Winning Words 1

Number 1 in an occasional series taking a wryly-amused view of word-related blunders. Click on the title to find the web-page that first inspired.

Word/phrase/acronym: safety hazards

Category: oxymoron

My interpretation: a phrase whose true meaning will eventually be much-discussed by future historians (sorry!). Though not intended as such in the article, this will refer to the increased anxiety experienced by state-nannied citizens through over-exposure to:

a) signage for every possible low-probability "hazard" e.g. foodstuff labelling: "may have been produced in a factory where workers have thought about nuts"

b) harrowing advertising campaigns showing rare, though possible, results from activities carrying an inherent risk e.g. smoking, driving, eating, sleeping...