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A CNBC commentator said how Facebook and Twitter are in for a struggle for dominance, with Instagram coming as a Trojan Horse.
Another person followed up, lowering his voice somewhat, '... as you said, Trojan ...' This person agreed but seemed slightly distracted by the name used.
This usage must have been one of the very first, or certainly first that I have known. And I surely hope that it won't spread !
By the way, the Trojan trade name for prophylactic products is obviously also a misuse because the Trojan Horse of legend was meant for the very opposite. Or else it must be a 'reversed psychology' ploy or some kind of titillation ploy.
Not every use of Trojan has a connection with the horse. I have always connected that name on a prophylactic as meaning strong and enduring. I checked definitions and that one is still there. The use of Trojan Horse in computers has become so dominant that we forget that the Trojans were known for other things besides a horse.
I'll bet the commentator, as you suspected, really meant dark horse and had a brain hiccup.
My math teacher's daughter could have used a Trojan.
Or not. He seemed like a jerk to me but he seems to have treated her well, and the kid turned out well. That's a lot better outcome than most of the rest of us, who been unfaithful, divorced, and/or had kids now dead or in prison. As I get older, I am no less eager to pass judgment, but more and more, people are proving me wrong. Kinda rude of them to do that, isn't it?
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
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