Subject: [WSFA] Re: Malapropism of the week
From: Eric Jablow <ejablow at cox.net>
Date: Fri, 28 May 2010 22:00:02 -0400
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>

On May 28, 2010, at 9:57 PM, Walter Miles wrote:

> Hello Madeleine
>
> On 05/28/10, Madeleine Yeh wrote:
>>   What word should have been used in this sentence?  A
>> disease of unknown cause is called idiopathic.
>
> In our house you hear a lot of "idiopathic" and "etiology," but I really
> like the idea of strongly ideological diseases.  Can't think of any good
> ones off hand.  The obvious thing is to name the political philosophy or
> party you favor least followed by a mental illness or condition of
> developmental delay.  There must be something better than that.

Soviet-era "slow schizophrenia".

Eric