Picking the Word of the Year

There was an interesting story on NPR the other day - Let's Double Down On A Superstorm Of Malarkey: Picking 2012's Word Of The Year.

This is the time of year when the American Dialect Society selects and announces its Word of the Year - a word or phrase which achieved particular prominence during the past year, whether for positive or negative reasons. Previous winners of the Word of the Year title are occupy (2011), app (2010), and tweet (2009). The "Word of the Decade" for the first ten years of the 21st century was google.

Among the many words and phrases that are contending for the honor this year are:

Superstorm or Frankenstorm (designations attached to Hurricane Sandy, although Frankenstorm was considered by many to be overly kitschy for such a huge disaster);

Malarkey (memorably used by Vice President Biden in his debate with Paul Ryan; a more common but less gentlemanly synonym is bullshit);

Fiscal Cliff (you know, the one our brain-dead Congressional lemmings are racing stupidly toward); and,

47% (the imaginary figure cited by GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney as the percentage of the US population dependent on government handouts).

I have my own nominee, of course ...

Ass Clown (I know that this is a term of several years standing, but so many individuals and groups are clamoring for designation as ass clowns that it seems reasonable to nominate it for Word of the Year).

What are your suggestions for Word of the Year, Dear Readers? Leave a comment, and be sure to explain why you think it is deserving of this prestigious honor.

And speaking of ass clowns, don't forget that tomorrow night at 11:59 PM the voting closes in our contest for Ass Clown of the Year. The balloting is starting to pick up as we approach the deadline, and some clear front-runners are emerging. The top three so far are:

NRA President Wayne LaPierre, who has taken a commanding lead;

The GOP, in a strong second place but still substantially trailing Mr LaPierre; and,

The Iowa Supreme Court, surging to an unexpectedly strong third place following its decision last week upholding the right of an employer to fire a worker for being "irresistible."

Be sure to cast your votes ... and your friends' votes ... and your pets', imaginary playmates', and deceased relatives' votes, too. Remember, Chicago Rules apply, so vote early and vote often to make sure your voice is heard amid the screaming and howling as we go over the fiscal cliff.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo