The Rise of Naff Mil Phraseology

[CoffmanStarter]

I, along with others I'm sure, have noticed a few strange phrases appearing recently on PPRuNe. Some members have already commented on their meaning/use ... so I thought it might be interesting to explore this new military lexicon in a bit more depth under it's own thread :E

What do they all mean :confused:

Here are my openers ...

(1) Warfighter/Warfighting (apparently Lossie recently had a Warfighters Awards Dinner ?).

(2) Kill Chain (apparently comes from the new RPAS World ?).

(3) Synthetic Training (is that the same as training in a sim ?).

Some of this all sounds a bit too gung-ho/video game speak and not terribly British IMHO.

Any more ... I bet there are loads ... and I'll further bet a few members will come up with some new phrases of their own.

Best ...

Coff.

[Pontius Navigator]

Network Centric

Synergy

[Jimlad1]

Heard a few mil types using the phrase

"Swim Lanes"

"Docking Point"

:eek:

[OafOrfUxAche]

a few strange phases



some new phases of their own


Posters shall work on their basic spelling before questioning the delta between what our leadership is doing and what the OF1s to OF3s want them to do.

Posters should not question the overarching intent of Defence.

[Courtney Mil]

Going forward.

[CoffmanStarter]

OOUA ... Phat fingers mate :ok:

[67Wing]

Capability Holiday - We've the fuc&ed-up the procurement again.
Existential (put anything here) - Pseudo rubbish
Lacuna - In vogue for a while. Occurred in almost every paper but has now all but disappeared
Diaspora - A word CAS likes.
Warrior - Serviceman/woman
Space - As in "Occupying the management 'space' and similar
Weapon of Choice - All we have is ... (insert a bit of kit here)

[diginagain]

"Event Horizon" It's Friday lunchtime, ergo time to knock-off for the weekend.

[Torchy]

"much low-hanging fruit" used to be in regular use at STC - especially when writing papers on reductions.....

[CoffmanStarter]

It looks like we have Uncle Sam (not really surprised) to thank for Warfighting/Warfighter ...

The United States Department of Defense (DOD) uses the term “warfighter” to describe anyone serving in a military capacity under the American flag. This term is designed to be as neutral and all-inclusive as possible, and it is frequently used in declarations which are meant to apply to all service members and all services.

In addition to being used to describe American service members, this term can also be used in reference to allies and people of other nationalities who support United States military operations. It emphasizes the interconnection between allies and people of different nationalities on the battlefield, stressing the idea that all military personnel are warfighters, regardless as to their country of origin and training.

This term is also gender-neutral and branch-neutral, which means that it can be used to describe people in any branch of the armed services, and it applies to both male and female service members. The DOD also stresses the idea that “warfighter” is a service status-neutral term, being used to describe people in the field along with veterans, people waiting to be deployed, and service members in training. This further enforces the idea of cohesion.


The term warfighter is much less clumsy than “service member,” which is one of the reasons it appeals to the DOD. It also creates a rather martial aura, stressing the idea that a warfighter is trained in combat, and prepared to support other warfighters along with the combat mission. It also promotes unit cohesion, by giving the men and women in a unit a collective identity; unit cohesion is crucial for cooperation, especially when people from multiple services or nations are involved.

:sad:

[CoffmanStarter]

67Wing ...

Diaspora - A word CAS likes.

The context would be interesting ...

http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af162/CoffmanStarter/ScreenShot2013-07-12at121859_zpscb56854b.jpg

From the OED.

[ExAscoteer]

Centre of Gravity
Battlespace

[Cows getting bigger]

I had occasion to walk into Main building a while back and talk with DAS. Bearing in mind that the lowest rank I was talking to was a wing commander and there were a couple of one stars kicking around, I found the excessive use of the word "cool" to be so out of place. As my daughter says - Random. :)

[Melchett01]

I'm rather relieved to see that 'paradigms' no longer seem to be in vogue.

[Mahogany_Bomber]

That's as a consequence of a paradigm shift.

