Need a Scrabble word with q or z? Grant shares some of his favorite legal Scrabble words: qi (the circulating life force in Chinese philosophy), qat (a leaf chewed in some cultures for stimulating effects), and za (a shortening of the word “pizza”)...
In theology, epikeia involves observing the spirit of a law rather than the literal rule. Grant explains how in many cases, epikeia actually serves a greater good. Thomas Aquinas defends cases of epikeia in his Summa Theologica. This is part of a...
Someone who paints a negative or pessimistic picture is said to be hanging crepe. Martha has the origin. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Hanging Crepe” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this is Suzanne from Dallas. Hi...
If you’re facing a Hobson’s choice, you don’t really have much to choose from. The phrase describes a situation in which your options are either to take what’s offered, or else take nothing at all. Martha offers some choice words about the origin of...
thoughtprint n.— «A thoughtprint is unconscious communication hidden within verbal or written communication. The unconscious mind is communicates constantly and typically hides its messages in verbal or written communication generated by the...
IGMFU n.— «They’re card-carrying members of the “ME Society.” Everything is for Me, and Screw You. My late father, only semi-jokingly, used to refer to it as the philosophy of “IGMFU,” as in “I Got Mine, F-U.”» —“Alberto Gonzales’ Heck of a “Good”...
