Kicking the Can

D

dewdrop

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I detest the American expression "kicking the can down the road" which most financial commentators feel obliged to make especially when reporting on the Greek crisis. This morning at 5.30 on the BBC programme "wakeup to money" it was mentioned at least 4 times. As is my norm i switched to RTE1 after 6 am and dare i say it I heard it again around 6.20. Switching to Lyric now.
 
I switched to Lyric FM earlier this year and it is more pleasing to the ear. Marty is on holidays and who better to look to when the chips are down.
Kicking the can down the road, yes I heard it over and over. Remarkable, when a new buzz word raises its head the commentaters latch on to it like a fungus to long open jam.
 
I agree dewdrop, some overused metaphors/similes/analogies can (excuse the pun) drive you nuts. But I find their use really interesting.

They immediately create a visual image that capture the essence of the idea expressed, without a need for a long description. But they can also miss essential details that might not be analogous, and thus be misleading. It might be interesting to know just why these can be annoying. Is it their overuse or is it because they miss the mark?

Some interesting comments on this overused expression [broken link removed] And on metaphors & how they work here.
 
Leper said:
... Remarkable, when a new buzz word raises its head the commentaters latch on to it like a fungus to long open jam.
Click to expand...


Leper, using a simile to describe a metaphor ! Haven't heard this one before.
 
horusd said:
It might be interesting to know just why these can be annoying. Is it their overuse or is it because they miss the mark?
Click to expand...

I think you have an excellent point here. Like a decent song, a good metaphor can become excessively popular, get overused and ultimately become annoying.

I think it depends on who's using the metaphor and how they are using it. When used in management speak for an inappropropriate purpose any decent metaphor can become hated.
 
At least we have moved on from "its not rocket science" which is good "going forward"
 
horusd said:
It might be interesting to know just why these can be annoying. Is it their overuse or is it because they miss the mark?
Click to expand...

What is interesting, to me, is what iy says about the people who use such expressions.

This week I received a report from a colleague who I had believed spoke in plain English; she called a spade a spade and not a 'long handled earth moving apparatus'.

However, in this document, she had written 'there are several actors in this space' that makes me reconsider my opinion of her.

She would not have used such an expression 5 years ago. What has changed and why ? Is she mixing with consultants who dabble in this business school nonsense and has become 'infected' with their claptrap. What prompted her to abandon her track record of speaking plainly and indulge in this meaningless twaddle ?
 
Somewhat off topic i read today that a Supreme Court said that the bane of most judges lives is to see a group of economists coming to court speaking in the most incomphrensible language known to mankind...this was said at a seminar regarding expert witnesses.
 
When I was in CBS primary school (later 1970s) we used to kick the can every lunchtime in the yard. It was the only 'football' we had. 20 young lads racing around an empty can of coke. Eventually the can would split and then it became dangerous because if you fell on the 'ball', it would near slice your finger off. None of us went on to play for Galway Utd.
 
When I was in CBS primary school (later 1970s) we used to kick the can every lunchtime in the yard. It was the only 'football' we had. 20 young lads racing around an empty can of coke. Eventually the can would split and then it became dangerous because if you fell on the 'ball', it would near slice your finger off. None of us went on to play for Galway Utd.

TEATIME
Bill Cullen made a good few bob out of a book telling stories like that. Did ye have shoes on your feet or did ye just keep them for Sundays ??
 
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