ESL Blogs

As usual, after coming back from a long holiday, my brain refuses to cooperate and think too hard. Thus, I need to stop this mental blockage and write something. But then the question is, what should I write? Another rambling? I don't think I want to torture other people with that anymore. So here comes my favourite topic, 'Did You Know?'. In this blog, it's about legal and justice, and hence the word 'court'.

1. Kangaroo Court

Kangaroo court means an unfair, biased or hasty judicial proceeding which usually ends in harsh punishment. Though kangaroos only live in Australia, the origin of this term (slang) doesn't come from it. According to one source, it's originated during the California Gold Rush. During that time, itinerant judges were paid according on how many trials they had conducted, and sometimes their salaries were based on the fines that they handed down to defendants. Thus, these itinerant judges would hop from one place to another, which was similar to a kangaroo hopping from one place to another. Since these judges were paid based on trials and fined, they were seen less concern about justice, but rather wrapping up as many trials as they could.

2. Poetic Justice

Poetic justice means a result or occurrence that seems proper because someone who has done bad things to other people is being harmed or punished. This in sense befitting a work of poetry or drama. According Phrase Finder, this term was coined and made famous by Thomas Rymer in his essy The Tragedies of the Last Age Considere'd, 1678. He was an English literary critic and historian who demanded that drama should have moral values, of which good characters should be rewarded and evils were to be punished.

3. As sober as a judge. Drunk as a Lord

These two completely opposite idioms mean exactly as what they intended to say. As sober as a judge means to be alert and completely sober. The origin of these idioms are not known but it's common sense that a judge should be sober in order to be fair and handed down judgement, whereas a Lord could be perceived to be above the law. Thus, a Lord can drink and being drunk as he wants to be.

They are a few idioms and phrases that relate to judiciary. I'm sure you guys can add some more since I'm too lazy to write about them. LOL. As they say, the court is yours, or the ball is in your court.

My other Did You Know? series:-

1. Did You Know?;  2. Continuation;  3. Another Continuation;  4. Not Another Continuation!; 5. Gosh! Will It Never Ends?;  6. Oh No! Not Another One!;  7. Here Comes Another One;  8. Another One?;  9. One, Two, Eighty Six?; 10. Punishment? OMG!; 11. Is This A Swan Song?;  12 John Has It All?; 13. It's All In The Myth;  14. This Is Random;  15. It's A Dog's World;  16.  It's Also A Cat's World;  17. Is It A Mouse World Too?;  18. Dutch Flavour;  19. It's The Greek Flavour;  20. It's All Greek;  21. All That Gold; 22. It's A Horsey Year; 23. It's All Red; 24. People Are Yummy; 25. What Day Is Today