Re: being sworn in ???

On 15 Nov 2008 22:53:47 -0800, R H Draney <dadoctah@xxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:


Some phrases get permanently attached to the wrong entity...witness the
expression "drinking the Kool-Aid", meant to associate mindless obeisance to
authority with the massacre at Jonestown, when in fact the poisoned drink was
the competing "Flavor-Aid"...the Kool-Aid people have been trying to dispel this
one for thirty years....r

Interesting. Presumably "Kool-Aid" was being used as a generic.

Here in the UK most of us had never heard of the stuff, so it became
automatically associated with poison, not having any other more
positive associations to counter it. In fact, the whole concept of a
powdered, coloured drink, in a packet, and spelt with an initial K,
was so alien to my generation that associating it with poison was
pretty easy.

Times change. And I don't suppose many Brits under 30 have ever heard
of Jonestown.

--

Katy Jennison

spamtrap: remove the first two letters after the @
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: being sworn in ???
    ... authority with the massacre at Jonestown, when in fact the poisoned drink was ... was so alien to my generation that associating it with poison was ... although they knew Kool-Aid was a drink. ...
    (alt.usage.english)
  • Re: being sworn in ???
    ... obeisance to authority with the massacre at Jonestown, ... Presumably "Kool-Aid" was being used as a generic. ... positive associations to counter it. ... powdered, coloured drink, in a packet, and spelt with an initial K, ...
    (alt.usage.english)
  • Re: being sworn in ???
    ... obeisance to authority with the massacre at Jonestown, ... Presumably "Kool-Aid" was being used as a generic. ... positive associations to counter it. ... powdered, coloured drink, in a packet, and spelt with an initial K, ...
    (alt.usage.english)
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