Illuminating limn

I found out of recently that there is some minor controversy over the word limn. It seems that the Baltimore Sun used the word in a headline and someone wrote to the paper complaining about the use of the word. That person, describing herself as the holder of a Phi Beta Kappa from University of Maryland, as well as graduating magna cum laude, thought if she didn't immediately understand the word, most people could not. I have interest for obvious reason and find this reaction strange on at least two levels.

Firstly, it must be nice to have an ego that allows you to perceive yourself as the standard against which all else is measured. As irritating as it is, you have to have some admiration for her self-perception. I have used the word limn somewhat often throughout my adult life (unfortunately many decades) without ever being challenged. But give the person her due. Apparently the Living World Vocabulary study (1981) estimated that less than a third of college graduates understood the word. However, there is no indication of the makeup on the survey sample. They could all have been Phi Beta Kappa's or University of Maryland graduates.

Secondly, why is it that someone, rightly proud of such academic credits, complains about an apparently obscure word? Where is this person's intellectual curiosity? I would think that they would be grateful for the opportunity to learn something new and perhaps incorporate into her every day vocabulary. Was her purpose in life the achievement the Phi Beta Kappa and/or a magna cum laude degree and there is naught left other than the role of (un)common scold?

Does charity begin at home?

Last week, Tom Brady,quarterback of the New England Patriots, was involved in an auto accident. Brady himself was unhurt. However, his car looked to be totaled. The accident was way overplayed by the press. But in all of the verbiage, there seemed to be little to no comment on the fact that the car, worth in excess of $90,000, was loaned to Brady either by a charity or be auto manufacturer that sponsors the charity.

Now certainly Tom Brady and his wife, who together make multiple millions of dollars a year, can afford to buy their own car. I think the world of Tom Brady as a quarterback, but does he need this too? Would it not have been better for the auto manufacturer to donate the car to the charity rather than to Tom Brady? Is this common practice? How many cars as Audi loaned it to how many people? Do they get a tax deduction for this? Is it larger than the tax deduction to the charity? Through all the other silly hoopla surrounding the accident, why have none of the media questioned this aspect? Is it or should it be acceptable? Isn't this charity for the wealthy?