Vocabulary In the News : Osama bin Laden Killed

"Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body," President Obama said late Sunday evening.

direction – leadership or management

targeted – aimed at something or someone, having an objective

compound – an enclosed area where a particular group of people live or work

to carry out – to do a particular piece of work, research, operation, etc..

harmed – hurt, injured, damaged

a casualty – someone who is injured or killed in an accident or military action

a firefight – an exchange of gun fire

to take custody of something -  to take possession of

Thanksgiving in America : The Story of Thanksgiving, Part 5 (Updated & Reposted from Thanksgiving 2009)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Thanksgiving celebrations since the time of the Pilgrims and Puritans had been celebrated throughout the American colonies. They were always a time of religious reflection thanking God for that year's blessings. There was no set date for thankgiving celebrations but they would be declared by local leaders or colony governors in response to some event. Throughout the American Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress appointed one or more days of thanksgiving every year. The first formal declaration was made by the Congress in 1777.

As President of the United States, George Washington declared the first federal Thanksgiving Day with the following proclamation:

"Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness. Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us. And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease* of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best. Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789."

*an older spelling of “increase”

He would again proclaim a day of Thanksgiving in 1795 as would many of the presidents except Thomas Jefferson. James Madison would renew the tradition that has been followed ever since.

Even though US Presidents proclaimed a Day of Thanksgiving (though not every year), it was still not an official federal holiday. During the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln, with the influence of Sarah Josepha Hale, decided to create a national Thanksgiving Day that would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November.

In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt broke with tradition and declared the fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving. There were 5 Thursdays that year. In 1940 he declared the third Thursday (there were 4 Thursdays that November). His stated goal was to help improve the profits of the Christmas shopping season because of the Great Depression and since it was considered indecent at the time to advertise Christmas items before Thanksgiving. So, finally in 1941, the Congress passed an act declaring that Thanksgiving Day would always be on the fourth Thursday of November.

Other Links and Articles:
Presidential Proclamation – Thanksgiving Day (released on November 24, 2010 by President Obama)
Thanksgiving Features Native American Foods (VOA News article) & Video
President Obama Pardons Thanksgiving Turkey (VOA News article) & Audio

Watch video of President Obama pardoning the 2010 White House turkey in this unusual White House tradition! Download Video : MP4 (66 MB)

See also President Bush’s 2008 Thanksgiving Proclamation

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Cartoon : Humble Pie

Political cartoon by Mike Lester of the Rome News-Tribune in Rome, Georgia and published on 04 November 2010.

There are several expressions we can glean from this political cartoon. According to the cartoonist, President Obama ate humble pie due to the election results. If you eat humble pie, you apologize and face humiliation for a serious error. You can also say that after the elections, Obama has pie on his face. The voters pied him on Tuesday!

Cartoon : Saying a Lot Without Saying Anything At All!

By Rick McKee from the Augusta Chronicle in Augusta, Georgia on 02 July 2010.

It is a sheer pleasure teaching English to someone who really wants to learn it! This adjective is used to give emphasis to a noun to give it a greater amount of degree. It has the meaning of ‘extreme.’

Later on, the caricature of Kagan asks Larry King, the interviewer, to grant her a point of personal privilege. If you grant something, like a request, you accord or allow them something.

‘A point of personal privilege’ is a very formal, parliamentary expression usually asked for when a member what to speak out to defend his personal rights, reputation or conduct.

Video Of the Moment / Vocabulary In the News : ‘No Appetite’ for Comprehensive Immigration Reform (taken from Newsy.com)

In his first speech on immigration, President Obama called the system “broken," urging Congress to toughen enforcement of existing laws.

Newsy’s sources: CNN / KSAZ / The Huffington Post / The Guardian / ABC

For a full transcript, go HERE!

Multisource political news, world news, and entertainment news analysis by Newsy.com

