Word: ersatz
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...Ersatz Emotion Commotion. Neither Bush nor Dukakis is known for volcanic temperament, so it is safe to assume that all outbursts are concocted by a drama coach. The problem is that feigned passion plays well on television and is apt to be endlessly repeated on the post-debate newscasts. The solution: if the candidates get mad, the scorecard gets even. Deduct 5 points for each angry response, 10 if the candidate refers to his family...
...monarchs and stripped them of power. That way the wish for some kind of symbolic family is satisfied, while the politicians run the democracy. In the U.S., on the other hand, monarchical and presidential roles have been fused. The result is the absurd institution of the First Family, an ersatz royal family decked out in republican garb and capital letters...
Their 18th century exodus from Nova Scotia was immortalized in the overwrought poetry of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Now their cuisine has become democratized into a culinary cliche as even fast-food restaurants offer ersatz renditions of jambalaya and gumbo. Yes, the Cajuns have shouldered their share of suffering. But are these injustices enough to transform the 250,000 descendants of the original Acadian settlers in Louisiana into a minority group eligible for state affirmative-action programs designed for blacks...
...overly impressed with paper credentials? An intellectually insecure candidate who genuflects before Harvard degrees or military uniforms may find himself spending four years in office wondering why a tumultuous world refuses to conform to the ersatz wisdom of his White House experts...
...some dubious accounting tricks to reach their $30 billion goal. Consider the truth-in-pizza labeling plan. Under this provision, manufacturers of frozen pizzas will be required to inform consumers whether their pies are made with real cheese. The designers of the plan expect that pizzamakers who use ersatz products will be forced to switch to the real thing. The result will be an increase in the demand for cheese. The Federal Government, in turn, will have to buy back less cheese from dairy farmers. Estimated budget savings of this cheesy scheme: $29 million over three years...