Of all the silly speech affectations of the past few decades (it’s an inexplicable modern phenomenon) probably nothing is as bad as “window of opportunity”. In recent years this frequently has been shortened to just “window”.
I’ve yet to read it when it hasn’t been 100% superfluous.
The New Zealand Herald, writing of progress on a Wellington region motorway, quotes something called Waka Kotahi, presumably named after the pre-European maori road building organisation, something I was hitherto unaware about, quotes Waka Kotahi’s Transport Services General Manager, Brett Gliddon.
There’s another example of my point. General Manager would have been sufficient without the added verbiage.
Brett reassured the Herald journalist on the completion date saying, “these assurances were made in spite of the short window of time remaining…”
What was wrong with “the short time remaining?” How did including bloody window add anything.
If the project does exceed its scheduled delivery date, the single cause could be the time wasted by Brett in talking gibberish when giving instructions.
21 Comments
So true, unfortunately he’s as useless as those running CSL
Got to laugh at CSLs website mission logo
THE COMPANY AND THE PEOPLE
KEEPING NEW ZEALANDERS MOVING.
No matter how harsh the present is, the future is undeniably bleak
Labour’s current slogan is “Let’s Keep Moving”.
I’ve been wondering when an All-Bran maker might purloin it.
… expect a lawyer’s letter from America , the US prune juice industry have trademarked ” let’s keep moving ” as their advertising promo …
How about the Rotorua Daily Post story involving the ‘Council Community Well-Being Deputy Chief Executive’ (who dat) involving the Blue Baths and it’s sudden reduction in earthquake assessment from 90% to 15%. That has meant emptying the long term tenant out and closing the building.
“Moving Forward”…
Stakeholders
Apparently, according to The NZ Transport Agency, the name “Waka Kotahi” translates to English as “Vessel One”. Possibly apropriate if it was the New Zealand Canoe licensing agency, also it is not the Maori road building agency as you thought it may be.
Wonder what it cost the poor old taxpayers so that someone in the Transport Department could come up with such a dopey name.
It’s been a journey.
forward……….from this point in time to ……..?
So, Bob your’e So right Bob..So I was going to say, So here we are talking So so much crap…the second worst affectation is SO many people answering a question or making some statement or other..and starting with ‘SO’. If you, dear reader, are one of these..please stop. Its almost childlike and bloody..so…annoying!
And starting a sentence with ‘Look’. Beloved of Tony Blair and JA. It’s pointless, condescending and nearly always precedes a dodgy argument.
Mind you, Cindy’s been using the more upbeat, but equally superfluous ‘Absolutely’ of late. Spin, grin and win.
Yesterday at our Sunday tea and chat, I bought a lovely slice of cherry chip layer cake to have with my usual Earl Grey.
The girl serving us had many tattoos, didn’t appear to be Maori. When she delivered my order, said something like ‘kea caha’ , which i’m told means stay strong.
I was a little surprised and a bit worried the cake might have a bit too much bran !
Perhaps the girl thought my health was of some concern.
I get it….anyone using the expression ‘window of opportunity’ should be defenestrated.
It does make me remember being taught at Journalism school that “Good Journalism is being first to use a cliche”.
So Bob, Thats a very good question but it is what it is and , going forward , from this point in time ,it can only lead you down a rabbit hole !!!
As per CM , “moving forward”. Haven’t heard “moving backward” yet.
The other saying that gaps my axe is the one TV presenters use frequently, “across the ditch” when referring to the Tasman Sea. So bloody lazy!
I find it interesting listening to cops on TV. They have invented “public speak”, which I bet they never use when not on TV
YES!! It is so entertaining listening to the Police mangle our language. Is there a training course for it? Persons (People) Has driven (Drove) Has then been speaking (spoken) Whereupon (when) etc etc.
I play Police Bingo whenever the Police are let loose on the media. How many of the classics can I get in one
interview.
Or the execrable “…learnings going forward…”.
No it isn’t, it’s “lessons learned”!
Sir Humphrey Appleby: the model of political obfuscation:
Sir Humphrey: Unfortunately, although the answer was indeed clear, simple, and straightforward, there is some difficulty in justifiably assigning to it the fourth of the epithets you applied to the statement, inasmuch as the precise correlation between the information you communicated and the facts, insofar as they can be determined and demonstrated, is such as to cause epistemological problems, of sufficient magnitude as to lay upon the logical and semantic resources of the English language a heavier burden than they can reasonably be expected to bear.
Hacker: Epistemological — what are you talking about?
Sir Humphrey: You told a lie.
I believe Margaret Thatcher said this was the only television show she ever made a point of watching.
Wonderful.
Well said Sir Bob. Other unnecessary and unbearable speech includes: “What I would say…” and “What I will say…”. Just bloody say it.