[PPRuNeUser0139]

I found the excessive use of the word "cool" to be so out of place.
Almost as gripping as grown men using the word "dude"..:ugh:

[phantomstreaker]

RAF Eng Offficer tries to sell Continuous Improvement Bollocks - YouTube


:ugh:

[DeepestSouth]

In the early 80s some of the best debunking of 'jargon' - especially US military jargon, was a highly unofficial publication called the 'Eagle Codes'. My ancient 8th generation photocopy disappeared in a house move years ago. Does anyone still have a copy?

[Maxibon]

There are so many here in the world of green:

Deep-dives;
The devil's in the detail;
Crocodile nearest the canoe;
What really pees me off is the overuse of 'Inshallah' (sp), however it pisses certain individuals when one falsely uses 'Enchilada' in the same context. Lordy, my meetings really are getting dull, I'll get me......etc.

[MSOCS]

(1) Warfighter/Warfighting (apparently Lossie recently had a Warfighters Awards Dinner ?).

(2) Kill Chain (apparently comes from the new RPAS World ?).

(3) Synthetic Training (is that the same as training in a sim ?).


1 - Yes, the US like to use 'Warfighter' for every military man and woman. They coined the term (?) so they can use it as much as they like I guess.

2 - Kill Chain was used long before RPAS were in. It is basically Sensor-to Shooter (-to-Effects) - yes, another naff term I hear you cry, but all common sense nonetheless.

3 - Synthetic Training could also be simulated 'entities' generated on a radar scope or tactical situation display, used to provide training when other real systems are not available. It saves money without any potentially appreciable loss in training value.....but it has to be done correctly.

[Dan Gerous]

Maxibon, I believe you can get a nice enchilada at Ali's snack bar.

[Maxibon]

I hope so/inshallah/enchilada (delete as applicable)

[SOSL]

"battle rhythm" when referring to anything... except a battle!

"war stories" when referring to anything... except a war!

Rgds SOS

[Pontius Navigator]

SiL is 'cool' and a wg cdr who 'cracks on'.

[gr4techie]

EGYM

Why not write Marham? Is it laziness or is it pretentiousness?

When you're talking to somebody face to face and they ask where you are working these days. Do you reply "yeah, Sally and I have been living in EGQS for 2 years now" ?

When you speak to a train conductor do you ask for a single train ticket to EGQL ?

[MG]

Piece....
The most overused and completely superfluous word used at the moment.

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

Along with the "deep dive" mentioned previously, there is the "drill down": both popular amongst loggies and those pretending to be loggies. Also, why does the Command Chain now comprise of "Line Managers" who often seem reluctant to make decisions/give opinions that they consider to be "above their Pay Grade"?

As the question has been asked, a current fad that particularly grips is the addressing of any group of 2 or more humans, irrespective of sex or nationality, as "guys". Attendance of a performance of Guys and Dolls (preferrably by some amateur company) should be compulsory for all such perpretators.

[PPRuNeUser0139]

It was the lack of originality too that used to make me cringe..
as in: "What part of <insert phrase> don't you understand?"

Or when someone tripped over a phrase, the instant riposte was "Easy for you to say.." (be still my aching sides)

& many more.

[Haraka]

There are two terms that I am confused about.
1. "Strike" to me had a specific meaning during my time in the Service, i.e. Nuclear associated . Now not so it seems (since when officially? )
2. "Proliferation" indicated Nuclear,Biological and Chemical warfare capability proliferation. Now it implies only Nuclear , according to the experts in the EU Security Service.
Could anybody please give me the current correct definitions before I embarrass myself further ?

[Rosevidney1]

ONGOING ! Utterly hateful word which can be deleted from every instance it is used without changing the meaning.

[thing]

EGYM

Why not write Marham? Is it laziness or is it pretentiousness?
Spotters and frequent travellers talk like that. (See SLF forum) They never talk about taking a 747 to Changi, it's always a 744 to SIN. Never quite figured it myself either. Some guys write down airfields they've flown into as ICAO codes in their logbook. They then spend ten minutes shouting 'Anyone know the code for Fenland?'

