in a poistion; holy crapsticks

[Dennis Preston]

This is the "bad" deletion rule; applies to attitude, situation,
position, mood, feeling, etc...

dInIs

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>Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM>
>Subject:      in a poistion; holy crapsticks
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Just watched Sci-Fi Channel's TV movie, _Showdown at Area 51_
>(2007).  At one point, a character says, "Don't put me in a
>position!"
>
>   I.e., a difficult or unpleasant relational position with respect
>to somebody else. (The speaker was reluctant to have to place the
>hero under arrest.)  Cf. the earlier and precisely parallel
>narrowing of "situation" into "bad situation."
>
>   Another character had occasion to exclaim later, "Holy
>crapsticks!" which is a new one on me.
>
>   JL
>
>
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--
Dennis R. Preston
University Distinguished Professor
Department of English
Morrill Hall 15-C
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48864 USA

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