whatever' anyway.
It's rude and dismissive in some contexts, and in others signals that you've lost an argument because you have nothing intelligent to add.