I'm Not Saying, I'm Just Saying

[Michael K. Gottlieb]

On Tue, 12 Oct 1999, Laurence Horn wrote:

> Grant Barrett writes:
>
> >New York Post writer Gersh Kuntzman tries to stir up baseball rivalry
> >between Atlanta and New York, and has this interesting line:
> >
> >"And do you think they mention New Coke? As we say in New York, I'm not
> >saying, I'm just saying."
> >
> >http://www.nypost.com/news/15720.htm
>
> =====================
> doesn't really help.  Is anyone--New Yorker or otherwise--familiar with
> this construction?  Is there a specialized intonation?  Does it work with
> other verbs than "saying"?  Inquiring minds want to know...
>
> Larry


I hear the "I'm not saying" phrase as similar in intonation to "Not for
nothin'" (with appropriate shoulder action and neck tilted to the side, a
la Joe Pesci) and the "I'm just sayin," as it might be heard at the
beginning of a sentence.  The intonation seems unique to the phrase--not
as if it were simply a shortening of a longer sentence, such as, "I'm not
saying (you're ugly or anything), I'm just saying (you're very
unattractive)."  The intonation of that shortening would be very
different.

Usually the missing pieces of information implied by each
phrase are essentially the same, but the second is modified and, perhaps,
less conclusive.  As, in this case, "I'm not saying there's a massive
conspiracy to cover up the improper history of the Coca-Cola factory, I'm
just saying there's something very fishy going on..."  Or whatever you
take it to imply.  I've only heard it from New Yorkers.  I haven't heard
it with anything else and I don't think it would work with anything else,
because of its specific use--to relieve one of responsibility for a
potentially loaded (or insulting) statement.  I think.


Mike Gottlieb