…it is that time again to add to my 25 Most overly used political Idioms post and my other posts about political verbiage
…on deck is the word DRACONIAN, overly used recently to describe the type, nature, breadth and depth of the propose Republican budget cuts of the 2011 budget. The government is currently being run and funded on continuing resolutions that will expire early March unless the two parties can come to a solution. Otherwise, the government may shut down.
What does the term Draconian mean anyway? It is defined all over the web:
- of or relating to Draco or his harsh code of laws; “Draconian measures”
wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
- Very severe, oppressive or strict
- en.wiktionary.org/wiki/draconian
- signifies harsh, severe, or overly rigorous. Draco was an Athenian lawyer who sought the death penalty in every trial.linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0002937896701746
- Unreasonably harsh or severe
reclaimyourgame.com/index.php - (drah COE nee-un) adj. 1. Designating a law or code of extreme severity. 2. Harsh, rigorous. www.terrycolon.com/word5.html
- [of laws] – excessively harsh and severe. The word origin is from Draco, the name of an ancient Athenian legislator
www.historyhome.co.uk/peel/dict.htmDraco, an Athenian legislator in the 600s BC, was noted for the severity of his code of laws.www.nps.gov/saga/forteachers/upload/Classics’%20Vocabulary%20List.doc - Of, relating to, or characteristic of Draco or the severe code of laws held to have been framed by him. 2. Cruel; also; severe. [Merriam-Webster] thepiggovernment.wordpress.com/dictionary/
Okay, I say, it is high time to retire it to the political idiom graveyard for a spell. I know I personally am tired of hearing it spouted by the pundits, pontificators, prognosticators, talking heads and spin doctors. Aren’t you?
Oh and it is also a heavy metal band (see above) photo. Looks like its members have already retired to a graveyard. Doh!
Jay Jay Ghatt is also editor at Techyaya.com, founder of the JayJayGhatt.com and JayJayGhatt.com where she teaches online creators how to navigate digital entrepreneurship and offers Do-It-For-You Blogging Service. She manages her lifestyle sites BellyitchBlog, Jenebaspeaks and JJBraids.com and is the founder of BlackWomenTech.com 200 Black Women in Tech On Twitter. Her biz podcast 10 Minute Podcast is available on iTunes and Player.fm. Follow her on Twitter at @Jenebaspeaks. Buy her templates over at her legal and business templates on Etsy shop!