MOULTRIE, Ga.  — Remember that phrase “alternative facts?” Well it became the two most popular words for late night comedians for several  weeks.

And now, it’s somewhat famous or perhaps infamous.

Some German linguists have declared the phrase “alternative facts,” popularized by White House aide Kellyanne Conway, the non-word of 2017.

Conway used the phrase last year when asked why President Donald Trump’s then-Press Secretary Sean Spicer mischaracterized the size of the inauguration crowd.

A team of six language experts at Darmstadt University chose “alternative facts” from among 684 suggestions as the winner.

Well actually, it’s two words. And technically they are not “non-words.” They are just nonsense. And as for the size of  the crowd, who really cares?

A better way to describe the phrase would be “political misspeech” or just plain old “mumbo jumbo.”

It happens when political spokespersons have the heat lamps turned on them, and their tongues get all tied in knots when they simply don’t have an answer. In Conway’s moment, she would have been better off to say, “It happened before I was born.” Or maybe, “The dog ate my speech.”

To express one’s self with the phrase “alternative facts” is a linguistic contradiction. It’s kind of like “jumbo shrimp” or maybe “military intelligence.” Even the largest shrimp will still fit in one’s shirt pocket. But still it’s more defensible than “alternative facts” because some shrimp are bigger than others.

I’ve heard people say, “You want the real truth?” Well is there any other kind? And how about “the true facts.” As opposed to, I guess, “alternative facts.”

Maybe one should answer, “No I can’t afford true facts, just give me some very reliable innuendo.”

Among those many “non words” viewed by the panel was “fake news.” This one took off like Lindbergh in 2017 and hasn’t landed yet. That’s because it is aimed at the press, which often finds itself in the wake of that old expression “don’t shoot the messenger.”

Some people think that baseball is America’s favorite pastime. No. It’s bashing the press. Even some columnists who make their very good living writing in “the press” bash the press. I guess the irony is lost on them.

Another word that was up for consideration was ‘babycaust.’ Supposedly it came about as a play on the word Holocaust and was attached to the activities of a doctor who advertised abortions. This happened in Germany. I don’t think I ever heard it. I don’t drop by Germany very often.

And how about ”Organic Germans?” This means people whose ancestors were born in Germany and not those who migrated there. So how many “Organic Americans” would there be? I’m guessing the Sioux and the Cherokee might weigh in on this one.

None of these words are criminal. And it’s certainly okay to coin new phrases and words. If it wasn’t okay, then we would just be grunting at one another … you know, like after that very heavy Thanksgiving dinner. But new phrases should at least be somewhat defensible.

Following the Watergate scandal, many political screw-ups got tagged with “gate” as the last syllable. Depending on how  Bob Mueller’s Russia investigation goes, we may yet wind up with a “Trumpgate.” Or not.

But I must agree with the judges. On first hearing that phrase “alternative facts,” I could only respond, “Say what?”

(Dwain Walden is editor/publisher of The Moultrie Observer, 985-4545. Email: dwain.walden@gaflnews.com)