I am sick of the word “gaffe.” American journalists are just way too fond of it. They use it for a simple slip of the lip, a mispronunciation, a lie, a mistake, a blunder, a Freudian slip, a poor choice of words, a faux pas, an offensive statement, or almost anything at all that a person in public life might say that other people might not like.
The Gaffer
Joe Biden is frequently maligned as someone who makes a lot of gaffes, but it’s rubbish. Huffpo accused him of it again today, because he said “Thank you, Dr. Pepper.” The lady’s name, who he was thanking, who is the Dean of the University where he was speaking, is Dr. Paper. He corrected himself quickly. I doubt that even Dr. Paper was offended. So, it was not a gaffe. It should have been referred to as “a slip of the lip,” or perhaps a “mispronunciation.” Or, better yet, it didn’t need to be mentioned at all but, with internet newspapers’ need to be continually updated, new news is constantly needed so stories get written about all sorts of stuff and nonsense.
That time that Biden asked a guy in a wheelchair to stand up was a faux pas. Just retire the bloody word gaffe, for goodness sake, except when it means a fish hook, in which case it’s a gaff.
Santorum’s “bullshit” comment was not a gaffe, nor a mistake. He knew exactly what he was saying. I find it ironic that the man running on a more-Christian-than-anybody-else platform should resort to profanity (Barry doesn’t talk like that) but, that’s politics.
His statement that Romney was the worst Republican in the country (to run against Obama) was hyperbole, and probably mistaken (Santorum himself would undoubtedly be a worse choice), but not a gaffe. He said it on purpose.
Eric Fehrnstrom’s etch a sketch comment may have been a gaffe, but I would prefer to call it a Freudian Slip. Ditto Romney’s comment about how he couldn’t say which departments he would cut because then he’d lose votes. Likewise when he said he liked firing people, and doesn’t care much about the very poor.
Not all of these statements are the same. Some are fairly benign, even funny. Some are frightening, dangerous and offensive. So, they should not all be referred to with the same word.
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