Why am I so hung up on it?
Because I come from a profession where there's a difference between 318 and 318R and that difference is critical.
Where saying "stainless steel" only begins the conversation about material.
I give a lot of grief over the revolver vs pistol issue.
But, let's consider another common term people starting using wrong that bit us in our asses: assault rifle. It wasn't the gun grabbers who started calling semi-auto's this first; it was the gun rags. I still have those magazines. I can still read the impassioned pleas to stop using this term for semi-autos and having the editor being dismissive.
How about another word? Infringed. The 1789 meaning of the word has been all but expunged from current dictionaries. Is it OK to forget that definition because nobody uses it that way anymore?
I'll keep repeating it until it sticks: If you cannot say what you mean; you cannot mean what you say. Whether through inability or prohibition, if you are not precise in your use of the language your meaning can be mistaken. Even if I know what you mean, that does not mean the next person does. Nor should you assume that they will parse the correct meaning; because they may maliciously take advantage of the slack you've given them.
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