The expression to run the traps means “to perform due diligence” or “solicit a wide variety of opinions” or “investigate every angle thoroughly.” This metaphor derives from the literal sense of running the traps, which refers to hunting and fishing...
The casual phrase good enough for who it’s for suggests that something wasn’t done perfectly, but was done well enough. This saying is not all that common, but it’s been around for at least a century. Similar expressions used in the construction...
Why do news releases from agencies such as the FBI, the CIA, the EPA, and the IRS drop the initial the before these initialisms? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Why No “The” Sometimes in Front of CIA, FBI, or IRS...
Long distance communication used to be pretty expensive, but few messages have made a bigger dent than William Seward’s diplomatic telegram to France, which in 1866 cost him more than $300,000 in today’s currency. This pricey message...
The terms self-licking ice cream cone, self-eating watermelon, and self-licking lollipop all refer to organizations, such as governmental bureaucracies, that appear to exist solely for the sake of perpetuating themselves. This is part of a complete...
The Occupy movement helped to popularize the term do-ocracy, a system of management or government where the people who actually roll up their sleeves and do things get to decide how those things are done. This is part of a complete episode...
