We hear the word maverick a lot lately, but where did this term for a stubborn nonconformist come from? Martha tells the story of the Texas politician who inspired the word, and whose grandson apparently coined another familiar English word...
BUI n.— «So Mr. Roy still lives near campus, in a 10-foot-by-12-foot room, and rides his bicycle to college house parties. (Drunken riders get B.U.I.’s—“biking under the influence” tickets.) He plays in a band that “sounds like Tom...
peopletician n.—Gloss: A politician who is focused on citizens and not on government. Note: This word has been repeatedly recoined by many people. «We had the best Ulster County legislative representative you could want in Marion...
goldfishing n.— «The day I am in the studio, the report on the opposition’s activities features just one politician talking in an interview. But you don’t hear his words. He is, in TV parlance, goldfishing: you can see his lips move but...
Washington Monument ploy n.— «Cynics suggest the proposed park closings are merely a bargaining tactic, a way to gain leverage in getting the budget passed. There’s even a name for it in political circles: the “Washington Monument...
LBJ rule n.—Gloss: a law that says a politician currently holding an elected office can run simultaneously for re-election to that office and for election to a new office. Note: LBJ refers to President Lyndon Baines Johnson. «Using what...