No h in str wrote:
Curious speech pattern I've noticed in recent years - I'm pretty sure it started with African Americans, but now I hear almost everyone doing it (including those I've challenged doing so, but who have flatly denied it):
Boston Shtrong
Piece of Shtring
Shtriped jersey
What the??
Oh Lord! now that you've brought this to conscious attention, I'm remembering people doing this in many years recent. The mere thought of it is already driving me crazy. On top of all the stresses of this shyte weather, dust and dirt, traffic and culture, cumulatively I feel like I'm wearing a hair shirt! I want to punch a wall and shave my whole body. I might just spurt out "douchebag" at the next id!ot I catch doing this in person. Like someone with Tourette's syndrome.
It's not just a hand-me-down of foreign influence (although certain idiot Britishers and New Zealanders--hardly representative of their whole nations, of course--do in fact have annoying speech mannerisms like that), but a fashionable linguistic adoption of young professionals and hipsters trying to sound forward thinking and intelligent.
Ignorance is Bliss!!!