Er, why not just write Fenland?

Edit: I was party to a conversation last weekend which included A Quite Senior Officer about a subject I thought I knew a little about. Barely understood a bloody word but did my nodding dog/looking sage face. Really seriously felt like saying 'Don't understand your banter old man'...:E

[airborne_artist]

Delta, and not of the Nile/Mississippi variety :ok:

[airborne_artist]

Pere Artist used to laugh at the Brown Jobs TEWTS = Tactical Exercises Without Tanks/Trees :\

[Cornish Jack]

Surprised that nobody has mentioned the use of 'jets' when what is meant is an aeroplane powered by one or more gas turbines!:yuk:

[thing]

I knew a Wg Cdr back in the mists of time who used to go ape if you called his jet a jet.

'It is a bloody AIRCRAFT.'

He used to point out.

I'm always wary when talking to Jack Tar about ships and boats. I can never remember which way round it is, I think a sub is a boat, everything else is a ship. Probably.

[vascodegama]

GBZ

The use of comprise of when people mean either

Comprise

or

Consist of

[thing]

The other one that narks me is the utterley pointless abbreviation 'WWW' when people are giving you a web address. 'WWW' is nine syllables, World Wide Web is three...

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

vascodegama; bugger! well spotted. :ouch:

[Danny42C]

Coffman Starter,

"Synthetic Training" was around when I joined (pickhelves for arms drill - no rifles, and that's going back a bit). MSOCS puts in a good word for it. Chacun à son goût.

What annoys me is this "served in the military". I served in the Royal Air Force, for pity's sake ! (when did military become a noun ?) In the US Army Air Corps I had to do everything "in a mili - tary manner".

Where did "Pre-warning" come from ? What use would a "Post-warning" be ?

D.

[gr4techie]

There are two terms that I am confused about.
1. "Strike" to me had a specific meaning during my time in the Service, i.e. Nuclear associated . Now not so it seems (since when officially? )
2. "Proliferation" indicated Nuclear,Biological and Chemical warfare capability proliferation. Now it implies only Nuclear , according to the experts in the EU Security Service.
Could anybody please give me the current correct definitions before I embarrass myself further ?

Strike Jet = Is that an aircraft that refuses to be work?

[Rossian]

....nearly right - submarines are "boats", everything else is a "target"

I ain't ...

The Ancient Mariner

for nuffin

[E-Spy]

I've heard the word 'solutionise' being used extremely often in meetings recently. I wasn't aware that the RAF had so many experts in metallurgy!

[tailchase]

Volunteered v Voluntold!

[Rigga]

Having recently re-left the RAF; I found the last few years quite hard work to try to understand some of the Americanised dribble that came out of many modern servicemen's mouths.

In my last job I even had to ask one person what they actually meant and this lead me to remind my dept. that they were actually British and had a special bit of MS Word to prove it (English UK).

I developed the theory that this yank-speak was caused by too much fraternizing with our YOO-ESS cuzz's and not enough time writing letters home. It infected y'all Royaal Air-Fowse and EMuhDee folks (IMHO).

The fact that we now operate EAF's (WTF is that all about?) is also an Americanisation (or is it EU-isation?) of our British forces and, I believe, shows pretentions of fleet sizes and burocracy bordering on those of Soviet politicos.

Not enough Red yet...obviously.

[MG]

'Stood up' when they mean 'formed' or 'reformed'. We are still allowed to speak English and not fall into army-ese. Same to when people say 'stand fast' something or other when what they mean to say is 'ignore'.

[TorqueOfTheDevil]

"battle rhythm" when referring to anything... except a battle!


A certain SAR Flt which I visited recently briefs the 'Admin Battle Rhythm' every morning. WTF??

'jets' when what is meant is an aeroplane powered by one or more gas turbines!

