real time, again

[Victor Steinbok]

An exchange from the Bridgegate email dump:

> Reporter: Is there any reason you guys aren't weighing in on this
> stuff with the George Washington Bridge? ...
> A. What's the deal with this one?
> B. Let's talk in real time.

It seems, "in real time" here is what used to go by "IRL" ("in real
life", i.e., in-person vs. via computer chat or email or instant
messaging, etc.)

"In real life" makes some sense. "In real time" really doesn't. Could it
be a kind of phrasal eggcorn? These are old political hacks, not teenage
tech addicts.

     VS-)

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