to toughen / to toughen up	-	to become more strict, or to make something more strict Example: Due to the current economic crisis, many countries are toughening (up) financial rules.
to be a matter of	-	to be a question of Example: It’s only a matter of time before he realizes the mistake he made.
undocumented (adj.)	-	lacking documentation or authentication; lacking proper immigration or working papers Example: About 60% of the illegal alien population in the US are "undocumented aliens," who are commonly known as "unlawful border crossers," or more properly known as "illegal aliens."
to make a mockery of something	-	to make someone or something seem stupid or useless Example: Ten-year marriage contracts would make a total mockery of marriage vows.
to urge	-	to advise someone very strongly about what action or attitude they should take Example: Environmentalists are urging the US Government to stop drilling for oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
an appetite for	-	to advise someone very strongly about what action or attitude they should take Example: The public’s appetite for celebrity gossip seems insatiable. Synonym: a desire for
mixed (adj.)	-	mixed feelings or emotions make you not certain how you feel about someone or something Example: Teachers have mixed feelings about the use of distance language teaching.
coverage (uncountable)	-	news about something on television or radio or in the newspapers Example: People around the world watched live coverage of the FIFA World Cup on television.
to shine a spotlight on something	-	to give a lot of importance to, to give a lot of public attention to Example: The BP oil spill is shining the spotlight on how dangerous and difficult deepwater drilling can be. Other expressions: to be in the spotlight (= to have a lot of public attention) ≠ to be out of the spotlight
after (prep.)	-	in quest or pursuit of something Example: Participants in Star Academy are seeking after fame. / Some believe that President Obama is going after amnesty for illegal immigrants.
a spin (informal / uncountable)	-	a way of presenting information, especially a way that makes something seem good or less bad Example: Not even the craftiest politician could put a positive spin on this. Other Expressions: to spin a story / a spin doctor (=someone who works in public relations or the media who presents news in a way to promote a particular political agenda, they usually try to make a situation look better or worse than what it really is)
to enact legislation	-	to make into an act or statute Example: With the president’s signature, the new legislation/bill on healthcare reform was enacted into law.
to stem	-	to stop something from spreading or increasing, especially something bad Example: France passed a new retirement policy in an attempt to stem an increasing budget deficit.
misguided (adj.)	-	a misguided idea or action is based on judgments or opinions that are wrong Example: Many people believe that the war in Iraq was misguided. Synonym: unfounded
the purview	-	the area of responsibility or influence that a person or organization has Example: Organizing new training is under the purview of the human resources department.
to put forth (formal)	-	to state or offer an idea, opinion, plan ,etc Example: The French government put forth a plan to reform retirement benefits.
to require	-	if a rule, law, contract etc requires something, you must do that thing Example: Car insurance is required by law in most countries.
to be driven by something	-	is motivated by Example: He is driven by the desire to be the best football player.
to outline	-	to give the main ideas of a plan or a piece of writing without giving all the details Example: The document outlines our company’s recycling policy.
contentious (adj.)	-	causing disagreement between people or groups Example: Abortion in the United States is a major contentious issue.
to take something/someone on	-	to fight or compete against someone Example: The United States took on Ghana at the FIFA World Cup but was eliminated by them.
pandering (from the verb ‘to pander’)	-	this is the act of saying or doing what someone wants in order to please them, even though you know it isn’t right. Example: Politicians do a lot of pandering during election time and really don’t mean a lot of what they say or promise.

 

So, what do you think? Did the president’s speech on comprehensive immigration reform make any progress or was he simply pandering? What immigration reform would you like to see in your country? Please feel free to leave your comments!

Video of the Moment : History of the White House Christmas Tree

FreeVideoCoding.com

In the News : Obama Announces Troop Increase in Afghanistan (VOA News)

I’m trying something new. I’ve taken an audio file from Voice of America Special English and turned into a video news report thanks to a new program and I have added subtitles.

This time, I will not provide the vocabulary, but you can use the subtitles and your own dictionaries to look up words you don’t know.

Obama announces troop increase in Afghanistan (VOA)
envoyé par josephboen. - L'info internationale vidéo.

If you want to download just the audio format : Listen to Show  - (Tip: Left-click, or right-click and choose "Save...") Download (MP3)

Taken and adapted from : http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/2009-12-04-voa2.cfm?renderforprint=1

Video of the Moment : Obama Ecstasy Pills !?

Vocabulary In the News : 2 November 2009 – The Washington Times

http://www.washingtontimes.com/

There is a some good vocabulary in this front page we can glean.

