…It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
I’ve decided that the most overused and meaningless word of 2022 is: “Accountable.”
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, “accountable”
means “1. subject to giving an account: ANSWERABLE <held accountable for the
damage> 2. capable of being accounted for: EXPLAINABLE syn see RESPONSIBLE”
The definition indicates that someone specific must be held responsible
for a particular outcome. Do you see this happening with any of the ongoing
crises for which the word “accountable” is so ubiquitously tossed around? Neither do I.
It's difficult to keep track of how many times this hotair balloon of a word pops up in articles, interviews, and broadcasts. Biden must be held “accountable” for the southern border crisis. Congress must be held “accountable” for overspending. Big Tech should be held "accountable" for censoring news items. Local governments must be held “accountable” for election irregularities. The FBI must be held “accountable” for monitoring parents as domestic terrorists. The CDC must be held “accountable” for lockdown damage, China must be held “accountable” for the Covid pandemic.
Those are merely random samples. On and on the demand for "accountability" continues, ad nauseam,
and no one ever seems to answer for anything, anywhere, at any time.
The word “accountable” in today’s parlance now means “blared by the media for a few days until we move on to the next headline.” The overarching strategy seems to be, call for accountability until the pack forgets and/or tires of the issue. "Accountable" has devolved into a chest-beating term intended to sound intimidating, but it's actually devoid of meaning.
For the thorough trashing of a perfectly serviceable word, someone should be held accountable.
