Dictionary of Bullshit

Of the volumes I’ve read, this one is the best, I think. Fiercely accurate and darkly humorous, the Dictionary lambastes all those areas of double-speak and outright obfuscation that have soaked into our language in the last 50 years. Really, we weren’t that much of a bullshitting society until the rise of Madison Avenue in the 1950s. Sure, political discourse, and for that matter, oratory in general, has always been a rich vein, but at least there we deluded bipeds have always expected it. Today, every profession has its own particular brand of bullshit. Education, social work, and corporate America are the worst offenders, but it’s everywhere.

You may even be surprised by some of the very cogent examples.

On Bullshit

If you’ll recall, there was a huge flap about 18 months ago when this book came out regarding his language. In fact, the only ‘blue’ word I can find anywhere in the book is “bullshit” which has become so permeated within our society I can even imagine Billy Graham popping off with it when incensed.

As far as the content of the volume goes, I found it to be an erudite, concise, and illuminating evaluation of just how terribly steeped in euphemism we have become. If for no other reason that inspiring one to do a frank examination of one’s own language patterns, this book is recommended.

Of course, the flip side is that you will become momentarily depressed and distressed at what a bunch of losers we all are.

The Bravest Man: Richard O’Kane and the Amazing Submarine Adventures of the USS Tang

Bull’s-Eyes and Misfires: 50 Obscure People Whose Efforts Shaped the American Civil War

Captain Blood

Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t

21: The Final Unfinished Voyage of Jack Aubrey

The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy’s Finest Hour

The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t

The Closing of the Western Mind

The Greedy Bastard Diary: A Comic Tour of America