- US Marine Corps Commandant General James T. Conway is leading the fight against lifting the policy ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ put in place in the 1990’s by President Clinton. ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ allows gays to serve in the US military but not openly. President Obama has promised to lift the ban and would permit gay men and women to serve openly. If Obama lifts the ban, he officially removes and ends a rule or law that stops someone from doing something. Read more at :

 http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/02/marine-leads-dont-ask-dont-tell-fight/

- The 3rd of November is seen as the first test of Obama’s presidency due to elections in 4 states where Republicans are expected to win. Virginians and New Jerseyites are voting for governor today. In Virginia, the Republican leads by double digits. In New Jersey, the race is close. President Obama is putting his clout to the test by campaigning for the incumbent Democratic governor running for re-election. Clout is the power of influence. Obama is hoping that his clout will help the incumbent Democrat in New Jersey. An incumbent is someone simply running for re-election hoping to keep his office. Obama’s agenda is seen to be at stake in these elections if Democrats lose their bid for re-electon. In other words, his policies are in danger because the elections are seen as a referendum on the Obama presidency and the Democrats in general. A bid is an attempt to do something. Read more at :

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/02/obama-puts-clout-to-test-in-nj/

Vocabulary In the News : 16 October 2009 – The Times (United Kingdom)

For a larger view of the front page, click on the image. To visit The Times webpage, go to: http://www.timesonline.co.uk

The Middle East peace process is on the brink of collapse due to a row over a United Nations report condemning Israel of war crimes. A brink is the point in time when something very good or very bad is about to happen. If nations or people are having a row about/over something, this means they have a very serious disagreement over an issue.

Unfortunately the UN report causing the row threatens to sink the peace plan. Normally, this verb describes a boat or other object that falls to the bottom of a body of water, but here it means to make worse.

In this dispute, the UK is refusing to back Israel over the Gaza offensive. If you back someone or something, you give your give support.

If the negotiations collapse, this could scupper President Obama’s Middle East plans. To scupper is a naval term meaning to deliberately sink a ship by letting water in. In informal British English, to scupper means to spoil someone’s plans or hopes of success.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6877164.ece

Vocabulary In the News : 24 September 2009 – The Guardian (London, England)

Click on the image to view a larger version of the front page. To visit The Guardian’s webpage, go to: http://www.guardian.co.uk/

- If you snub someone, you insult them by ignoring or being impolite to them. Apparently, British Prime Minister Brown was snubbed in New York by President Obama. It has been revealed that the prime minister was given the cold shoulder by Obama when the president spurned five requests for bilateral meetings. In other words, Obama refused to meet with Brown and turned away his requests.

One of the reasons for the snub began several weeks ago when the Scottish government released the Lockerbie bomber. The White House disapproved of how No 10 handled the situation.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/sep/23/barack-obama-gordon-brown-talks

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In response to this news, Prime Minister Brown has denied that President Obama snubbed him. Watch this video from Sky News.

Brown Denies Reports Of Obama Rift

Gordon Brown has been forced to deny reports of a rift (un désaccord)with Barack Obama. It had been claimed that the US President had rejected five approaches for a meeting with the Prime Minister. Mr Brown has been speaking to Sky's Andy Bell.

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On the BBC “Have Your Say” where the public can express their opinion, the following question was asked for discussion.

Is the US distancing itself from Britain?

Repeated requests from Britain for a formal meeting with President Barack Obama fell on deaf ears (tomber dans l’oreille d’un sourd) in the US. Is the "special relationship" cooling?

Requests from Downing Street for official talks were turned down with both camps denying it amounts to a snub. Instead the US president had private meetings with leaders from Russia, China and Japan.

Gordon Brown was able to have a wide-ranging (ample, étendu) discussion with the president. However, it has emerged this was a conversation in a kitchen after a meal at the United Nations.

Has the special relationship changed following the release of the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi? Should Obama be focusing on developing relations with other leaders? Do you think this is just a storm in a teacup (une tempête dans un verre d’eau) ?

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So what do you think? Leave your opinion to these questions (in English of course!!) by clicking on the comment button at the bottom of this post.

 

Featured Podcast : Dreams From My Mother (BBC Documentaries)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/documentaries/2009/09/090915_dreams_from_my_mother.shtml

Barack Obama made history on 4 November 2008 when he defeated Republican rival John McCain to become the first black president of the United States.

The son of a Kenyan man and a white woman from Kansas, he was named after his father who grew up herding goats but gained a scholarship to study in Hawaii.

There the Kenyan met and married Barack's mother, Ann Dunham, who was living in Honolulu with her parents.

The president has famously written of the influence exerted on him by his charismatic but absent father in his memoir, Dreams of My Father, but what of his mother, Ann Dunham?

The world knows very little about her, but how did she affect his formative years and help to shape him in his political rise?

Or download MP3 file HERE ! (Right click with mouse)

She was christened Stanley Ann Dunham because her parents yearned for a boy.

Born in Kansas, she was the only child of hard working middle class parents who kept moving to improve their lives.

She married Barack Obama Snr whom she met in a class at the University of Hawaii at the age of 18.