In the same vein, referring to a helicopter as an aeroplane.

[Churchills Ghost]

Maxibon wrote:
What really pees me off is the overuse of 'Inshallah' (sp), however it pisses certain individuals when one falsely uses 'Enchilada' in the same context.

Well done Maxibon. :D Shall have to deploy this tactic (or is that tic tac) at the first available opportunity!

[PICKS135]

Its not just the military that has naff phraseology. About 5 years ago. Road sweepers for the local council, no longer swept up dirt. All of a sudden it became, 'DETRITUS'. :rolleyes:

What a load of :mad:

[Wetstart Dryrun]

'The Jet' has only one meaning.

regards

wets

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

Same to when people say 'stand fast' something or other when what they mean to say is 'ignore'.

As the Thread relates to Naff Mil Phraseology, I think it only fair to point out that it is an instance of fish head/Jack speak that's been around a couple hundred years before the Air Force and, for that matter, manned flying machines were created. We like to call it tradition. :ok:

[NutLoose]

Mind you some Naval technobabble has made it into common usage, such as

Third Rate
Second Rate
First Rate

Which were of course an indication of the gunnage on ships of the line..

This made me chortle

****storm arrives in German dictionary | Books | guardian.co.uk (http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2013/jul/04/****storm-german-dictionary-duden-****schturm)

[Willard Whyte]

It may be the red wine, but there appears to be nothing in the thread of the MILFs seemingly mentioned, to my red-eyed gaze, in the thread title.

[seanbean]

How about "a non-viability factor on the mission-in" [With thanks to a USMC Maj GW1]

[SomeGuyOnTheDeck]

Somewhere near the start of this thread ExAscoteer mentioned 'Centre of Gravity' as an example of naff phraseology - does that mean that RAF aircraft are no longer equipped with one? I've heard they are cutting costs, but I'd have thought that was taking things a bit far... ;)

[longer ron]

'Awsome' seemed to come in sometime in the 80's - usually used to describe something fairly banal LOL :yuk:...I was a civvy by then but have (mostly) continued to work for/with mili - tary aircrew :)

We had a French capitaine on the course a few years ago... I certainly made sure that I went to the end of course presentation that year :)...she looked utterly delish in her dress uniform :)

[diginagain]

What annoys me is this "served in the military". I served in the Royal Air Force, ...Oxymoron, Shirley? :p

[L J R]

OH&S, Equal Opportunity, Environmentally Friendly, Equity and Diversity.
.
Drink more concrete and Harden Up! OK I am stuck in the '70s. 'Cos we had it TUFF then!

[gr4techie]

OH&S, Equal Opportunity, Environmentally Friendly, Equity and Diversity.
.
Drink more concrete and Harden Up! OK I am stuck in the '70s. 'Cos we had it TUFF then!

I read something about the AIM-120 AMRAAM missile... "The reason for the malfunction(s) has been determined to be a change in the chemical formula of the rocket propellant to comply with new environmental regulations".

Since when were killer missiles "environmentally friendly" ?

[dallas]

Someone wrote to me recently and used the word 'granularity' in a context suited to the more common or garden word 'detail', and while I spent a couple of moments trying to work out whether it was an attempt to impress, or whether he was just wankerish enough to talk like that, the result was the same: alarm.

[tyne]

"Fuzed" was the buzz word areound the time Ark Royal left service.

Link 16 fuzed information from the battle space.

RAF and RN crew were fuzed when operating on a carrier.

I guess it was an evolution of "Joint" which in turn evolved from the days when it was "Gucci" to be "purple"

I never get "Afghan" Like saying you are going to visit friends in French, or German.

[MG]

Tyne, I can't agree more about Afghan. It's an adjective, not a noun!!:D

[Haraka]

It wasn't until the Falklands episode that I realised that people from Argentina apparently weren't actually called Argentinians.

" Argentines".

