Just what America needs: a dose of proper English

WHEN George Bernard Shaw told us that "England and America are two countries separated by a common language" he probably did not foresee this.
 
Last week, The Economist published the results of a survey which suggested that many British people are now using American terms in preference to English ones – for example, 'apartment' for 'flat' and 'sidewalk' for 'pavement'. We're even swatting 'bugs' instead of 'insects'.
 
In an effort to restore the balance, the American website Gawker has put to a vote some suggestions for English terms that might be usefully exported to the US. Such as:
 
Holiday for vacation
Gawker feels 'vacation,' derived from 'vacate', sounds like "something unpleasant your body might do involuntarily in a moment of panic". 'Holiday' is so much better – conjuring "cheerful images of decorations and warm togetherness".

Chav for white trash
Both terms are "classist and otherwise sociologically overloaded", Gawker acknowledges. But 'white trash' is terrible, and anyway, "if you're going to be insulting, at least be...confusing to the person you are abusing".
 
Petrol for gas
The English expression is less ambiguous - "and we get to make oil companies spend some of their obscene profits on new signs".

Lift for elevator
'Lift' is shorter and more charming, says Gawker. And it's "every bit as accurate and (as a noun) unambiguous".
 
While applauding Gawker's intent, has the US site not missed an opportunity to consign one of the uglier Americanisms to the dustbin of history? Surely 'faucet' should make way for 'tap'? ·