It was a time of racial tension in America in the early 1960s and mixed marriages were not very common.

When Barack Jr. was still a toddler, his father decided to take up a scholarship at Harvard, turning down a more financially generous offer from New York University which would have supported the whole family. So Ann and young Barry, as he was then known, remained in Hawaii.

He later returned to Kenya alone, where he worked as a government economist, and the couple divorced.

When President Obama was six, his mother married an Indonesian man, Lolo Soetoro and the family moved to Jakarta.

But life proved too conventional for Ann and as she and Lolo became estranged, she moved to Yogyakarta the ancient capital of Java and began a study of indigenous craft industries and their community structures - which she pursued to the end of her life.

As a mature student, she was accepted into a PhD programme at the University of Hawaii and she chose to research the archaeology and anthropology of agricultural blacksmiths. She was the first woman admitted into the inner sanctum of this ancient all-male trade.

As she learnt about the ceremonial dagger making and the ritual power the smiths imbued into each instrument they forged, she also gained an appreciation of all Javanese crafts and culture.

In an effort to alleviate the hardship associated with these peasant industries, she constructed a model of micro-financing which is now the standard in Indonesia, a country that is a world leader in micro-credit systems.

With grants from the Ford Foundation and loans from the World Bank, she worked with many NGO’s to help rural people get loans to launch small enterprises.

In this programme Judith Kampfner talks to Ann’s 80 year old feisty professor and mentor, Alice Dewey.

She also speaks to field workers and executives at the People’s Bank of Indonesia, the Ford Foundation, and the USIA and to anthropologists and crafts workers who knew Ann Dunham.

Listen as the life of this unconventional and idealistic woman is revealed and whether her importance has been deliberately downplayed in the story of Barack Obama.

First broadcast Wednesday 16 September 2009

Vocabulary In the News : 13 September 2009 – The Washington Times

A more readable version of this front page, click on the image! For the homepage of The Washington Times, go to : http://www.washingtontimes.com/

- Tens of thousands of protesters have descended on Washington D.C. for a ‘tea party.’ A tea party is the name given to the nationwide protests against increased taxes, socialized medicine, government spending, increased gun control laws, and any other program that has expanded the power and control of government in the lives of the ordinary citizen. These protests are named after the Boston Tea Party that took place in 1773 against a then increasingly powerful British government. At that time, in protest against a tea tax, colonists disguised as American Indians, threw crates of tea into Boston Harbor. A rally is simply when a large group of people get together to either support or protest someone or something. Here, protestors are rallying to assail big government and what they see as an attack against the US Constitution. To assail can mean to either physically attack or severely criticize. In this case, they are criticizing the expansion of the government’s powers. This rally is the result of a grassroots movement. In other words, this movement began with the ordinary citizen and not any political leader.

- President Obama is taking a new approach and argument in order to persuade the American people in favor of his healthcare overhaul. This is word is both a noun and a verb. If you overhaul something, you completely change it in order to make it run more efficiently. According to the article, the president is now using Treasury data to gird the American people for the perils if the system isn’t overhauled. To gird simply means to prepare for something difficult though this is word rarely used in everyday speech.

- The Obama administration has asked Iran to clarify a vague proposal they made for talks. In doing so, the administration is calling Iran’s bluff. If you call someone’s bluff, you ask them to do what they are threatening to do because you believe that they don’t intend to do it. This is a term that comes from card playing when one player bluffs the others trying to make them think he has a better hand of cards. You don’t believe him so you call his bluff by forcing him to show his cards.

- ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) defines itself as a community-based organization working for families of low to moderate income. They are deeply involved in voter registration and have been severely criticized for registering illegal immigrants and other non citizens. They have also come under fire for registering the same person several times and for registering pets to vote! They were deeply involved in last year’s elections. This time they have come under fire when a video from a hidden camera during an undercover sting (une opération secrète d’infiltration) was released showing ACORN workers advising a man and women, posing as a prostitute and pimp, on how to avoid paying taxes through falsifying tax forms and on how to seek illegal benefits for underage girls. ACORN fired back by accusing conservatives of smearing (diffamer) them in order to attack President Obama’s agenda. To fire back means to respond to an answer or a remark quickly and angrily. Obama was involved with the organization and also hired them during his presidential campaign. The headline states that Acorn is firing back in wake of this sting. This simply means that they are reacting after an event and in result of that even. It’s the image of a boat moving through the water, the waves left behind the boat are called the wake. So when we say in wake of something, we are talking about the after effects of an event.

