Saturday, October 22, 2005

Now This Is A Real Mind Bender, Oh, I mean Cognitive Twister


Based on a report in The Observer (Guardian Newspapers Limited, UK), June 26, 2005

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) in Belfast will use the term 'thought-showers' when they get together to think creatively. 'Brainstorming', the buzz term used by executives to generate ideas among their staff, has been deemed politically incorrect by civil servants because it is thought to be offensive to people with brain disorders. Sources inside the department said there was concern that the term would cause offense to sufferers of epilepsy as well those with brain tumors or brain injuries.

The Welsh Development Agency had previously banned the terms "nitpick" and "manila" (as in envelopes and folders) "because of their origins in the slave trade." Apparently only The Welsh Development Agency knows how the two words are related to the slave trade and it's not telling.

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