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> I'm just easily triggered with language :P Me too! It makes me irrationally angry when people regurgitate linguistic clichés. I was already mad with: "pytho

> I'm just easily triggered with language :P Me too! It makes me irrationally angry when people regurgitate linguistic clichés. I was already mad with: "python does not have a go-like concurrency story" when it would be enough (and 1000x less cringe) to say: "python does not have go-like concurrency" I think these mindless clichés make language really ugly and dysfunctional, and even worse they are thought-stoppers, because they make the reader/listener feel like something smart is being said, because they recognize the "in-group" lingo. In my experience, people get really offended when you point this out. It's kind of an HN taboo to discuss this. Which is also interesting in itself. Going forward we should pay more attention to our communication use cases. Btw: I wonder if we can stack several of these clichés. For example: "leverage" + "use case" = "leverage case".

StavrosK 6y ago
I agree, I think Orwell's "Politics and the English Language" is spot on here. I try to use simpler language whenever possible, I agree that people think that using longer words makes them sound smart but is just worse for communication. I've found it's a taboo to discuss anything even slightly personal. People are averse to feeling bad, so criticism needs to be extremely subtle in order to not offend. > Btw: I wonder if we can stack several of these clichés. For example: "leverage" + "use case" = "leverage case". I hate you for even thinking of this.
- rumanator 6y ago
  > I've found it's a taboo to discuss anything even slightly personal. People are averse to feeling bad, so criticism needs to be extremely subtle in order to not offend. The personal association you made between "discussing anything even slightly personal" and "criticism needs to be extremely subtled" makes it sound that your problem isn't language or Orwellian discourse but the way you subconsciously link discussing personal matters with harshly criticising those you speak with for no good reason. If your personal conversations boil down to appease your own personal need to criticise others then I'm sorry to break it to you but your problem isn't language.
  - StavrosK 6y ago
    You just misconstrued my saying "personal" and clearly meaning "personal criticism" as meaning personal things in general and then criticized me on that straw man. I don't hold that opinion at all. You also went to "Orwellian discourse", which has a specific meaning, from a text by Orwell I mentioned. It seems to me like you got personally offended, interpreted my comment in the most uncharitable way, and chose to lash out at me instead, and I'm not sure why. I wasn't even talking about anyone specifically.
    - rumanator 6y ago
      You were the one associating discussing remotely personal stuff with criticising others, and if that was not bad enough your personal take was that you felt the need to keep criticising others but resorting to subtlety just to keep shoveling criticism without sparking the reactions you're getting for doing the thing you want to do to others. I repeat, your problem is not language. Your problem is that you manifest a need to criticize others. That problem is all on you.
      - StavrosK 6y ago
        Ah, okay. If I had said "any remotely personal criticism", like I meant, you'd have an entirely different conclusion, but I guess that doesn't matter when you just want to jump to conclusions. This shows from the fact that you're saying "criticize" like it's a bad thing.
      - heyoni 6y ago
        That is such quite a stretch of the imagination and I sure didn’t read it that way. I may be wrong but here’s one fun example from this comment section that I wanted to “respond” to and demand some clarification on. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22911497 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22911497 PS: I work with like 65-70% of that stack daily

StavrosK 6y ago

I agree, I think Orwell's "Politics and the English Language" is spot on here. I try to use simpler language whenever possible, I agree that people think that using longer words makes them sound smart but is just worse for communication. I've found it's a taboo to discuss anything even slightly personal. People are averse to feeling bad, so criticism needs to be extremely subtle in order to not offend. > Btw: I wonder if we can stack several of these clichés. For example: "leverage" + "use case" = "leverage case". I hate you for even thinking of this.

rumanator 6y ago
> I've found it's a taboo to discuss anything even slightly personal. People are averse to feeling bad, so criticism needs to be extremely subtle in order to not offend. The personal association you made between "discussing anything even slightly personal" and "criticism needs to be extremely subtled" makes it sound that your problem isn't language or Orwellian discourse but the way you subconsciously link discussing personal matters with harshly criticising those you speak with for no good reason. If your personal conversations boil down to appease your own personal need to criticise others then I'm sorry to break it to you but your problem isn't language.
- StavrosK 6y ago
  You just misconstrued my saying "personal" and clearly meaning "personal criticism" as meaning personal things in general and then criticized me on that straw man. I don't hold that opinion at all. You also went to "Orwellian discourse", which has a specific meaning, from a text by Orwell I mentioned. It seems to me like you got personally offended, interpreted my comment in the most uncharitable way, and chose to lash out at me instead, and I'm not sure why. I wasn't even talking about anyone specifically.
  - rumanator 6y ago
    You were the one associating discussing remotely personal stuff with criticising others, and if that was not bad enough your personal take was that you felt the need to keep criticising others but resorting to subtlety just to keep shoveling criticism without sparking the reactions you're getting for doing the thing you want to do to others. I repeat, your problem is not language. Your problem is that you manifest a need to criticize others. That problem is all on you.
    - StavrosK 6y ago
      Ah, okay. If I had said "any remotely personal criticism", like I meant, you'd have an entirely different conclusion, but I guess that doesn't matter when you just want to jump to conclusions. This shows from the fact that you're saying "criticize" like it's a bad thing.
    - heyoni 6y ago
      That is such quite a stretch of the imagination and I sure didn’t read it that way. I may be wrong but here’s one fun example from this comment section that I wanted to “respond” to and demand some clarification on. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22911497 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22911497 PS: I work with like 65-70% of that stack daily