Words that should be banned: "passion"

I've been getting myself annoyed and worked up for a while about the bloviating over-use of the word passion. It's a word that's now near meaningless thanks to the neverending search for the next greatest superlative. It's not good enough any more to be interested in your career. You have to be passionate about it. I reached the tipping point last week when an interview subject told me he was "passionate about marketing."

No one should be passionate about marketing. Consider Lincoln's use of the word, which Barack Obama quoted in his victory speech Tuesday night:

We are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.

Passion is a kind of madness. Like Civil War allegiances and hatreds, it can quickly become self-destructive. It's Romeo and Juliet, Samson and Delilah. It's not marketing and communications. So please. Lay off passion.