The stunning use of words that few of us understand drives me nuts!  Just because you graduated from a college or university (and I did) does not give you a license to keep lording your brightness over the rest of us.

I am particularly annoyed by the people who tell me they have just read another 300 page book in the last three days or less.  Then they go on to tell me they read three books a week.

I was interested in reading The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged until I found that those books each have more than 1,000 pages.  I started reading David McCullough’s John Adams until I learned of the HBO mini-series.  The film version might have lacked some of the descriptive detail but I most certainly learned a considerable amount about John Adams and his life.

Why must people use the word “ludicrous” when “ridiculous” or “stupid” will convey the same meaning?  Another word I cannot stand is “plethora.”  It sounds so scholarly, but “erudite” sounds even more scholarly than “scholarly.”              

This brings me to “Virtuosity.”  In this week’s Newsweek there is an article about Bernard Arnault, the owner of Christian Dior and other well known clothing brands.  Robin Givhan, the author of the article, wrote: “Haute couture, the craft of handmade garments, is sup­posed to be the pinnacle of fashion-the concept car of the garment business. This show was meant to be an expression of a couturier’s most dazzling, singular vision-clothes as they could be. But such virtuosity was missing.

What the heck is Virtuosity? The American Heritage Dictionary definition is “1. The Technical skill, fluency, or style exhibited by a virtuoso. 2. An appreciation for or an interest in fine objects of art.  Why didn’t Ms. Givhan simply say the show was disappointing or lacked the level of skill or ability she had expected?  Well because “Virtuosity” says it all and besides most people don’t know the meaning of the word but recognize that it is a criticism and says it with one empathic word.

Moreover, it may make you sound smarter than the rest of us.

Scott Pelley on tonight’s “60 Minutes” provided viewers with a story about Lance Armstrong, the champion cyclist.  Mr. Pelley started the piece by calling Lance Armstrong a hero.

Based upon his definition every sports champion is a hero.  That would include Hines Ward of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Joe Lewis, Elroy Hirsch, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Manny Ramirez,  Jose Canseco, and Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

I beg to differ.  All of the above sports personalities performed their tasks magnificently but none were heroic.  They sacrificed nothing but their own energy.

Look at these definitions: 1) A man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities. 2) A person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal: He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child.

Soldiers are heroic when they fall over their buddies to protect them.  The firemen who went up the WTC when everyone else was rushing to leave those buildings were heroes.

I like Kathleen Parker, the Washington Post columnist, but she is not a good speaker.  She was interviewed on CNN’s John King’s USA program just prior to the president’s State of the Union speech.  In that interview she used the words “you know” at least five times. The interview lasted about three minutes.  Compare her speaking skills with John King, Eliot Spitzer, or any of the guests on Parker Spitzer and you quickly realize she needs some help.

“You know” is one of the most commonly used phrases when a speaker is trying to decide what the next words she wants to say.  In other words, these are filler words.  Other common fillers are “UM…ER…AH…”

The solution to this dilemma is participation in Toastmasters.  This international organization will help you to become a better speaker.  You could become an outstanding speaker.  Toastmasters chapters are in cities throughout the world.  This isn’t just a male thing.  Consider Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann as examples of women who are outstanding speakers.  The best speaker I know is a woman with a serious hearing loss. Linnaea Mallette       holds an advanced certification from Toastmasters.  Her Read My Lips Tips for Success web site is in my Blogroll.

Kathleen Parker! Do you hear me!

Mark Twain wrote that “the difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter.” A new edition of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer will try to find out if that holds true by replacing the N-word with “slave” in an effort not to offend readers.
 

The N-word is Nigger. It is an offensive word. It is also a word that was in common use during the 19th century. According to the publisher, NewSouth Books, the N-word appears 219 times in “Huck Finn” and four times in “Tom Sawyer.” In addition to replacing the N-word, the publisher changes the villain in “Tom Sawyer” from “Injun Joe” to “Indian Joe” and “half-breed” becomes “half-blood.”
 

Recently a voice was recorded at a California Democratic party planning meeting for the upcoming governor’s election. Someone was heard calling the GOP opponent a “whore.” That recording was re-played repeatedly on radio and television.
 

Ray Bradbury’s book, Fahrenheit 451, is about censorship and those who ban books for fear of creating too much individualism and independent thought. In late 1998, this book was removed from the required reading list of the West Marion High School in Foxworth, Mississippi. A parent complained of the use of the words “God damn” in the book. Subsequently, the superintendent instructed the the teacher to remove the book from the required reading list.
 

Many have read John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath. Several months after the book’s publication, a St. Louis, MO library ordered 3 copies to be burned for the vulgar words used by its characters. It was also banned in Kansas City and in Oklahoma.
 

Favorite plays have depicted things we don’t like with language we find hateful but realistic. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and A Street Car Named Desire come to mind.

If you don’t like to hear or read those words no one is forcing you. Just don’t take away my freedom to make the choice.

Clichés are a prominent part of our use of language. The fact of the matter is they are the overused part of our lexicon.  That expression was used six times today on Meet the Press.  Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu used that terminology five times.  New Orleans Talk Radio host Garland Robinette used it once.

A very nice lady, who might be reading my blog, uses the words “come on” when she is frustrated with the discussion and lacks the language skills.  Her, I excuse, because she was born in Egypt and has lived part of her adult life in Brazil and Japan. But, come on Americans.  It’s time we learned how to use our language.

This is a good time to give my pitch for Toastmasters.  You will improve your speaking skills and most likely receive applause from your boss.