When somebody tells you that, instead of defining what something IS, they'd prefer to define what it ISN'T...
Run for the friggin hills. If the concept they're trying to convey is so complex that the set of what it is not is smaller than the set of it, well, either the concept is dumb or they are.
Counter-examples?
By so badly botching arguably the most critical debate of such an important election, in a time of both war and economic misery, you disgraced the American voters, and in fact even disgraced democracy itself.
It is of course de rigueur that one not walk with rhythm for fear of attracting the worm. I can attest that one slip-up is all that is necessary to summon monkeys the legless cat to my side by tromping predictably through the house. I post this so that others may live.
In her spare time, Monkeys enjoys cricket, modern dance, and the rigorous study of fluid dynamics.
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 13, 2006; Page A10
President Bush finds the world around him increasingly "unacceptable."
In speeches, statements and news conferences this year, the president has repeatedly declared a range of problems "unacceptable," including rising health costs, immigrants who live outside the law, North Korea's claimed nuclear test, genocide in Sudan and Iran's nuclear ambitions.
