NA: Dumb hurricane quote of the week.

[ScottM]

This morning on CNN radio the announcer stated that later this week "hurricane Hanna will make landfall off of the US coast".

How can something make landfall when it is off the coast. Wouldn't it still be over water and thus not on land???

 

[Greebo]

It could make landfall on Cuba - that's off the US coast...

 

[TMetzinger]

Or on the Conch Republic - depending on if that is REALLY U.S. or not.

 

[ScottM]

It could make landfall on Cuba - that's off the US coast...

I don't think that is what he means. He would have said it is expected to make landfall over Cuba or wherever.

 

[Frank Browne]

Weird...or not so weird?

Whenever I see a reference to Hurricane Hanna, I immediately think of Bob "Hurricane" Hannah.

http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/hofbiopage.asp?id=65

Hannah continued to seek the adrenalin rush even after his motorcycle-racing career ended. After leaving motocross, Hannah took up the sport of airplane racing in the unlimited class. When inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999, Hannah was living near Boise, Idaho, running a sport aviation sales company.

 

[Teller1900]

This must be the hurricane equivalent of a "near miss."

 

[Cap'n Jack]

Another one from CNN off their web site...

"We've got better weather stations that are actually unmanned that are out on the open water, that are onshore. They certainly make a big difference"

So are the stations on land or on the water?


http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/09/01/gustav.storm.science/index.html

 

[GMascelli]

This must be the hurricane equivalent of a "near miss."

 

[wsuffa]

While we're at it, can someone explain which Style book allows the term "century mark" (a measure of time) to refer to "100 degrees" (a measure of temperature)....

I can think of a number of other example of similar constructs, but c'mon.

 

[Henning]

It could make landfall on Cuba - that's off the US coast...

Or the Bahamas...

 

[Henning]

Or on the Conch Republic - depending on if that is REALLY U.S. or not.

hehe, I cleared into Germany on my Conch Republic Passport once, the dude just smiled and stamped it.

 

[KennyFlys]

While we're at it, can someone explain which Style book allows the term "century mark" (a measure of time) to refer to "100 degrees" (a measure of temperature)....

I can think of a number of other example of similar constructs, but c'mon.

That would be right up there with TV and radio news people making such statements as I heard during Tropical Storm Eduardo:

"We're efforting to get more information from the Galveston area."

Another noun becomes a verb? By professional journalists, no less!

 

[timwinters]

professional journalist

jumbo shrimp

flat busted

 

[ScottM]

jumbo shrimp

shrimp kebabs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo, pan fried, deep fried, stir fried. There's pineapple shrimp and lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich... That's, that's about it.

 

[Richard]

While we're at it, can someone explain which Style book allows the term "century mark" (a measure of time) to refer to "100 degrees" (a measure of temperature)....

I can think of a number of other example of similar constructs, but c'mon.

Today's journalists are on the slippery slope of a sea change.

 

[mikea]

Today's journalists are on the slippery slope of a sea change.

"Chopper nnn is on the way. So far, no word on what caused the accident."