But he’s also sometimes credited with popularising, or even inventing, the phrase ‘swings and roundabouts’, meaning ‘a situation in which different actions or options result in no eventual gain or loss.’ In other words, ‘it’s all much of a muchness’. Chalmers used this phrase – and the accompanying sentiment or meaning – in a poem titled ‘Roundabouts and Swings’, which was first published in Chalmers’ volume Green Days and Blue Days in 1912. The original poem is interesting not least because it cleverly employs existing expressions (round and round, up and down) to describe the pattern of financial profit and loss experienced by the travelling man. In doing so, and in using the symbols of the roundabouts and the swings to reinforce this sense of gain and loss, the poem arguably helped to bring the phrase to a wider audience
And that is several square millimeters of cerebral cortex that you no longer have available for other patterns.
I’ve always known it to mean the same thing as “potato potAHto” or “six of one, half dozen of the other.”
I.E. “What’s the difference between saying “potato potAHto” and “six of one, half dozen of the other.”?” To which I’d say, “Meh, swings and roundabouts.”
You know, we’re all coming at this like ‘wow this person is stupid and hateful, saying swings and roundabouts when they meant what goes around comes around’, but what if they actually just said it in a ‘c’est la vie’ kind of way? Like ‘well you made me sad and I made you sad. Such is life.’ Especially when you add the context of how they probably HAD to refuse said mortgage application instead of exercising leeway to do so.
i’m still not getting it. “swings and roundabouts”
In https://interestingliterature.com/2015/09/the-interesting-origins-of-the-phrase-swings-and-roundabouts/
And that is several square millimeters of cerebral cortex that you no longer have available for other patterns.
It’s similar to “what goes around, comes around”, since swings and roundabouts go back to the same place.
As in: If you mock someone one day, they might mock you back another day.
That’s my point though. “swings and roundabouts” doesn’t have the same meaning as “what goes around comes around”. At least I didn’t think it did.
I’ve always known it to mean the same thing as “potato potAHto” or “six of one, half dozen of the other.”
I.E. “What’s the difference between saying “potato potAHto” and “six of one, half dozen of the other.”?” To which I’d say, “Meh, swings and roundabouts.”
You know, we’re all coming at this like ‘wow this person is stupid and hateful, saying swings and roundabouts when they meant what goes around comes around’, but what if they actually just said it in a ‘c’est la vie’ kind of way? Like ‘well you made me sad and I made you sad. Such is life.’ Especially when you add the context of how they probably HAD to refuse said mortgage application instead of exercising leeway to do so.
i am definitely guilty of being a jerk but I thought it was a thing about discriminating against queer/trans?