A piccolo player, no matter how hard he tries, cannot make a
"concerted effort." Only the orchestra can do that. The result is a
"concert." The picture of it settles the meaning: people doing
something together.
So Mayor Bloomberg can't make "a concerted
effort to rebut criticism that he was ignoring the
boroughs" (NYT, 1-20-11) and tennis player Vera Zvonareva can't make
"a concerted effort to knock Clijsters off stride" (1-20-11). They're
piccolo players and the editors of the New York Times are having them and a
host of others do only what groups can do. Twenty-three times in the last 90
days. Worse, they're having some of them "make a more concerted effort." Trying harder.
I know, it's a very small thing. A little spot. But these
editors have already shown that they take exactness and efficiency —
cleanliness — so far down the scale of word use that it's surprising that they
have let this spot stay. Is it too small?