Front page of The Washington Times taken from: http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

NOTE: I was unable to access the articles on the newspaper’s webpage and was getting a ‘site error’ message. It may be that you have to subscribe in order to read them.

Here is a video from MSNBC concerning the Tea Party in Washington.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

To read more :

Up to two million march to US Capitol to protest against Obama's spending in 'tea-party' demonstration http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1213056/Up-million-march-US-Capitol-protest-Obamas-spending-tea-party-demonstration.html#ixzz0QzVYkSRr

Vocabulary In the News : 12 September 2009 – Chicago Tribune

For a readable version of this front page, you can save a pdf file copy HERE! Visit Chicago Tribune at : http://www.chicagotribune.com/

- The top article states that Obama is passing the torch to his wife to represent the Chicago next month in Copenhagen where the Olympic Committee will vote on which city hosts the 2016 Olympic Games. The expression comes from the ancient Greek torch race where a runner would pass a lighted torch to the next. If you pass the torch to someone, this means you pass on responsibility to someone. Look at these sentences:

When the company’s founder became to ill, he passed the torch to his son.

When Obama was inaugurated as president, Bush passed him the torch of the presidency.

- The First Lady’s leading the delegation to Copenhagen to make a final pitch for Chicago’s candidacy for the 2016 Games. A pitch is the things you say in order to persuade someone to buy something. Salesmen and publicity advertisements use pitches to convince you to buy something. When you go to a job interview, you make a pitch for a job.

- Mrs. Obama is hoping that delegation’s pitch will help Chicago land the the Olympic Games. If you land a job, you obtain the job that you wanted. In this case, Chicago wants to host the 2016 Games. If the committee votes in favor of Chicago, the city will have landed the Games. Let’s keep our  fingers crossed!

To read the article : http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-obama-olympics-12-sep12,0,2337639.story

The front page of the Chicago Tribune was taken from : http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

Visit the Chicago 2016 websit!

Watch a Chicago 2016 candidate city bid video:

 

Vocabulary In the News : 10 September 2009 – Detroit Free Press

NOTE! I apologize, link to image and PDF became inactive over time.

For a more readable version of this front page, you can save a pdf format of it by going HERE! To visit this newspaper’s homepage, go to: http://www.freep.com/

- As everybody knows, President Obama, speaking to a joint session of Congress on the 9th , addressed health care reform. The President said that the time for bickering is over. Bickering is a noun to describe arguing that has no significance and is unimportant. The noun is derived from the verb, to bicker which means to argue over things that are unimportant. In other words, Obama believes that the arguments against his health care plan have no merit and the debate should stop. http://www.freep.com/article/20090910/NEWS15/909100384/1318/

- The state of Michigan is confronting a problem in their judicial system. Petty spats are clogging up the courts! Petty refers to something that is unimportant and insignificant. A spat is an brief and usually unimportant argument. If two lovers are having an silly fight, we might call that a lovers’ spat. As you know, Americans are quite litigious and the problem in Michigan is that a lot of these petty spats are clogging up the courts. In other words, these cases are blocking and slowing down the system. The term is used often to describe pipes, tubes and waterways when they are blocked. http://www.freep.com/article/20090910/NEWS05/909100395/1322/PPO-requests--petty-spats-clog-up-courts (if you read the article, you’ll need to know what a PPO is : https://www.msu.edu/~safe/facts/ppo.htm)

- If you have a major success, you score big! The Ford Motor Company has been struggling to get the same publicity for its new electric car as General Motors has been been getting. Ford Motors scored big when they announced that they got a gig on the Jay Leno Show! A gig is an idiomatic expression for a public performance. In this case, the car will be featured in a segment of the show where celebrities are going to race it. Most of the time, a gig is used by singers and comedians. http://www.freep.com/article/20090910/BUSINESS06/909100338/1322/Ford-scores-big-Leno-gig

The front page of the Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Michigan) was taken from http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

For more about the health care debate in the US, here is a video from Newsy. The video is from just before the President addressed Congress.

To watch the video on the Newsy website and to read the transcript, go to: http://www.newsy.com/videos/a_speech_to_cure_u_s_health_care_reform

Vocabulary In the News : 8 September 2009 – New York Post & The Chronicle

NOTE! I apologize, link to images and PDFs became inactive over time.

If you’d like a more readable version of this front page(pdf format), go HERE! For the newspaper’s homepage go to : http://www.nypost.com/

- If you have a pullout in a newspaper or magazine, then this means that there is a thin book that you can keep after you have thrown the newspaper or magazine away. In this case, they have included a short 20-page booklet as a NFL 2009 guide.

