Hyperbole

Some newspaper people remind me of Charles Dickens. They momentarily live in the best of times or the worst of times, as in the opening line of "A Tale of Two Cities."While they work on the planet, they must be covering the first, the last, the biggest, the best, the worst, the smallest, the loudest, the dirtiest or the smelliest thing ever.The subject today is hyperbole, or extravagant exaggeration. My own fingers have never typed such an odoriferous outrage, which is our second example today.

This is the season of generational twaddle. At graduation ceremonies across the country, politicians, authors, actors and businessmen take to the stage to tell young people they are fantastic simply because they are young. This year, the ritual is more pathetic than usual because there's a presidential election in the offing. And because the current occupant of the White House won in 2008 in no small part due to his success with the "youth vote," he is desperate for them to repeat their blunder.

NEW YORK -- Democrats greeted the latest poll results yesterday with the kind of ambivalence that seems characteristic of this convention. On one hand, they were pleased with news that a New York Times-CBS News survey found Bill Clinton running essentially even with President Bush and independent Ross Perot clearly slipping.But some older and wiser heads were shaking at the fact that Mr. Clinton still has negative ratings higher than positive ratings even after the favorable attention to his vice presidential choice.

Let the record show that, for my part, I prefer to use literally in its literal sense. I would never says that its misuse would make my head literally explode. The second reason for not saying that is that literally , as HeadsUp: The Blog points out in a post , has multiple meanings, including, well, "figuratively" or "for all intents and purposes. " You can find that in the Oxford English Dictionary and in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage and in the works of respectable writers over a long span.

The proposed "touch and see" 9/11 memorial for the Inner Harbor will allow the morbid to scratch their itch and invite the hyper-patriotic to wallow in self-righteous victimization ("9/11 memorial design unveiled," May 19). In hyperbole more commensurate with the event's inflated iconography than with respect for the dead, Douglas Bothner, the memorial's architect, reminds us how all "our souls" were "transformed" that day. Do we really need this spectacle? Don't we risk trivializing the event by an overly evocative memorial?

This is the season of generational twaddle. At graduation ceremonies across the country, politicians, authors, actors and businessmen take to the stage to tell young people they are fantastic simply because they are young. This year, the ritual is more pathetic than usual because there's a presidential election in the offing. And because the current occupant of the White House won in 2008 in no small part due to his success with the "youth vote," he is desperate for them to repeat their blunder.

Who are the Iraqis? Look for a primer on Iraq through Friday in the Today section.CustomsPublic displays of intimacy, even between husband and wife, are a no-no. But it is common to see two women or men, including soldiers, holding hands as they walk down a street as a sign of friendship.It's not unusual for Iraqis to be just 10 inches apart while talking; a greater distance is seen as an insult.Flowery language -- filled with hyperbole -- is a part of a everyday speech on the social and business scene.

The Art of Travel, by Alain de Botton (Pantheon, 272 pages, $23). A jewel of civility, wit and insight; de Botton has produced wondrous essays that reflect upon museums, mini-bars, classic writers, airports and about anything else you could imagine that is related to travel. He does it in language that can be as luscious as a not-quite overripe pineapple, flashing often like crashing surf struck by a brilliant dawn. "If our lives are dominated by a search for happiness," de Botton writes, "then perhaps few activities reveal as much about the dynamics of this quest -- in all its ardour and paradoxes -- than our travels."

Let the record show that, for my part, I prefer to use literally in its literal sense. I would never says that its misuse would make my head literally explode. The second reason for not saying that is that literally , as HeadsUp: The Blog points out in a post , has multiple meanings, including, well, "figuratively" or "for all intents and purposes. " You can find that in the Oxford English Dictionary and in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage and in the works of respectable writers over a long span.

Hyperbole 101 -- CBS' understated "TONIGHT THEY SKATE!" promo for Tonya-Nancy showdown said to be inspired by same restrained producer who originated "JAPANESE BOMB PEARL HARBOR!"Unless it was too much makeup -- Tonya Harding's desultory performance and 10th place finish in women's technical program now being blamed on Connie Chung's incessant badgering as well as ill-fated decision to wear bowling shirt from "Bob's Qwik-Mart" during competition.How would you like that steak? -- Finland's 6-1 rout of Team USA in hockey leaves Americans out of medal contention and coach Tim Taylor quietly looking into a job at Sizzler's in Cromwell, Conn.