[Black 'n Yellar]

Having served with the 'Light Blue' fraternity for many years there was the term 'Out of Area' - why not just say where you are going like everyone else? The most annoying though was their inability to refer to their ID Card as an ID Card and their requirement to call it a MOD Form whatever it was!

[NutLoose]

Bader used to take offence at RAF as in Riff Raff, it should be pronounced

AhhhrrAaaaaaEfffffff

[gr4techie]

Having served with the 'Light Blue' fraternity for many years there was the term 'Out of Area' - why not just say where you are going like everyone else? The most annoying though was their inability to refer to their ID Card as an ID Card and their requirement to call it a MOD Form whatever it was!

You mean "Get your twelve fifty out as you walk through the gate back to the block".

[Thud105]

I really hate the phrase "deliver the ordnance".
It sounds as if the people who have just been blown to bits ordered the stuff, and DHL or FedEx brought it round.
Just call it what it is. If you've dropped a bomb or fired a missile, why not just say that?

[Black 'n Yellar]

That's the one gr4techie! Call it what it is - an ID Card!

[Il Duce]

My boss recently asked me to contact the RPC to obtain the ROM of a prospective task they were to asked to complete. Do what, boss? Contact the Regional Prime Contractor and ask them the Rough Order of Magnitude to complete said task. If you mean call Babcock's and ask them how much that job is likely to cost, then why not say so?!:*

[Haraka]

I was originally amused by these verbal games when working in the U.S.A. Any initial contact between two teams or individuals on a project seemed to be a contest with both sides swapping acronyms, seemingly as a means to establish credibility.(i.e. Willy Waving).
In my experience of the Military Services and Industry- home and around the world , such cryptic verbalism was usually used as a device by so-called managers ( as distinct from leaders ) to maintain status over subordinates, many whom would of course perforce been denied access to the fora where such " wanquespeak " ( thanks Beags) was generated.
Leaders, on the other hand, tend to make the effort to convey concepts in understandable terms to those who follow. Those such as Churchill, Montgomery , Patton and the like, despite their faults , used language to communicate, not to obfuscate.

[Geehovah]

We'll take that capability at risk = We can't afford to replace it.

[gr4techie]

Surprised that nobody has mentioned the use of 'jets' when what is meant is an aeroplane powered by one or more gas turbines!

Cab.

What people on helicopters always call helicopters.

[Laarbruch72]

They were just starting to use "battle rhythm" as I left last year, it was embarrassing and not a little obscure. It was basically the day's or week's work summed up in a quick meeting, we call it a daily or weekly update in our airline. Imagine that. How did we survive without the phrase "battle rhythm"?

[Ken Scott]

You mean "Get your twelve fifty out as you walk through the gate back to the block".

I'm afraid it's a Form 90 now - a small piece of plastic a form? A form is made of paper & you can write on it...

[ACW599]

What do "shareholders" and "stakeholders" have to do with military aviation, pray?

[effortless]

Ok when I was chopped, grow bags were blue and chippies were grey but when did you start talking about a solution when popping off at things?

Sorry if I'm intruding.

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

Remind me; do Units/Establishments/Directorates still have those bloody Mission Statements and Investors in People stickers?

[LowObservable]

Top 5 banned words and phrases in my book:

Warfighter - Used, subtly, to differentiate the "real" boots-on-the-ground soldier from everyone else, despite the fact that the former can't do :mad: without the latter.
Paradigm - Buddy can you par a digm? You're only allowed to use this if you can explain what it means, other than "thingamajig".
Weaponized - People who use this instead of "armed" get spankingized.
Game-changing - Marketeer-speak for "I am spouting complete bull:mad:".
5th-generation - Sort of made sense for the Russkies, who invented this description for their fighters in the 80s-90s, but has now been mangled into something that makes as much sense as "the ultimate driving machine".

[Rigga]

MOD lost its "Investors in People" thing about five years ago when it stopped a great deal of training and really started crapping on said folk.

