Emoji that represent a wider range of people is fair enough right? The hijabi emoji proposed by a muslim woman who simply wanted to see an emoji that looked like her is a good example, but the latest attempts at inclusions have may be taking things too far. Earlier this week a staff member from Google emoji tweeted a brand new salad emoji, without the egg previously nestled in among the lettuce and tomatoes "making this a more inclusive vegan salad".
Phrases with unseemly origins
The origin of the word bulldozer, a seemingly neutral term for a heavy tractor, comes from the violent intimidation of black voters during Reconstruction, describing beatings that amounted to "a dose of the whip fit for a bull". By the turn of the 20th century, bulldozing had become a more general term for work one does with powerful machinery. "No can do" may feel like a friendly way to indicate that you are not able to do something, but it began in the 1800s as a racist mockery of Chinese immigrants. Although the term "basket case" is used today to refer to someone who is very stressed out or anxious, the term originally referred to World War I soldiers who lost all four limbs and literally had to be carried off the battlefield in a basket. "Drinking the Kool-Aid" is common slang for showing blind loyalty to something, but it is a specific reference to an horrific event; the mass murder-suicide of people at Jonestown in the 1970s. So, it's a bit of a clunker. (Source: Time.com)
A childhood that stayed on the rails
"When I was still at primary school the highlight of my year was an overnight trip, on my own, on the train from Auckland to Wellington," writes Diane Fortune. "My parents would take me to Auckland Station, we would hire two pillows. I would hop into whatever carriage I was assigned to and make up my makeshift bed. Cheerfully waving goodbye to my parents, I would settle down with a good book until we reached Frankton Station. I would walk through rocking carriages until I had reached the carriage where I knew the door opened directly opposite the entrance to the Tea Rooms. Alighting, I would scurry to the counter, buy a pie and a cup of tea, balance the pie on the saucer, which I placed on top of the cup, then would head back to my seat. I would munch through that, go and clean my teeth, then would tuck myself in for the night. I always managed to be awake by the time we reached Palmerston North, then hop off and get a cream bun and another cup of tea for an early breakfast. My sister would meet me at Wellington Station. I absolutely adored the few times I did those trips, but imagine doing that with your 11-year-old daughter nowadays."
