Mis-selling
The Stigler reminded me of this one in a response to a previous WWotW.
This is probably my pet hate of all Weasel Words. It is concrete evidence that The Powers That Be have been reading 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' and think it a manual, not a caution. 'Mis-selling' is Newspeak, pure and simple.
'Mis-selling' is in direct conflict with caveat emptor. In fact I consider it a deliberate attempt to destroy caveat emptor and personal responsibility.
It is impossible to 'mis-sell' anything. Selling (and buying) are quite without coercion. They are entirely voluntary acts of exchange between willing parties.
The buyer buys, voluntarily, on his own cognisance, that what he is getting in exchange is what he wants.
The seller sells at the maximum price he can, and quite rightly so.
And, quite rightly, there are Laws about merchantable quality. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sale_of_Goods_Act_1979 for a good read and lots of links) and a 'confidence trick' is a crime.
Anyway, if you have 'mis-selling' you must also have 'mis-buying' which is clearly nonsense.
But of course, in a world where TPTB use Behavioural Economics to justify endless interventions, 'mis-selling' might make sense. But if that is the case, then we might just as well go the whole hog and nationalise and ration everything.
That's been tried, and it failed.