Re: [Thinkpad] OT: lower 48

> "lower 48" refers to the 48 contiguous states which are south of
> Alaska. At the moment it is idiomatic rather than geographically
> accurate.

Incorrect or nonsensical expressions shouldn't gain stature based on
widespread or continued use. This particular expression should have
been dropped the instant Hawaii was admitted to the Union. (I've heard
people here use it too, which is even worse!)

If someone advertises "sales only to the lower 48 states", does this
mean I am excluded? What if they write "the 50 United States", and then
refuse to sell to me because I am in Hawaii? (This almost happened to
me a couple of weeks ago with ThinkPad memory.) How about "the 50
continental United States" (this was their bizarre clarifying
correction).

Best is probably "conterminous United States", though even then people
in D.C. would be unreasonably excluded.

BTW, UPS does offer "ground shipping" from Hawaii to the mainland, but
not the other way. This rates *two* "huh?"s in my book.

> Consider, for example, "head over heals" as meaning something
> other than how one normally stands.

For what it is worth, the original 14th century expression was the more
sensible "heels over head", and the new version was an 18th century
inadvertant error, shunned then and now by people who believe their
writing should mean what it says. See 'Port Out, Starboard Home' by
Michael Quinion for a discussion.

David ("paid to be a pedant") R.

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Received on Wed Sep 8 19:46:07 2004