• Brutally murdered: As opposed to that run-of-the-mill, garden-variety murder? As Randy puts it, "Is there any other kind of murder?"
  
• Would like to thank: "Well, just go ahead and do it!" as Randy says. (Note to speechwriters: Help reduce pollution. Zap this phrase from your boss's notes.)
  
• Is planning to: Change to "plans to."

Let's agree to do away with about half the times we use present progressive tense. Another example comes from a major national newspaper when it reports that a public interest group "says the services offer little protection and are merely preying on consumers' fears." Eliminate the progressive, solve the parallelism problem and save space: "the services offer little protection and merely prey on consumers' fears."

The progressive tense signals continuing action, but American English allows the present tense to do the same in many cases, and it's cleaner. It's also good to learn for print reporters venturing into broadcast as cross-media cooperation spreads.

Writing coach Jim Stasiowski has a few that get under his skin, too.

"One of the phrases I hate is 'as well as,'" he writes. "Ninety percent of the time, a writer will resort to 'as well as' because he or she ... cannot gracefully use the simple 'and.' Almost always, if the writer recasts the sentence, the bulky 'as well as' is unnecessary."

Jim's also not a big fan of "located," which the first column in this series pointed out is often superfluous (as in "located at" when a simple "at" will do). But he also finds "relocated" often overused. "Show me one instance in which 'relocated' is preferable to moved."

He says he seldom finds "In addition to" used properly, and he counsels writers to avoid it when "also" will often do. And Jim is resigned to trying to stamp out "resigned earlier." As past tense, "resigned" says it happened earlier.

Jim also has some advice for obituary writers -- ditch the shopworn "In addition to ... survived by" phrasing: In addition to his wife, Shirley, Morgan is survived by (list rest of relatives). He points out that technically that means both people are dead and are survived by those relatives.

(My suggestion: If you must do it, make it Morgan is survived by, in addition to his wife, Shirley, etc.).

We at CSJ headquarters continue gathering examples of how to avoid flaccid writing. The CSJ Web log at http://commonsensej.blogspot.com has regular updates, but here are some recent finds from newspapers and newscasts:

• Are required to = must.
• Will grow at a ____ percent rate = will grow at ___ percent (percent is a rate).
• Carry on into the future = carry on (as opposed to carry on into the past?).
• At the age of ___ = at age ___.
• Protest against = protest (one might demonstrate for something but rarely protests for it).Claimed the life of = killed.
• In the wake of = after or since (let's declare a "no wake" zone).
• By resigning their posts on the board of directors = by resigning as directors.
• It made him angry = It angered him.
• Have an absence of = lack (as in Some people have an absence of (lack) emotion).
• Is reflective of = reflects (as in His budget is reflective of (reflects) that).
• At a high rate of speed = at high speed, or use the verb sped (the robbers drove away at a high rate of speed = the robbers drove away at high speed or the robbers sped away). Avoid cop-speak. And when you can use a verb like sped whose sound reinforces its tone and action -- called onomatopoeia -- it's even better.