\u201cSooo!\u201d \u2013 \u201cI feel like \u2026..\u201d \u2013 \u201cSup?\u201d These three expressions are part of the new hip language in our society. And, once again, I\u2019m out of step! This leaves two choices for an old coot like me; join them, or become a critic? If I join them, I\u2019ll look like an idiot. Picture this \u2013 some old sourpuss coming along, his arm raised, saying, \u201cSup?\u201d & \u201cGive me five!\u201d It just doesn\u2019t fit. So, I\u2019ll take the critic route and see where it leads me.<\/p>\n
\u201cSooo.\u201d \u2013 is a widely used starter when someone is answering a question. It\u2019s quite prevalent in one-on-one conversations, but more noticeable on the media when well educated, and articulate commentators and guests use it to start a response. A commentator will ask a guest, \u201cWhat is the effect of the new policies to protect students on campus?\u201d The college dean will respond \u2013 \u201cSooo. The Title 9 rules \u2026. blah, blah, blah.\u201d Sooo is used so frequently in this manner, we hardly notice it anymore. It has replaced: \u201cEr.\u201d \u2013 \u201cUm.\u201d \u2013 \u201cWell.\u201d and \u201cAhh\u201d. All words I mastered in the third grade, when called on by the teacher and didn\u2019t know the answer. If the intellectuals who start their answers with Sooo, just dropped it, they would appear much more knowledgeable.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like.\u201d Has only recently made the language scene, but it is even more widespread than \u201cSo.\u201d It has totally replaced: – \u201cI think\u201d \u2013 \u201cTo the best of my knowledge\u201d \u2013 \u201cI heard\u201d \u2013 \u201cIt is my opinion.\u201d I FEEL LIKE is a cop out. You\u2019re never wrong when you cushion a declaration with, I feel like \u2026\u201d You can\u2019t be criticized for making an asinine statement because it\u2019s how you FELT, not what you thought or knew. You hide behind the \u201cI FEEL\u201d (I don\u2019t know the facts but I feel like they are this or that). \u201cI FEEL LIKE\u201d has also succeeded in replacing that old (cop-out) favorite, \u201cThey say.\u201d Both – take the speaker out of the equation and let their unfounded assertions go unchallenged. <\/p>\n
\u201cSup?\u201d is last on my list. The short form of \u201cWhat\u2019s up?\u201d It usually evokes a, \u201cNothing,\u201d in response. It\u2019s more of a conversation stopper than a conversation starter. When we are confronted with it, our brain freezes; we can\u2019t come up with a good answer and feel just like we did when the teacher asked us a question in third grade and we had no idea what she was talking about. <\/p>\n
SO, I FEEL LIKE & SUP need to be challenged until they disappear. \u201cTHEY SAY\u201d it will happen; it\u2019s just a matter of time. I sure hope so! <\/p>\n