Tuesday, April 26, 2005

What's up with this "Dipper" Factor?

I just don’t get certain things. I don’t know if it’s a generational or cultural thing that keeps me from understanding all the ins and outs of colloquial English. For example, there is a new free news tabloid being launched in Toronto called The Dose. In recent weeks, whenever I venture out from my office building at lunch hour and go to the corner of Yonge & Bloor there are at least one, if not two, nicely groomed young people on the corner asking pedestrians if they want a free Dose. Every time they approach me I cannot stop myself from cringing when they ask. Getting the Dose was synonymous with syphilis for my generation and older. It just defies my imagination why anyone would want to use a name for their paper has that kind of mental association.

Then there is public name of Pastor Donald Sensing’s blog. I really enjoy his blog and I visit regularly but I cannot help twitching whenever I move the mouse over his blog’s name on my blogroll. I am sure the good Reverend meant his blog name to have kind of "zen" reference and has not got the foggiest clue that his blog name is also a common British naval slang for masturbation.

All of which brings me to the Dipper factor. Say what you like about Robert McClelland, but every once in a while he recognizes a good idea when he sees one and has taken a leaf out of the Blogging Tories page to start a new blog for New Democratic Party Supporters called the Blogging Dippers. My first thought on learning that the NDP Blog Supporters would want to call themselves "Blogging Dippers"; was to ask; Why? I just don’t fathom why anyone want to be called a dipper – I take it to mean along the same lines as; dipper, dippy, dipstick, or diphead – and depending on the degree of affection one holds for the subject it means either crazier than a loon/idiot to a short-eyes. I kind of thought the name suited them – after all their socialists, but then I was reading John Ibbitson’s column in today’s Globe and Mail and he referred to NDP supports as "dippers", and once again, I figured I am way off in my own zone on this whole 'dipper' thing. So I feel compelled to ask; is there anyone in the blogsphere who could enlighten me as why a New Democratic Supporter is called a 'dipper' and why it’s not a cause for offense?

6 comments:

NotClauswitz said...

I cringe too, but maybe they're just stupid and inarticulate, intending to say, "dose," "dem," and "dat ting" - a linguistic dumb-down 'bonic-thing?
Not too sure - tired really of the whole, *Oh-lookee-how-Zen! is my concioussness* thing -- those neophyte monks have a lot of meditating to do when one considers what a man supposedly thinks about every seven seconds - maybe that's why Zen Elders used to whack 'em upside the head with a dip-stick.
Zen-conscioussness my ass Grasshopper, get your hands out of your pockets!

giornalista said...

Blogging Dippers, eh? What about The New D Blog?

I was actually thinking of applying for a job at Dose, but considering my personality, I decided it was best that I didn't.

It seems they still have some positions to fill. Here's one:

WORD GURU
Staff writer
You're the funny, intelligent person everyone wants to talk to. This translates into what you write: it's witty and bright, definitely not smarmy and cynical. Your job is to make the news fun, but also to know when to make it smart. You understand the difference. You are the final member of an established team of writers who work at breakneck speed and have fun doing it. To this end, you are a team player who is not afraid to speak up.

Apply - jobs@dose.ca
Please indicate job title in Subject Line. We thank all candidates for their interest. Only those selected for interview will be contacted.

K. Shoshana said...

Dirtclasher: I am with you on the whole zen thing - a pox on anyone who insists on "zen" moments without the dip-stick.

Giornalista:
You could always apply and if they rejected you - you could put the clap on them from the blog.

Chris Taylor said...

"Dipper" is emblematic of what they love to do -- dip into your wallet, dip into public revenues...

K. Shoshana said...

Chris, you are being humourous about the dipper thing - right? I mean, I know that they have lusted long for the paycheques of ordinary Canadians, big and small, and given half a chance they would not hesitate to covet everybody's paycheque but surely they aren't given to such outright word brazeness? It's like bragging about being a pimp!

Anonymous said...

It must be a generational thing. I don't really know where "dipper" comes from. My thought was that maybe it is from the "D" and "P" in NDP. But then what about the "N"? I'm just a little peeved that it rhymes with "tipper".