My biggest button in the abuse of language is the refusal to duplicate something said, such as a question, which to my mind is symptomatic of serious aberration in communication skills. Reporter asks President Bush, "Are you satisfied with Robert X's performance?" This is a yes or no question. Answer: " "We are proud of all the people working around the clock....". Do you see an answer to the question in there somewhere? Nope.

This evasiveness and refusal to copy the question asked correctly, answering instead some other imagined question, is true nutsiness.

Obsessive alteration isn't just limited to questions. You tell someone you will meet them at 3 at the corner of Fifth and Main and they copy it as "I might be there sometime this afternoon, or somewhere else, whatever....:". Drives ya nuts, doesn't it? Especially in a working environment where you depend on straight information relay. If you have a boss who does this it is even worse!!

And the reason it drives ya nuts?? Because it IS nuts. It is the essence of nutsiness.

Rant off.

A