[seanbean]

Any military activity referred to as "Kinetic"

[XV490]

Talk with - and speak with and meet with. :ugh:
(some of these people need a damn good talking with)

On a slightly different tack, didn't Churchill used to have fun messing about with the language? I seem to recall him splitting 'phrasal verbs' for a laugh,
such as: "The Home Secretary, up whom I've just rung......"

[Ken Scott]

Other American expressions that have crept in in recent years:

'With the flash' rather than 'ident'
[squawk code] 'coming down'
And the pronounciation of the altitude indicating instrument as Al-tim-eter rather than the correct English Alti-meter

[Rossian]

.......can I safely assume then that the thing that tells me the milage I've travelled in my car is an "odo-meter?

Says he who has always said "al-tim-eter" since I first got into an RAF aircraft in 1963.

The Ancient Mariner

[Ken Scott]

Ancient Mariner,

That's the thing with the English language, it's full of inconsistencies.

Hence the Volt-meter, thermom-eter etc each with their own specific pronounciation!

But I'm sorry to say that you've obviously being pronouncing it incorrectly since 1963! Clearly a hangover from the USAAF in WW2.

[sitigeltfel]

When did the naff term "Staish" begin to be used to describe the CO?

I left in '79 and had never heard it.

Mumble, mumble, bah!

[Red Line Entry]

Siti,

About 1979...

[Ken Scott]

'Staish' was his surname, in my service all Stn Cdrs were christened 'Harold'.

[gr4techie]

I keep on hearing about I guy called Harry Staish, but I've never met the namesake. :-) I wonder if theres a real Harry Staish in the BT phonebook or census records?

[Ivor Fynn]

every station I was at the Stn Cdr was always 'Harry the Staish" - end of.

Ivor

p.s. - except for one scottish fighter base where the Stn Cdr was affectionately known by all as 'Harry the Ba$tard'

[Juan Smore]

Not strictly military but LinkedIn provides a rich supply of bolockspeak if anyone is ever short of inspiration.

[Wensleydale]

The following book will explain all - available in all good bookshops (and a few rubbish ones as well). I bought one for our project office staff when I worked for a PT.:ok:

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTT2kziOKjLwKfm_Jk-YAe8tOXZjL0KCO5MSj-Tzm_NiCRRNoDJDg

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dictionary-Corporate-Bull****-The-Enraging/dp/0767920740/ref=pd_cp_b_3

[Hovermonkey]

From another thread close by talking about procurement:

"Seedcorn"

I hate that.

[SOSL]

Good point, Cheesy.

Real military phraseology tends to be succinct and meaningful, even if it is totally incomprehensible to outsiders.

For good reasons: less airtime and not too obvious.

Most Naff Mil Phraseology comes directly from the mouths of highly paid consultants who may recently have been trained in something that looks like "Management by Objectives" as we used to call it 40 years ago. Which was later hi-jacked and "morphed" into whatever they call it now.

In most cases, the only reason that middle ranking military officers think the consultants are so clever and adopt their phraseology is because the consultants are usually paid a lot more than them.

Rgds SOS

[Big Pistons Forever]

From the USAF. Planes don't break anymore, they have unskeduled unservicabilities.....

[Hydromet]

After sitting through a meeting which was addressed for about an hour by a seagull manager (flies in, makes a lot of noise, puts sh!t everywhere, takes what he can and flies out), we were all brought to tears of laughter by one very clever lady who asked "Sir, could you please tell us what you've just said?"

[Roland Pulfrew]

MOD lost its "Investors in People" thing about five years ago

I thought we ditched IiP on purpose, when the ministers finally realised that we were wasting an awful lot of time and money trying to get an accreditation that was utterly meaningless to most people wanting to join the military. As I said to the IiP assessor "I wanted to fly fast-jets; the air force was the only place I could do that. Why on earth would I be worried about whether the organization was IiP accredited?" Answer: "Fair point."

Another one for the buzzword-bingo: "operationalize". :ugh:

[Big Bear]

From the USAF. Planes don't break anymore, they have unskeduled unservicabilities.....


