...Building to a crescendo is a small thing that is now screaming at me, particularly when I tune into NPR and other lefty venues. Something doesn’t exist until you name it, so I am offering the term beta-lilt, which is the verbal affectation of ending a sentence a tone higher than the body of the statement. This normally is used to imply a question like an invisible question mark, which is perfectly fine in the sparse use of a normal conversation. However, it has somehow become the basis for all conversation among certain people. As a guess, I would say...