With just a few days left in the year, this is the time when numerous publications put out “Top 10” lists of events and other notoriety from the year that is about to finish. In this article from the UK Telegraph, Oxford University puts out its top 10 most irritating phrases for the year. “At the end of the day,” “24/7” and “it’s not rocket science” are three of their most offensive phrases.
I’m not very good at year end top 10 lists. I find that my memory doesn’t retain enough items to make a successful list. In fact, most times when I see a top 10 list I’ll read it and go “oh yeah, I’d forgotten about those 3 or 4 items.” Yet, I still feel the need to participate in these year end remembrances so I’ve found a way to use my limited memory to best use; I’ll create a list for the year that is coming up.
So, without further ado, my sole entry for most hated phrase of 2009 is:
Shovel Ready
“Shovel Ready” is not a new term, it’s been around for a while. It has typically been used in property development and meant a piece of real estate that had been through all of the proper approvals, planning and zoning and was ready to begin construction immediately. In 2009 “Shovel Ready” will be certainly used to describe a project for which a quick start could be had but it will also be used in other ways.
President elect Obama continues to ponder the mother of all stimulus bills. He’s asked Governors, Congress persons and others to submit lists of “Shovel Ready” projects that are being held up due to a lack of funding. The theory is that by having the Federal government spend money on projects it will stimulate employment and get infrastructure built that would otherwise sit on the drawing board.
Unfortunately, with the only criteria for submission being “shovel ready,” we’re already seeing that “shovel ready” does not equate “needed,” “cost effective,” or “smart.” According to the Star and Tribune, included in “shovel ready” projects are:
$4.8 million for a polar bear exhibit in Rhode Island and $1.5 million for a water slide in Florida.
And, in the district of King porker himself, Minnesota Democrat Jim Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, we see the requests for the following:
$2 million for a lake-walk extension at Beacon Point and $6 million for snowmaking and maintenance facilities at Spirit Mountain.
Can anyone explain to me how leaving these four projects, and I’m sure many more like them, on the drawing board would hurt our chances of economic recovery?
Each of Oxford list of irritating phrases was originally used within their true purpose. However, in time and through over use, the phrases became perverted to mean something other than their original intent. The same will happen to “Shovel Ready.” By the end of 2009, “Shovel Ready,” rather than a project that can quickly be initiated, will come to mean anything that couldn’t pass economic muster by well thinking people but got shoved down the public’s throat for the benefit of some minority constituency, anyway.
Come to think of it, “shovel ready” will likely have one other meaning in 2009. Anytime you hear that something is “shovel ready” you can easily assume that what will be shoveled near term isn’t any dirt, but a lot of manure as the person selling their project tries to get common sense pushed aside and political graft inserted.
