For 2024 my list of banned words and phrases once again includes some from my readers and from other sources. As previously, some of my choices come from Lake Superior State University. This year Frank Bruni has also provided contributions. Not surprisingly, some are “gifts” from Joe Biden or politics in general. One is a word I banned in 2021 but folks persist in using it, so I’m banning it again. Hope springs eternal. (Maybe I’ll ban that phrase next year…) Here are my ten entries for 2024.
Let’s begin with my repeat word: “woke”. It appeared on many lists for 2021. Unfortunately, there was little agreement on what it means. Some said it meant you paid attention to social and racial justice issues, but the meanings of those depended on your politics. As a result the word was hijacked by extremes on both the right and the left. I’m continuing to advocate for banning it altogether.
The COVID pandemic was the source of a phrase that I find useless: “quiet quitting.” Many people chose to work from home to stay safe. Once the danger was over, they didn’t put in the same effort at the office as they had before they discovered how much they preferred working at home. Managers describe this reduced work ethic as “quiet quitting.” I say, get rid of the phrase by removing the employees if they’re not carrying their fair share of the workload.
Next we have one of Joe Biden’s favorites. I’ve included several of these in previous lists. This one was provided by a reader. “Look” is what Biden often uses when what he really means is “listen.” Or maybe even stop and listen.
Another reader suggestion is “impact” or “impactful.” Since this is not a word of my choosing I’ll just assume that its inclusion will have an impact on some of you.
Keeping in the political lane, I’m tired of hearing “time is of the essence.” Time is always of the essence when it comes to happenings in DC but essence of what? This was particularly true in 2023 when it came to negotiating the roadblock over the federal budget to prevent a government shutdown. It took Republicans 15 ballots to elect their new speaker. Time wasn’t part of their essence and we’ll deep six that phrase.
On a more positive note, I’m retiring “inflection point” because I want to preserve it for the singular use of describing President Biden’s Inflection Point Address on October 19, 2023. It’s been called the most significant of his presidency. An inflection point is a moment when leaders can have a significant influence on shaping the future for decades. Biden skillfully connected Russia’s criminal war in Ukraine with Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel to buttress support for the US position on these conflicts.
I’ve never been quite sure what qualifies something to be an “unforced error”. I sort of get it when I listen to tennis play-by-plays. But lately it’s been showing up in critiques of political activity and candidate’s speeches. I really don’t understand what makes something a forced error, so I’m certainly not in a position to label one unforced. It makes sense to just ban it.
My next two selections are motivated by activities that I’d like to banish along with the words. Political activists are practicing “groupthink” in the extreme. Their attitude is to ban any independent thinking or creativity among their adherents. This tends to shut out new arrivals and ethnic minorities. In their quest for consensus, group thinkers practice “it’s my way or the highway.” Escape them via the nearest highway off-ramp.
A by-product of groupthink is “cancel culture”. If proponents of groupthink don’t like the behavior or attitudes of celebrities or other public figures, they encourage their own followers to withdraw all support for those figures. The worst part of this is that what’s considered “socially acceptable” is what the group thinkers decide it is. As a result, some creative culture gets cancelled before it’s had its day in the sun.
The efforts to redevelop the land on Maui and parts of California after the devastating wildfires have led me to ban another activity along with a word. We should find ways to help those whose homes were destroyed to be able to rebuild them. Instead wealthy investors are gobbling up the land and gentrifying previously affordable neighborhoods. Fie on “gentrify!” And fie on the other nine entries on this year’s list!
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