Re: Found phrase -- leaning forward

Posted by masakim on September 27, 2002 at

In Reply to: Re: Found phrase -- leaning forward posted by masakim on September 26, 2002

: : LEANING FORWARD - " 'Leaning forward' is one of Donald Rumsfeld's favorite expressions. An old cold-war term, familiar to soldiers and spies, it means the willingness to be aggressive, to take risks. 'I want every one of you to know how forward-leaning we are,' the secretary of Defense told a room full of Marine generals and Navy admirals." Newsweek, Sept. 16, 2002.

: Lean forward in the saddle v phr Army by 1970s To be eager and anxious; = be RARING TO GO
: From _Dictionary of American Slang, Third Edition_ (1995) by Robert L. Chapman
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: "It's the difference between what is often called the 'lean forward' experience of the PC, versus the 'lean back' experience of television."
: --Mitchell Kertzmann (interviewee), "The Nightly Business Report," National Public Radio, November 30, 2000

In "On Language" columns (_New York Times Magazine_, August 5, 2001 & May 5, 2002), William Safire defined the adjective "forward-leaning" as:
premature
aggressive
advanced
eager
forthcoming (responsive, open, outgoing, cooperative)
progressive
helpful