Slightly off topic, but this reminds me of a visit that I had as a car mad teenager to a Rolls Royce garage. A inqusitive young Bear asked the mechanic in his pristine overalls 'is this where you bring them when they break down?' To which the mechanic replied 'Oh no young man, Rolls Royces never break down, but they may fail to proceed'

I'm surprised that 'over-arching' and 'under-pinning' haven't made an appearance yet.

Bear

[Churchills Ghost]

After sitting through a meeting which was addressed for about an hour by a seagull manager (flies in, makes a lot of noise, puts sh!t everywhere, takes what he can and flies out)

Oh I do love that Hydromet, Bravo! :D

Yes, far too many Seagull Managers about from what I've heard.

[OafOrfUxAche]

I'm surprised that 'over-arching' and 'under-pinning' haven't made an appearance yet.


I'm surprised that you didn't bother reading the start of this thread. Keep up, Yogi;)

[Wensleydale]

Yes, far too many Seagull Managers about from what I've heard.


We had someone from the fighter control branch on the AWACS who was known as "Seagull". You had to throw a brick at them before you could get them to fly!

[ExAscoteer]

The word 'ask'.

As in: 'That's a big ask'.

No it f*****g isn't, it's a big thing to ask!

Ask is a verb not a bloody noun!

[The Cryptkeeper]

The latest phrase that every Officer and his dog is using in the Army is "I get that" or variations thereof - roughly translated it means "I heard what you just said, I know it's a crap idea and morale is rock bottom, but I can't/won't say anything to my Boss!"

Oh, and it's already been mentioned "piece"......

[Al R]

More generally, I have noticed that use of the definite article and personal pronouns have diminished - the effect of Tw@tter? And how often do you see an 'expert' responding to an interviewer with a series of verbal bullet points, prefaced with 'So.. ' as we get talked through the issue coz we're obviously all too thick to work it out for ourselves.

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

Indeed but that reflects a general decline in the standard of written and spoken English. Of course, if you rebel against it or even criticise, the apologists immediately assert that "English is a living and dynamic language, evolving all the time". That usually means that if enough people misuse it through design, ignorance or laziness, It will become "correct" usage. In the age of instant communication, that now doesn't take very long. :mad:

[Thomas coupling]

I believe the word 'stress' didn't exist until the late 40's.
What about PTSD? When did that come into being?

[spectre150]

Not sure if it has reached the military yet (I have retired) but those who precede the answer to a question with "Listen, ......" are particularly annoying. I think Tony Blair was the first person I heard doing this and it seems to have caught on with other politicians and 'pundits'. If I ask a question, I do not expect to be told to listen to the answer; if I did not want to listen to the answer I would not have asked the question. Mind you, there were many senior officers in my experience who did not apply this logic.

[Lightning Mate]

Force Multiplier.

WTFO?

[Torchy]

Crystal clear

Traction

and "inter alia" "outwith"
:confused:

[Whenurhappy]

'Outwith' stumps my US colleagues; inter alia, and primus inter pares are succint and useful expressions. More Latin needed, me thinks.

[Al R]

GBZ,

I don't mind change in itself but when it is change for changes sake.. well. I think it probably started when we lost our manufacturing base and became expert/puindit/service orientated. Delta, by the way, for me these days refers to the relationship between the price change in an underlying asset and the corresponding change in the price of the derivative that it might be based on. Joy.

Has no one used Dead Cat Bounce in briefings yet? A DCB describes a pathetic market rally following a large fall and is based on hopeless aspiration. I wonder what context could be used for that.. or, what about Triple Witching? TW occurs when a multitude of factors culminate on the same day; usually stock options, stock market index options and stock market index futures all expiring at the same time and leading to massive trading volumes and volatility.

I can't think of a military dead cat bounce but I'm sure there must be some use out there. Maybe a brief spurt of happiness at a beer call for a unit which has dreadful morale?

[Dunky]

"I'm all over it", meaning completing a task. "Boxed", meaning task completed.

