Gerrymander: Gerrymandering is a form of redistribution in which electoral district or constituency boundaries are used for the electoral advantage.

My question is this: How can a Chair be gerrymandered? I understand your need to use pejoratives, but it is kind of bad form to use them improperly.

Bryan Leblanc

(Editor's note:  I agree, Bryan.  It is an incorrect use of the word.  Before the entry was posted I passed it around to the CommunityAIR group with this comment.

"'Gerrymandered,' that's bound to drive up McQueen's blood pressure.  Great word but can, or should, we use it?  McQueen was not elected; he got his post by political patronage.  In my world that is a lot worse than gerrymandering an election.  A political appointee doesn't even have the courage to stand for election.  Hey, it sounds like I favour corruption but you get my drift." 

The internal debate resulted in this comment from one of our group.  "I read it as analogous to gerrymandering – changing the rules for political advantage – the analogy fits."

On that understanding I posted it.  Perhaps that was a mistake because it is an incorrect use of the word, but then the benefit is that we have had the chance to discuss a wonderfully colourful word.)