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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW More thunderstorms expected ... Stay out of the creek, officials warn ... Motor home destroyed in Talent-area fire ... More thunderstorms expected ... Stay out of the creek, officials warn ... Motor home destroyed in Talent-area fire ... Get A Life: Time to stop 'misremembering' Comment By Loretta LaRoche More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Loretta LaRoche More Content Now Posted Feb. 23, 2015 at 6:49 AM By Loretta LaRoche More Content Now Posted Feb. 23, 2015 at 6:49 AM » Social News When I was 13, my mother sent me to a Catholic boarding school. She had to work and felt I would be safer and also get the benefit of an excellent education. However, it was analogous to a Marine boot camp! We had a strict regimen: up at 5:30 a.m., mass at 6, back to our rooms to make beds, breakfast, study hall, then classes till 3 p.m. After our classes, free time till 4, outdoor activity till 5, dinner at 5: 30, study hall and then lights out at 8. The rules and regulations were to be followed without excuses or whining. If you tried to outwit the good sisters, you were “in for it.” There was no corporal punishment. You were told the error of your ways, and you either had to go to detention or say hundreds of “Our Fathers” and “Hail Mary’s” in order to gain absolution. You learned to not try to weasel your way out of things very early on. My boarding school days flashed before my eyes when I read of the latest, greatest, scandal that centered around NBC News anchorman Brian Williams. He falsely recounted a story that he was in a helicopter that was hit by ground fire in 2003. One of the higher-ups said he “misrepresented events.” Another word used was that he possibly “misremembered.” Is it possible for our memories to dim, or can we embellish them over the years? Absolutely! However, we are now in the era of “doublespeak,” where we create words that make the bad seem good, make lies sound honest, and negative events seem positive. Basic to doublespeak, according to Kathy Kellerman, is incongruity -”the incongruity between what is said, or left unsaid, and what really is.” The first word I heard that fit the above criteria was “downsizing.” Corporate cultures decided that it would ease the pain of just being fired. I’m sure millions of people on unemployment felt soothed when they explained they were downsized. Doublespeak grew over the years. Some of it is quite comical. I would be considered “vertically challenged” and “horizontally impaired” instead of simply short and pudgy. A garbage man is now a “sanitation engineer.” A psycho is a “pathologically high-spirited” individual, “pre-owned” instead of used or possibly beat up,” “person of interest” instead of suspect in a crime, “ill-advised” instead of a very bad idea. One of my favorites is “negative patient care outcome,” which means the patient died. There are many more, and I’m sure many more to come. When is a lie, a lie, or how do we discern fantasy from reality? How do we create a moral compass for future generations if we continually “misremember” the direction we’re going in? Author, humorist, PBS star and Fortune 500 trainer Loretta LaRoche lives in Plymouth, Massachusetts. To share your pet peeves, questions or comments, write to The Humor Potential, 50 Court St., Plymouth, MA 02360. Visit her website at stressed.com. By Loretta LaRoche More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Loretta LaRoche More Content Now Posted Feb. 23, 2015 at 6:49 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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