"You can't make that cat walk backwards."

[Dave Wilton]

"Walking back the cat" was common in diplomatic circles back in the mid-90s
for the delicate art of justifying a reversal of a publicly stated position.
Not to be confused with "herding cats."



-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of
Jonathan Lighter
Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2012 10:47 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: "You can't make that cat walk backwards."

Says law professor Jonathan Turley on CNN.

He means, "You can't take it back or unring the bell or push the toothpaste
back in the tube or the genie back in the bottle or anything like that."

JL

--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org