Post #3 from Kidlit’s Crankiest Curmudgeon’s Blog–

There’s one phrase that people use all the time that annoys the heck out of me. Actually there are a lot of phrases that bother me, including “Get lost, Crankenfuss, you dweeb.” That one’s a bit bothersome, I admit, but I’m talking about a different one. Suppose I go up to someone and just wanna know how they think about something, and I ask a question like, “Hey, you think the Cowboys are going to the Super Bowl this year?” Simple enough, no? I’m not putting them on trial, am I? So the guy answers, “Well, to be honest, I don’t think so.” Now why he’d have to go and say, “to be honest”? Wouldn’t I expect someone answering a simple question to be honest? As opposed to what? Lying through his grody teeth, like he usually does? I mean, if I ask, “Hey, what time is it?”, I don’t expect an answer like, “Well, to be honest with you, it’s two thirty.” I just don’t get it.

I see people on television talking like that all the time. Politicians, movie stars, tv chefs. My mom even says stuff like, “Frankly” or “Honestly” or “If you want my real opinion.” Why would I want your false opinion, Mom? Just sayin’. Honestly.