As for ID cards, my MoD 90 is getting on a bit now, it's so old it doesn't have an expiry date, and has required some running repairs with sellotape to keep it in one piece.

[Union Jack]

'Outwith' stumps my US colleagues

Well, it shouldn't do, observing how many of the cousins claim Scottish ancestry. It's a perfectly normal word in everyday use in Scotland - and sometimes by more learned English speakers elsewhere! - as a variation of "without".:ok:

Jack

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

In my experience of working with shed loads of Jocks, including 2 bosses, "outwith" invariably meant "outside". For example, "the task you've (successfully) completed was outwith your terms of reference". :}

It annoyed the hell out of me, particular when the non Jocks started doing it.

[Rossian]

... thomas coupling - came in in the wake of GW1 and from those dealing with the aftermath of Lockerbie (eg mountain rescue teams). Try and get "Trauma" by Prof Gordon Turnbull. A sobering read. He used to be the chief psychiatrist at Wroughton for the RAF.

The Ancient Mariner

[teeteringhead]

my MoD 90 is getting on a bit now, it's so old it doesn't have an expiry date, best get a new one Dunky. MGS have been briefed not to accept them without an expiry date!

Discovered that from one of my underlings - doesn't seem to have had much (any?) publicity.

If you're lucky you'll get one warning before it gets taken away and shredded ..........

[SOSL]

"Thank you for your input, I'll take that off-line" means "I haven't a clue but I don't want everyone at the meeting to know that".

"Cost neutral" - Does that mean "it's for free" or does it mean "we can frig the budget so we don't get the blame if it goes wrong"?

"Pushing at an open door" - If the door is open you can't push it!

"Find a work around" means "deal with it". Unless, however, you subscribe to the prevalent conspiracy theory, in which case it means "frig the budget".

"That's the wrong answer" means "I asked the question but I didn't really want your opinion".

"Run it up the flagpole and see who salutes" means "lets see who is daft enough to believe us".

Rgds SOS

[Burnt Fishtrousers]

"I hear what you are saying" should elicit a response "you should be listening"

"taking on board" is another irritating one.

We have people who used to go out and install software, now they "deploy software in field" ....twats..

I love "Cluster F**k" though ...its just sums things up so nicely

[Dunky]

best get a new one Dunky. MGS have been briefed not to accept them without an expiry date!

Discovered that from one of my underlings - doesn't seem to have had much (any?) publicity.

If you're lucky you'll get one warning before it gets taken away and shredded ..........

Thanks for the heads up, I'll get a new one ordered :ok: Or should that be initiate the renewal phase :)

[Roland Pulfrew]

I hate the idiotic things that the comms world comm up with. UAD anyone? User Access Device apparently - or computer to those in the real world. I would love to see someone walk into PC World and say: "I would like to purchase a UAD" and see what happens. :ugh:

And DSE? Display screen equipment - or monitor in the real world!! FFS :ugh::ugh:

[PPRuNeUser0139]

A speaking mannerism that was guaranteed to whiten my knuckles was the practice of a speaker posing a series of obvious questions and answering them in the next breath (usually prefixed with "Absolutely.. ")

Eg: "Would I prefer it if the PVR rate was less than 5%? Absolutely - of course I would. Do I think it'll happen soon? No I don't. Do I sound like an idiot when I do this? Sure I do." :ugh:

[Tinribs]

Its getting a bit quiet so I thought you might like,

Lots of Air Lingus air craft are named after saints, mainly Irish

BmI used to go to Dublin the use their 737 sim

Pinted on the side St Thetic

[Willard Whyte]

"I hear what you are saying" should elicit a response "you should be listening" I had always thought "I hear what you are saying" was a euphemism for "You are talking absolute ballocks".

Similarly, "taking on board" I've taken to mean "You are talking absolute ballocks, now stop wasting my time and crawl back to your own pathetic little world where, just maybe, there is actually some meaning to your insignificant existence.