well, just don't

On an almost cellular level, I sincerely abhor the new catch-all catch-phrase when someone thinks they're making a clever point: "I'm just saying." Or - even worse - without the pronoun: "Just saying."

Oh, really? Is *that* what you're just doing? Saying? Well, I'm just punching you in the nose, you self-satisfied fuckwad.

I despise it. It has this air of undeserved smug finality, as if god itself has made this person the mouthpiece of the final say in the matter. Always with the implied silence of an ellipsis, as if daring you to disagree with their obviously airtight summation. Oh, I see! If it's you that's saying, well - that's it, then! Case closed, everybody! He just said!

Please don't just say, "Just saying." It's rude. Say what you want to say, and then, if it's a spirited discussion, maybe back it up with a few well-reasoned points. Then let others say. It totally works.

Comments

Basil said…
As long as you don't really have a strong opinion either way...

Just- oh never mind.
Anonymous said…
Hmm. In spite of your strong points, it is highly likely I will continue to use this phrase. I use it in a context that implies "hey, maybe you didn't realize this, but what you just said wasn't quite as reasonable as may have thought it was," or alternatively "I'm actually pointing out something you really might want to pay attention to, which I'm softening by adding in a little lighthearted 'just' to make you feel a little less like I'm calling you stupid." Also, sometimes it follows a patently silly statement as a sort of shopworn "ba-da-bing!"

(Catch phrase goes here. Please do not punch me.)

It should be noted that I have been known to use a catch phrase past its expiration date. When I saw the Cody Rivers Show recently (which I loved) they had this whole routine about the things you're not allowed to say anymore ("Don't go there!" made the top of the list), and I thought (spitefully) "I wonder when somebody will do the routine about how it's no longer funny to do a routine about commonly-used catch-phrases that are no longer funny?"

Probably not. My current candidate for no longer funny: Sentences. Broken. Up. By. Extraneous. Periods. For. Emphasis. As. Though. One. Were. Addressing. A. Child. Or. A. Developmentally. Disabled. Person.
(egg) said…
Ooh, banjo - you got me on that last one. I do that, although not primarily to be funny.

I will not punch you ... I make broad allowances for my friends and for myself in my sweeping judgments. Yep, sure do!

We are a complicated being, the human.
Christopher said…
My grammatical "catch-phrase" currently seems to be the semi-colon. I love the way they break up a sentance; too long a break for a comma, too short for a period.

I supposed it's because I tend to be long-winded. The semi-colon is the little pause that allows me to catch my breath (hence, it really is a "catch" phrase) before continuing whatever rant I happen to be on about at the moment.

I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin' - ya' know what I'm sayin'?
(egg) said…
I *heart* the semi-colon. It is fast displacing the ellipsis as my favorite punctuation.
the beige one said…
"I think I just barfed a little in my mouth."
Anonymous said…
"I'm just sayin'" probably started as a modest caveat - "I'm simply a fallible human who is expressing an opinion which I acknowledge is founded on my own beliefs and should therefore be taken as such." But, instead, as with the phrase "IMHO," has become a way of punctuating one's argument and not allowing for disagreement. The speaker could just as easily say, "This is what I think, you can't change it. Lalala, I'm plugging my ears now." Screw them, Egg. Look at this cat web site icanhascheezburger.com and have a laugh.
JJisafool said…
Oooh, TBO is a major abuser of said catch phrase, especially in blogland.

I love semi-colons, too, but only when used properly. Be careful of punctuation abuse.
(egg) said…
I agree, JJ - punctuation abuse hurts us all.
the beige one said…
what? I'm just saying!
Shoo shoo said…
What if you've been using that phrase humorously since high school and it was even your tagline when e-mail was first invented? Some humorous phrases die hard--I can't give it up!
(egg) said…
Alright, Shoo shoo (if that *is* your real name) ... you are grandfathered in.

When was email first invented?
Shoo shoo said…
Oh, that's me (shannon). And I first got email in, I think, '93 or '94, at UW when we didn't even have browsers or Outlook, just something called "Pine." And there were maybe 5 people I could write, because no one had it yet. YEAH, grandfathered in is right--I'm old!
(egg) said…
I figured it was you, you improv comedienne!

You can still access email at the UW via Pine, except that it's slightly upgraded and called WebPine. I think they were going to phase it out, but it caused an uproar. We have docs at the hospital that learned on Pine and refuse to give it up, because they don't get the newfangled shit the kids are doing these days ... like Outlook Express.

Becky - you are evil! I've been on that cat site for about an hour. Curses!
Anonymous said…
I've been hoping you'd check out the site, Egg! If you haven't seen "Jazz Hands" yet, it's worth a little searching.
Anonymous said…
I'M IN UR COMMENTS JUST SAYIN' STUFF!!!!
(egg) said…
Well, Anonymous -- good thing you're anonymous! ;-)
Anonymous said…
The browser was called "pine" cause back in those days the internet was made out of wood.

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