-A bribe is the money or present that you give to someone to help you do something dishonest or illegal. The act itself is called bribery, which is considered a crime. In the article which you can read at the link below, several city inspectors with links to powerful crime families were taking bribes in order to overlook violations in city construction codes. These inspectors were lining their pockets when the mob bribed them.

- Other city building inspectors were involved in a drug scam. This is when you follow a dishonest plan or trickery in the hopes of making money. In this situation, some inspectors were using the constructions sites as places to deal in illegal drugs. The word is also a verb. For example, you have all gotten those spam emails from some poor widow of a dead African official who has inherited a lot of money and needs help getting it out of the country or some other sad story so she has contacted you to help her and in the process, you’ll earn some of that money! Well, whoever sent you that email with the phony story is trying to scam you out of your money. Some scammers are so good at scamming and appear legitimate that we would call them a scam artist.

- The sub headline states that there is a mob taint on the construction inspectors. In other words, the whole situation appears to have a connection to the mob; it has the appearance of corruption. It gives the idea that the situation smells or is possibly infected by the mob. The word also exists as a verb. In the United States during an important court case such as in the OJ Simpson trials, the jury was kept hidden and they were not allowed to watch television during the trial because no one wants outside influences to taint or corrupt the jury. We want them to make an honest decision based only on the facts in the case and not from what is being said on television by the media. Here’s another example of how we can use this verb. Imagine you are walking in the country enjoying the fresh air when all of sudden you pass by a farm and you smell the cows! You could say that the air is tainted by the smell of cow manure. In other words, it added a quality to the air that made it unpleasant!

To find out more, go to: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/regional/graft_shocker_3FyDTCePvamziXbKSCeOZL

If you’d like a more readable version of this front page(pdf format), go HERE! For the newspaper’s homepage go to : http://www.kcchronicle.com/

I’d like to take just one expression from the front page of the Geneva, Illinois newspaper The Chronicle, because it’s a good idiomatic expression.

- If you walk a fine line, this means that you have to be careful about what you say or do because you might offend, anger or annoy someone. You have to treat a situation with great delicacy. Alternatively, you can also say, to walk a thin line.

The headline on the front page is referring to a speech that President Obama made to school children yesterday afternoon. The President has been accused by conservatives of using his speech to spread propaganda in the classroom. To find out more, read the article by clicking on the link below.

http://www.kcchronicle.com/articles/2009/09/07/08112864/index.xml

Front pages taken from : http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

To learn more about the above political controversy swirling around President Obama’s speech to schoolchildren, watch the following video from www.newsy.com.

To view the video at Newsy and to access the transcript, go to : http://www.newsy.com/videos/obama_in_the_schools

Cartoon : Hard to swallow something being shoved down your throat

Political cartoon by Steve Kelley of The New Orleans Times-Picayune published on 28 August 2009.

In the cartoon critical of the socialized health care program that President Obama wants to put in place, we have two good idiomatic expressions:

1. to find something hard to swallow – If you find something hard to swallow, you find it difficult to accept or deal with

French university students found the new reforms proposed by the government hard to swallow.

2. to shove something down someone’s throat – To shove means to push something with force, so, if you shove something down someone’s throat, you are forcing them to accept something against their will. You can also replace the verb shove with the verbs force, ram or stuff.

I don't want any more insurance, and I don't want anyone to shove any insurance down my throat.

Please don't try to stuff those lies down our throats.

Don't try to force that car down my throat! I don't want it!

 

Cartoon : Swimming in Red Ink

See Cartoons by Cartoon by Daryl Cagle - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

In this political cartoon by Daryl Cagle published on 22 August, we see a caricature of President Obama swimming in red ink. This cartoon was probably published due to the news released this week that $2 trillion* has been added to the US national debt. According to www.federalbudget.com the US national debt now stands at $11.7 trillion ($11,700,000,000,000)!!

Idiomatically red ink refers to the condition of a fiscal deficit in any business. There are two expressions that can be used to describe a the fact of having a huge deficit. The first, as seen in the cartoon, is to swim in red ink.

The second, stronger expression to describe an overwhelming debt is to drown in red ink.

To describe a budget where there will be losses or debt, you would say that the budget is in the red. To describe the opposite situation which everyone hopes for where there is a profit, you would say that the budget is in the black.

*a trillion - the number equal to 10¹², written as 1 followed by 12 zeros.

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