The smaller the man, the longer the press release title

Published: November 1, 2013 at 10:37pm

Leo Long Words

“The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one’s real and one’s declared aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish spurting out ink. In our age there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics’. All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred, and schizophrenia. When the general atmosphere is bad, language must suffer.” – George Orwell, 1984




6 Comments Comment

  1. admin says:

    The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one’s real and one’s declared aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish spurting out ink. In our age there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics’. All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred, and schizophrenia. When the general atmosphere is bad, language must suffer.

    • A+ says:

      Daphne, this morning I was sitting down in a pharmacy waiting to be seen by my doctor.

      Everyone was busy with tablets and mobiles. A young lad sat to my right and switched on his mobile, straight to your website.

      It made me curious. The couple sitting in front of me were discussing something that they were looking at on their tablet. I looked to my left and, surprise, a middle aged lady reading your blog.

      When it was my turn to go in, I couldn’t help seeing what the couple in front of me were reading with such interest on their tablet. Again, your blog!
      Chapeau!

  2. observer says:

    The ‘title’ says it all. Why bother to read any further?

    • Peritocracy says:

      I thought the title was quite clever in that it artistically mirrors the wrist-slitting drudgery of whatever passes for a Leo Brincat speech. It fills the reader with immense joy at not having to endure that speech, as well as the sublime anticipation of the next 20 minutes better spent doing something entirely different.

  3. vic says:

    That’s dangerous. The commissioner of police may have to confiscate George Orwell’s iPad.

  4. Jozef says:

    Let’s put it this way, a contractor gets a new model of fire detector and Leo Brincat delivers a speech.

    Hilarious.

    Austin Gatt and Tonio Fenech used to inaugurate major hi tech outfits, the problem being shortage of specialised human resources.

    Just for comparison’s sake.

Leave a Comment