a new entry for the unpack-that-euphemism competition

[Jonathan Lighter]

Now that's retro!

JL

On Sun, Aug 5, 2012 at 5:44 PM, Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at babel.ling.upenn.edu>wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at BABEL.LING.UPENN.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: a new entry for the unpack-that-euphemism competition
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> In case anyone is wondering, the (non-adjectival) word in question is
> "cocksuckers."
>
> http://diehipster.wordpress.com/about/
>
>
> On Sun, Aug 5, 2012 at 4:57 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> >
> > Oh, a trick question!
> >
> > Somebody at the Times doesn't know what "adjective" means. (It's 2012, so
> > I'm not surprised!)
> >
> > Or did the original read, "...who do not seek attention like you
> > fucking...um...er...huh?"
> >
> > On Sun, Aug 5, 2012 at 4:40 PM, Laurence Horn wrote:
> >
> > > OK, we finally sorta sorted out how Rashida Jones manages to
> > > "[masturbate] vegetables".  This week's contest (no gold medal for the
> > > winner) involves Finding That Adjective.  The context is an article
> > > about "Montauk's Hipster Fatigue", as illustrated by locals sporting
> > > T-shirts with a diagonal line through a fedora, and worse, i.e.
> > > invocations of what have come to be called "Second Amendment solutions"
> > > to deal with the influx of rich tourists (after they've been relieved
> of
> > > some of their disposable income, of course).
> > >
> > >
> http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/fashion/montauk-feels-the-effects-of-too-many-hipsters.html
> > >
> > > As the Web site Diehipster.com puts it in a diatribe aimed at
> > > urban-based hipsters, "You've accomplished nothing over the last
> > > decade but displaced hard-working families, old-time residents and
> newly
> > > arrived immigrants who do not seek attention like you [Offensive
> > > Adjective Inappropriate for Family Newspaper].
> > >
> > > I checked the diehipster.com site, but despite learning some useful,
> if
> > > non-adjectival, lexical items (apparently the dread hipsters, not
> > > content with "pussifying" the outer reaches of Brooklyn, will be
> > > marching on to colonize distant outposts of "Flyoverlandia"), I didn't
> > > find out what this [Offensive Adjective Inappropriate for Family
> > > Newspaper] might have been.  No credit for offensive nouns; only
> > > adjectives will be considered.
>
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