I Helped Banish "Maverick!"

It's that time of year again - time for an iconic tradition that is sure to be a game changer on Wall Street and Main Street! Yes, Lake Superior State University has released its annual List of Words and Phrases Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness!

• Green (in regards to something environmentally friendly)
• Carbon footprint or carbon offsetting
• Maverick
• First dude
• Bailout
• Wall Street/Main Street
• Monkey
• <3 (Emoticon for 'heart')
• Icon or Iconic
• Game changer
• Staycation
• Desperate search
• Not so much
• Winner of five nominations
• It's that time of year again

In 2007 I was quite the first dude when it came to nominating words for banishment, at least among progressive bloggers. This year, not so much. But, as we are all aware, quality is more important than quantity, as evidenced by this highlight from LSSU's page about the 2009 list. Here's what one person had to say about the word Maverick:

"You know it's time to banish this word when even the Maverick family, who descended from the rancher who inspired the term, says it's being mis-used." Scott Urbanowski, Kentwood, Mich.

Incidentally, I also nominated bailout. Maverick and bailout are my first two hits, if you will (nominations of words that did get banished).