A funny Brit

Matthew Parris (The Guardian: "political journalist and former Tory MP"), co-author with Phil Mason of Read My Lips: A Treasury of Things Politicians Wish They Hadn't Said, wrote this very funny commentary in today's Times (UK).

From The Times
March 01, 2007
I dare you to read this and refute (not rebut) my case
Matthew Parris: My Week

Some television people came round recently to record interviews for a new Grumpy Old . . . series, so I had to work myself up into a passably grumpy state to discuss things like romance, class and politics. Fine — but the trouble was that, after the TV crew had gone, the grumpiness stayed. I started to see everything with a grumpy eye. I turned to the morning papers and — tut, tut — there was that word “refute”, misused yet again by a journalist.

Harrumph. Look, we must of course take care not to become boring old farts about the misuse of words...

Mr. Parris is a regular commentator for the Times. His most recent columns include:

• The urgent need for a new public lavatory policy
• No, we don’ t really want politicians to listen to us
• It’s unfair. My argument should be as loud as yours