'Misunderestimate' tops Bushisms list

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New York, Jan 11: George W Bush will step down as US President in a few days but his unique linguistic constructions, Bushisms as they are popularly dubbed, will go down in history as something which the world liked and laughed at.

"Misunderestimate", "Mission Accomplished", "Brownie, you've done a heck of a job!" "I'm the decider", and "I use the Google" top the all-time Bushisms' list released by the Global Language Monitor (GLM).

The era of Bushisms is now coming to an end, and word watchers worldwide will have a hard time substituting Barack Obama's precise intonations and eloquence for W's unique linguistic constructions, said Paul J J Payack, president and chief word analyst of the GLM.

The biggest linguistic faux pas of the Obama era thus far involves the use of the reflexive pronoun "myself". This is a refreshing shift from the Bush years, Payack said.

The rankings were nominated by language observers the world over and then ranked with the help of the GLM's PQI (predictive-quantities indicator). The PQI is a proprietary algorithm that tracks words and phrases in the print and electronic media, on the Internet and throughout the blogosphere.

According to GLM, "Misunderestimate" is one of the first and the most iconic Bushisms, uttered by Bush in the immediate aftermath of the disputed 2000 election.

Though "Mission Accomplished" was never actually stated by Bush but nevertheless the banner behind him was all that was needed to cement this phrase into the public imagination.

"Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job", was what Bush said to FEMA director Michael Brown after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

"I'm the decider" came to symbolise the "imperial" aspects of the Bush presidency. It was said in response to his decision to keep Don Rumsfeld on as the Secretary of Defence. "I use the Google" was said in reference to the popular search engine in 2006.

Other notable Bushisms are -- "I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully" (came to symbolise Bush's environmental policy), "You work three jobs? Uniquely American, isn't it? I mean, that is fantastic that you're doing that" (said to a divorced mother of three in 2005).

"Rarely is the questioned asked: Is our children learning?" (uttered before the first primaries back in 2000), "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we.

They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we" and "It was not always certain that the US and America would have a close relationship" (while speaking of the Anglo-American relationship in 2006).

In 2005, scribbled on a note to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during a UN Security Council meeting which said: "I think I may need a bathroom break. Is this possible?"