Werds ][c

A podder I like refers to some beer brands as "battle lager". I *suspect* he means they are of the potent variety, potentially causing drinkers to become fighty. You hear claims about certain spirits making peeps unnaturely violent. I have an old school chum who won't touch rum for that reason. Is it true?

In a Skype group this morning, an erstwhile colleague shared a clip of a George Carlin routine about the gradual over-softening of modern language. "Minimally exceptional" was a newie for me. Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting to avoid giving offence. The trouble arises if politely obscuring leads to actively deceiving. Then you're in "weasel words" territory.

But let's keep things light. When I was training to be a museum tour guide, the boss-cocky was an extremely courteous fellow. A patron threw up once, and he reported it to the rest of the staff thusly: "I'm afraid we have some errant stomach contents..."