So many words. So many traps. The “Civil War,” except where it is called the “War between the States.” Or Mark Twain’s vocabulary, which one publishing house decided to revise. The Indians or the Native Americans. Words identify loyalties, localities and politics.

Recently an old word crept into Republicans’ speeches. It didn’t hit my wariness button until I heard our own Mitt Romney use it. (Is Romney ours anymore? Does his two-bedroom condo in Belmont count if he has one huge house in La Jolla and another on Lake Winnipesaukee?)

But back to the word. It’s “exceptional.” Tocqueville famously described America as such. But its use has been uncommon in recent decades. So after hearing “exceptional” several times, I thought the speakers repeated the word because their vocabulary was limited. Continue reading →