This is a strange expression, because “lam” or “lamming” means, according to the free dictionary, to give a thorough beating, thrash, strike, or wallop. “On the lam” has no connection to that definition. The New York Times says the expression means running away or to be a fugitive from the law. One theory is that Allan Pinkerton had explained that pickpockets would utter the word “lam” after lifting a wallet as a signal to get out as soon as possible.

In the current age of political polarization, it is important to have slang terms for your opponents.  (Please read that as humor!)  For example, there are leftie loons and righty wing-nuts.

Here is a term I had never heard, from an unlikely source:

“A moment for language lovers to watch for is the appearance out of nowhere of  “pwogs”… – it’s shorthand for “progressives,” is not entirely flattering in that it often is in reference to knee-jerk old wannabe rads who reflexively support anything that smells of far liberal to even socialist ideas. Its origin is the urban northeast. The yiddish-inflected spelling reflecting what one might hear in a New York coffee house in the middle to latter part of the last century. What a great and ambiguous word is pwog. – See more at: http://ksj.mit.edu/tracker  which is one of my favorite places to go for tips on science in the news.

I used a euphemism in the title, and admit that my limited searching did not find an origin. The Phrase Finder observes that the US expression is something like “…When you’re up to your (ears) in alligators, there’s no time to remember you’re there to drain the swamp.” The obvious meaning is that you can’t hope to solve problems if your primary hope is for survival.

The Phrase Finder says the phrase exists in several forms, but this specific form originated in the US.  It appeared in print in 1921 in reference to a financial panic related to mining.  Wiktionary agrees.

Wiki answers says this phrase came from the ancient Greek mythology of “The Odyssey”, when Odysseys had to steer his boat between a rock cliff and a whirlpool.  Word Detective echoes this with a bit more explanation: it is a modern, non-literary variation on the Odyssey phrase “between Scylla and Charybdis”.

These sources mention other phrases with a similar sentiment, such as “on the horns of a dilemma” and (my favorite) “between the devil and the deep blue sea.”  While these phrases may all express a similar sentiment, it seems to me that Phrase Finder has the best answer.

The birth of a definition!  If you Google the phrase “define literally,” the dictionary listing now includes this secondary definition: “Used to acknowledge that something is not literally true but is used for emphasis or to express strong feeling.”  Whether this is the end of civilization as we know it or proof that English is a vibrant, living language depends on your perspective.

This expression came to mind as I was reading and reviewing The Astronauts Wives Club and thinking of the accidents that killed several astronauts. The Phrase Finder explains that the expression means “To die, particularly in an accident or military action.” The origin of the expression is uncertain, but explanations often include something to do with buying something at the cost of a serviceman’s life. The Phrase Finder suggests it might come from the fact a family receives an insurance payout when a serviceman is killed in action and that payout might be used to pay the family mortgage. However, it is admitted “…that we don’t have full evidence, that’s just speculation.”