Podcast for 2 May 2016

[MrBogosity]

[mp3]http://media.blubrry.com/bogosity/p/podcast.bogosity.tv/mp3s/BogosityPodcast-2016-05-02.mp3[/mp3]


Co-Host: Chris Hangartner

News of the Bogus:

• 1:32 - England's Doctors Walk Out of Emergency Wards in First Ever All-Out Strike https://news.vice.com/article/englands-doctors-walk-out-of-emergency-wards-in-first-ever-all-out-strike
• 10:56 - Veteran's off-the-grid trailer condemned by Huntsville http://www.al.com/news/huntsville/index.ssf/2015/06/veterans_off-the-grid_trailer.html
  
  
  
  • Judge tosses one case against off-the-grid trailer, but owners aren't home free yet http://www.al.com/news/huntsville/index.ssf/2015/09/judge_tosses_one_case_against.html
  • Marine veteran loses court fight, but vows not to move home http://www.al.com/news/huntsville/index.ssf/2015/11/marine_veteran_loses_court_fig.html
• 22:08 - The FBI paid more than $1 million to crack the San Bernardino iPhone https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/04/21/the-fbi-paid-more-than-1-million-to-crack-the-san-bernardino-iphone/

25:30 - Biggest Bogon Emitter: Opera Software http://www.opera.com/blogs/desktop/2016/04/free-vpn-integrated-opera-for-windows-mac/

32:27 - Idiot Extraordinaire: Cindy Prior (nominated by evensgrey) http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/qut-student-faces-200000-bill-in-facebook-post-racism-row-20160415-go7951.html

This Week's Quote: "The government enforces a monopoly over the production and distribution of its alleged 'services' and brings violence to bear against would-be competitors. In so doing, it reveals the fraud at the heart of its impudent claims and gives sufficient proof that it is not a genuine protector, but a mere protection racket." —Robert Higgs

[evensgrey]

Yay!  I finally found the worst item of the week!

OK, not actually a good thing, is it?

The reason "spaz" is still offensive in the UK is the word that got robbed of it's power through overuse is, apparently, "spastic".  (At least, Rowan Atkinson uses it as if it has in his album I have, Live In Belfast.)

Oh, and 'humbug' is now so innocuous that it has (independently) become the term used for some kinds of peppermint flavored, striped hard candies in the UK.  (We get them here in Canada, and in the whole English-speaking world outside of the US as well , apparently, but I've never heard of them actually being called 'humbugs' outside of the UK, and even then only in one novel from the 80's.)

[MrBogosity]

In my book on A Christmas Carol, I give several other meanings for "humbug."

[evensgrey]

Even a quite cursory check online shows up numerous meanings for humbug.  I mentioned the candies because candy isn't something you expect to have a name that is generally considered offensive.

[MrBogosity]

Yeah, and I can't find any etymologies for the candy. I wonder how that happened?

[evensgrey]

Yeah, and I can't find any etymologies for the candy. I wonder how that happened?

I found this, which has references to 19th century texts including a proposed etymology (and, surprisingly, quotes indicating that various sweets were going by the name when it was still considered quite offensive).  The actual sweet described as being called a humbug as an almond encased in toffee (and doesn't mention if this is peppermint flavored toffee) or peppermint flavored toffee without mention of any almonds being involved.  I'd like to know how you go from a toffee to a boiled sweet.

http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/56021/etymology-of-humbug