‘When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’ Through the Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll
It may be just me becoming a bit of a grouch, but I’m becoming increasingly irritated with the practice of subverting words in public discourse to disparage something or someone that the speaker doesn’t approve of, or elevate something that they do. BBC commentators are particularly adept at it, but the print media and the blogosphere are just as guilty. And of course vested interests latch on and exploit it like anything.
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