New eggcorn?

[Alison Murie]

On Sep 8, 2009, at 10:43 AM, Bill Palmer wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Bill Palmer <w_a_palmer at BELLSOUTH.NET>
> Subject:      New eggcorn?
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> McClatchy Newspapers reports today that "Pakistanis regard the U.S., =
> *formally* a close ally,...as a hostile power."=20
>
> I do not find this in the DB, which seems remarkable, as it seems
> like a =
> very common error. Did I not look far enough?
>
> Given the state of the profession today, I am not surprised to see
> this =
> transgression committed by the "journalisterati".  Thanks and credit
> to =
> Wilson G for the idea for this coinage.
>
> Bill Palmer
>
~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm still scratching my head over this.  "Common error"...?
"Formally"?   Or that Pakistanis regard the U.S. as a hostile power?
In the context, "formally" seems to me the mot juste.  We have
certainly stirred up a great deal of hostility among Pakistani
civilians by our drone attacks.
AM

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