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9/11 slang

Posted by ESC on September 11, 2004

What 9/11 words and expressions entered our language on a permanent basis?

I haven't heard any of the following lately so they may have faded out.

SEPTEMBER 10TH -- adj. "Clinton's policy fluency -- and unmatched ability to explain a complex world -- are already missed in some quarters. But he still must confront the perception that he's a little 'September 10th.' Not a relic; too young and forward-thinking for that, but less relevant than he once seemed." Newsweek, April 8, 2002.

SEPT. 11 SLANG - "Some schoolchildren in suburban D.C. have already absorbed the 9/11 terrorist attacks into their slang, according to The Washington Post. A mean teacher is 'such a terrorist'; punishment meted out by the principal is 'a total jihad'; an unfashionable outfit might be dubbed a 'burqa'; petty problems are dismissed as 'so Sept. 10.' Kids say it's just their way of dealing with the madness they witnessed in September, but the Post's Emily Wax quotes headshrinkers who say the jokes might be masking some deep fears about terrorism. Whatever, say some of the teens. 'If you're weird, people might call you Taliban or ask if you have anthrax,' said Najwa Awad, a Palestinian-American student in Falls Church, Va. 'Sept. 11 has been such a stressful thing that it's OK to joke a little bit. It's funny.'" From "Out of the mouths of babes," March 28, 2002, Thomas Nord, The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Ky.)

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