Does it annoy you when the news folks are interviewing someone who is obviously not well educated, but that person uses "legal" terms like, “The vehicle impacted the side of the building”?

No, because I’s not a pretentious, pompous elitist.

it always seems the news teams pick out the dumbest person in the crowd to interview and represent everyone. do you think they do it on purpose?

It’s just “copspeak”. They get it from TV. It’s harmless. Don’t be so class conscious. You don’t have to have a terrific vocabulary to be smart.

@mramsey I think it’s more related to what neighborhood they’re in…

@Grisaille :) I’s ain’t neither! But no…the kinds of people I’m talking about would be clueless with words like that. The phrases they use are found in courtrooms!

@Val123 You might be right. I live in the Ohio Valley so that might explain it. I’m surrounded my some of the biggest hicks…

It annoys me when one make sweeping judgments and assumptions about others based on something as relatively insignificant as poor grammar.

@FutureMemory It’s not the poor grammar that’s annoying. I can look past that. It’s the attempt to somehow make themselves sound smarter than they are by using stilted court-room phrases to describe something. When you mix that with poor grammar it’s—pretentious! I don’t like pretentiousness in anyone, I don’t care how smart they are, or how much education they have. “The vehicle impacted the building…”? What’s wrong with “The car came around the corner and smashed into the front, right there.”?

@Val123 That’s not pretention at all. It is a cultural norm. People like to watch police procedurals, and they come to believe that that is the correct way to speak in an emergent situation. You are not part of the culture that practices this ritual, but that does not make you smarter or less pretentious than they.

I wouldn’t say it bothers me which is rare, but I do notice it. It catches me off-guard.

@pdworkin That’s an interesting observation. Thank ya kindly.
@Facade That’s an even better way to put it. It’s disconcerting. Like trying to mix 7up with spaghetti. Or something.

How dare they use words and phrases they’re not supposed to use. Who the hell do they think they are, don’t they know their “place” in society? Someone should do something about this national crisis, pronto!

@FutureMemory Sigh. It’s the mixing up of “big words” with poor grammar that throws me. It’s…ridiculous!

I find that most “civilians”, i.e. people who aren’t usually on telly, want to put themselves in what they perceive to be the best possible light when they’re on. So, ironically, they’re doing their level best to sound like they know what they’re talking about. We all know how people who use poor grammar and drawling accents are looked down upon in our culture, and they do too; ergo, they use the words they reckon might be SAT words, sometimes properly, sometimes not.

@Val123 will not be happy until we all agree that they are schmucks. Sorry Val.

@aprilsimnel Yeah, that sounds about right!

That’s where I can feel some empathy for people in such situations. They’re doing what they can so that they aren’t seen as ignorant hicks on TV. Bless, they’re doing their best.

@aprilsimnel Stated perfectly. Exactly what I felt, but worded so much better (and less rude).

Insta-lurve.

@aprilsimnel Nice. Thanks.