Not sure what you mean by "full language-accessible". People make college choices for all kinds of serious and silly reasons. I have to admit, if someone rejected the only option they had for a particular kind of learning environment because some of the students do silly stuff with their hair, I'd wonder just how serious they were about their education or how badly they really needed that particular kind of environment.
That's one of the things I love about the US that I wish we still had in UK. A small gesture costs nothing, and all you need to do is smile and say 'Fine (or other as appropriate), thank you'. I realise they're not really asking me how I am or requesting some life statement
Here the question is often "How has your day been?". I usually "Good" but sometimes I answer "Boring, all I been doing is housework", or "Great, just been to movies". I know that some large stores have secret shoppers who report sales staff who don't greet customers politely.
Not exactly sayings, but... (1) "All anyone with cancer wants...", "I know we all appreciate (or believe or feel or whatever)...", and all the other variations of someone being convinced that everyone in a certain category feels the same way. And it's even worse when the person saying it doesn't even fit into that category themselves. Example: There's a thing about people with cancer floating around Facebook, saying basically that while most of us want all sorts of superficial stuff, all someone with cancer wants is to live another day. Oh really? And, at least in my experience, none of the people posting it even have cancer themselves. How dare they speak for me! (2) "No one else [except those of us in a very specific situation] would understand." It sounds so "us vs. them" to me. Have we given up on the idea that people can empathize with each other, even when they haven't experienced the identical situation? Edited to say, oops, I posted something very similar to (1) way upthread somewhere. Sorry 'bout that.
"I could care less." Could you? Could you actually care less? Because if you could, then you must care, at least a little bit. Seriously, when did people start saying this, and why? It always used to be "I couldn't care less", which actually means something.
But I really could care less! I'm just informing you that I have a mediocre level of care in this situation.
So it's meant to be said sarcastically, eh? That at least provides a modicum of sense. Thanks scotpens.
The linked article also points out that "I could care less" may have started in unconscious imitation of Yiddish-inflected phrasing, e.g. "I should be so lucky." Funny, Kylie Minogue doesn't look Jewish! [yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccrj9BL6TpA[/yt]
I can see it being said as sort of a threat. "I could care less if you want." "Keep up yer whining and I'll start caring even less."
^I thought it was people just mis-saying "I couldn't care less"...a phrase that actually makes sense.
The problem is "could care less" is recorded in American English usage even earlier than Couldn't Care Less. That's why people have come up with an alternate explanation besides "they're saying it wrong." Yiddish influence is the most popular of these explanations.