09.19.08
Notes from the road, part II: Mama MIA!
I doubt that I will ever own a car made by KIA for various reasons, including the idiot commercials the company used for a time (one involving dog urination). And though I’m not particularly superstitious, I believe I would be somewhat uncomfortable sitting in something sporting letters that mean to many—including this child of the Vietnam era—”Killed in Action.”
The populace is perhaps more familiar with the related military abbreviation—MIA, “Missing in Action.” MIA is also the air-travel designation of Miami International Airport, oddly relevant to the occasional piece of luggage tagged “MIA” and ending up in Pittsburgh.
Given that the alphabet sports a finite number of letters, initialisms with multiple meanings are inevitable. But I submit that sometimes the possibility of initial confusion should be considered. Here’s a sign I saw in the Miami International Airport last week (I added the green circle to highlight what caught my eye):
Couldn’t the sign-maker have spelled out “Miami International Airport” in this case?
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