We were treated to some Harbaughian hyperbole Sunday night after the Baltimore defense established a new franchise record with three defensive touchdowns in a 34-17 win over the New York Jets. The Ravens, who pressured Mark Sanchez into four turnovers, scored on two fumble returns and an interception return. “It was the best defensive performance I thought I'd ever seen, and the most amazing defensive performance I thought I'd seen was the Pittsburgh game with the seven turnovers against that offense,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Sunday, referencing the team's 35-7 win over the Steelers in Week 1. “But, this topped it. To have three returns for touchdowns off of turnovers by your defense, has it ever been done before?

The proposed "touch and see" 9/11 memorial for the Inner Harbor will allow the morbid to scratch their itch and invite the hyper-patriotic to wallow in self-righteous victimization ("9/11 memorial design unveiled," May 19). In hyperbole more commensurate with the event's inflated iconography than with respect for the dead, Douglas Bothner, the memorial's architect, reminds us how all "our souls" were "transformed" that day. Do we really need this spectacle? Don't we risk trivializing the event by an overly evocative memorial?

The Theory of Clouds By Stephane Audeguy Harcourt / 272 pages / $24 In the midst of our rat-race lives, we are constantly told to remember to stop and smell the roses. But what about stopping to watch the clouds go by? Just as with the perfume of the perfect tea rose or floribunda - which can never be cut and brought indoors without losing both their heady scent and their silken petals - no one can capture the essence of the fleeting cloud. But in his lyric novel, The Theory of Clouds, French historian Stephane Audeguy does his utmost to put that diaphanous sensuality into a context that is almost touchable.

What must grate on Martin O'Malley's critics is this: Baltimore has been a better city since he became mayor. Supporters of the incumbent governor, Robert Ehrlich, certainly can argue over how much progress Baltimore has made during the past six years - and whether it would have made more progress had, say, Ehrlich been mayor - but they are hard-pressed to prove that the city has flat-lined or that it's worse than during the long, painful and moribund Schmoke...

So Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. says he can't wait to concentrate on the "horrific nature" of Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley's record. The mayor's accomplishments and failings - what he could have done better and what he could have done differently - during his 6 1/2 year tenure are certainly worth examining in the impending gubernatorial showdown between Ehrlich and O'Malley. Just as they were before Douglas M. Duncan dropped out of the race for the Democratic nomination last week, an event that provoked the governor's denunciation.

BOSTON - I don't think I've ever heard quite so much about snowflakes in June. Talk about an odd weather pattern. Could it be the prevailing political winds? The weather report began during a photo op of the president kissing babies. This was not unusual for a politician, but these babies were wearing T-shirts that read "former embryo" and "this embryo was not discarded." They were children dubbed "Snowflakes" by a group that promotes what they call "embryo adoption." The photo op followed the House passage of a bill that would let the government pay for research on stem cell lines derived from leftover embryos stored in fertility clinics.

The Theory of Clouds By Stephane Audeguy Harcourt / 272 pages / $24 In the midst of our rat-race lives, we are constantly told to remember to stop and smell the roses. But what about stopping to watch the clouds go by? Just as with the perfume of the perfect tea rose or floribunda - which can never be cut and brought indoors without losing both their heady scent and their silken petals - no one can capture the essence of the fleeting cloud. But in his lyric novel, The Theory of Clouds, French historian Stephane Audeguy does his utmost to put that diaphanous sensuality into a context that is almost touchable.

ART MODELL, WHAT in the wide, wide world of sports are you apologizing for?On Monday, Modell said that ``if Hitler came back, I'd take him'' as the coach of the Baltimore Ravens. Folks at ESPN -- the cable sports network -- found the quote so significant they included it and Modell's apology on one of their telecasts. And sports fans thought as many people as possible were trying to forget the Ravens' season.It was a slip of the tongue, Modell said, a ``stupid misspeak,'' a ``flippant'' remark.

MARYLAND LT. GOV. Michael S. Steele got 10 nearly prime-time minutes this week at the Republican National Convention. The obvious question is: How'd he do? Scored purely for performance, pretty good. He was engaging, telegenic and at ease. In short, we'd score his speech-making skills ahead of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s. But on content, Mr. Steele did not rise to the moment. And, unfortunately, his failure - combined with the provocative remarks made by Mr. Ehrlich this week - suggests that Maryland's chief executives are fundamentally misguided on issues of race.

Anice young woman called the other day offering the chance to speak with talk show host Rob Nelson, who had obtained, she confided, an exclusive interview with the cousin of the older defendant in the sniper shootings. The exchange would be the first sit-down interview with Edward Holiday, a one-time confidant of John Allen Muhammad, she promised. Except it was not the first interview, nor, for that matter, even the first one sitting down. Among those media outlets that had spoken with the none-too-reclusive Holiday: The New York Times, The Sun, The Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, a batch of Louisiana papers, NBC News' Today show and CBS News' Early Show.