tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343608.post8950684317704798164..comments2024-03-27T16:02:25.334-05:00Comments on Orange Crate Art: The Banned ListMichael Leddyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05547732736861224886noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343608.post-6729968701424931162011-06-15T23:49:27.650-05:002011-06-15T23:49:27.650-05:00Norman, I think you’ve made a case for leverage.
...Norman, I think you’ve made a case for <i>leverage</i>.<br /><br />I’d like to see all instances of “at the end of the day” replaced by a bit of the great old song <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFbbpqpWtUg" rel="nofollow">“When Day Is Done.”</a>Michael Leddyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05547732736861224886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343608.post-1790346603490809582011-06-15T22:53:37.490-05:002011-06-15T22:53:37.490-05:00I agree that nearly all the words and phrases on t...I agree that nearly all the words and phrases on the list are trite. There is, however, absolutely nothing wrong with "leverage" as a verb, especially as a past participle (highly leveraged banks, households, etc.), since it is a technical term for describing indebtedness relative to equity (the Basel III capital adequacy rules will include a leverage ratio).<br /><br />On the other hand, "at the end of the day" has prompted me to reopen my menagerie of peeves. When I hear it, it makes me gag, and I simply cannot abide it in print. I once had to "quality assure" a translation from German of an analysis of two gas contracts under EC law. There was, alas, no quality to assure. The translator was unaware that all European Court of Justice decisions are available on the net in all Community languages at the time in question (from which he could have cut and pasted, rather than produce his own botched mistranslations, which were thus misquotations), as is all EU legislation, that "Amtsblatt" is the "Official Journal", etc. but the offense that really got my goat was that he invariably translated "schließlich" ("ultimately" etc.) as "at the end of the day".normannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17358715755873851074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343608.post-26997797781428890202011-06-14T10:39:43.072-05:002011-06-14T10:39:43.072-05:00Pete, thanks for making the distinction. I use key...Pete, thanks for making the distinction. I use <i>key</i> as a direct modifier. I’m with you: the predicate adjective sounds bad (maybe because that <i>key</i> sounds like a noun missing its <i>the</i>?).Michael Leddyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05547732736861224886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343608.post-75930582203357478312011-06-14T10:22:47.013-05:002011-06-14T10:22:47.013-05:00"Key" is perfectly fine as a direct modi..."Key" is perfectly fine as a direct modifier ("a key ingredient") but what drives me crazy is when it's used as a stand-alone ("Their zone defense is very key.") Sportscasters seem particularly prone to the latter.Petehttp://www.petelit.comnoreply@blogger.com