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With all due respect, your word choice couldn't be worse

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By JOE O'NEILL

Tribune correspondent

Published: November 11, 2009

"With all due respect."

When, quite candidly, was the last time that phrase ever preceded anything remotely respectful? It's a rhetorical staple on political talk shows - and a predictable press conference preface to a skewering query.

"With all due respect, Mr. President, didn't that Nobel Prize take you by surprise for good reason?"

"With all due respect, Gov. Crist, if you had a core value other than smiley self-interest, do you really think we would be talking about Marco Rubio right now?"

"With all due respect, Mayor Iorio, how can you countenance Tampa having a Signature Drunkfest? Proposed Gasparilla changes appear to be, with all due respect, Band-Aids. Why, with all due respect, should a 400,000-spectator parade be allowed to invade residential neighborhoods?"

WADR is one of those consummately annoying phrases. In this case, it's faux deference that is as transparently disingenuous as it is blatantly trite.

And there are, of course, many other such expressions that can strike discordant notes in all of us, ranging from the hackneyed to the redundant to the ungrammatical. They come at us from the workplace ("at the end of the day," "it's not rocket science"), the battlefield ("surgical strike"), sports ("take 'em one at a time," "back on their heels"), politics ("grass roots", "faith-based," "Joe Six Pack") and popular culture ("24/7," "Like, you know ...").

In no particular order here are more words and phrases that should be phased out. Some have political connotations. Some are just pop-culture verbal crutches. Some give cliche a bad name. Others are disrespectful, inaccurate or just dumb.

How about a sports-context moratorium on all references to "swagger," "hero" and "warrior," whether by coaches, players or media types?

Surely, the intent is not to speak approvingly of boorish, arrogant attitudes and antics. Nor can there be intent to show disrespect to real "heroes" and "warriors" - especially during a time of war - by ascribing qualities of real courage to those who merely play games.

And while we're still in the sports arena, a couple more.

Don't forget "blue collar." It's racial shorthand. To wit: "He (white athlete) is one of those 'blue collar' players. He won't beat you with his athleticism, but he's like a coach on the field. He gets the most out of his (melanin-challenged) ability."

And then there's "The Man Upstairs." It has always seemed a little too colloquial for The Creator. Frequently invoked for really important games. As in: "I want to thank 'The Man Upstairs' for helping us win the championship. Couldn't have done it without Him." Needless to say, this sacrilegiously presumes skewed earthly priorities for The Deity. Also implies that opponent may have been infidels unworthy of heavenly intervention.

"Walk the walk, talk the talk." Bring back "talk is cheap" if you truly must traffic in the trite.

"Star." Ideally, for celestial references only. Entertainment celebs are not "stars," although many do seemingly inhabit their own universe.

"Rock star." If we must, but can't we at least confine this mischaracterization to rock 'n' rollers? Unless, of course, the popularity of a politician is, indeed, that superficial.

"Reality TV." Even though everyone is well aware they are being filmed and there are working scripts, this really is reality. Only on TV.

Joe O'Neill can be contacted at www.opinionstogoonline

.com or moesez@aol.com.

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