Let's learn idioms

FALL ON DEAF EARS: be ignored, be disregarded. Jakarta Globe: <<Indonesian lawmakers’ efforts to pull Schapelle Corby into the ongoing wiretapping dispute between Australia and Indonesia fell on deaf ears on Friday as central government officials dismissed the request, telling politicians the drug trafficking convict’s case “has nothing to do with” the spy scandal.>>

Another "twofer"! To FALL FROM GRACE is to lose prestige or power. To NAME NAMES is to give the names of specific people involved in wrongdoing. Jakarta Globe, in a story about the corruption trial of legislator Angelina Sondakh: <<The one-time Miss Putri Indonesia’s dramatic fall from grace began shortly after investigators closed in on Nazaruddin. The former Democratic Party treasurer began to name names before he was even arrested, dropping clues on the involvement of fellow Democrats via Skype from his hideout in Bogota, Columbia.>>

Two for one! A SILVER LINING is a positive aspect in a negative situation. PALE IN COMPARISON: seem insignificant when compared to something else. The word "pale" is a verb here. Daily Beast: <<One silver lining for the GOP [the Republican Party] in Jackson’s shambolic campaign was the optimism that the Republicans could pick off Northam’s state Senate seat in a special election. But that paled in comparison to the costs of a statewide campaign with an outlandish, gaffe-prone candidate.>>

A note for word fans: "Shambolic" is a British word, meaning disorganized, confused, in a shambles. But it has recently started showing up in American English.

MAKE HAY WHILE THE SUN SHINES: seize opportunities as they arise (because the opportunity may not last log). Both a proverb and an idiom. GhanaWeb: <<Folks, in Ghanaian politics, there is no certainty except the strong conviction among some of us that the Ghanaian politician is not to be trusted to sacrifice personal interests at the expense of the national one.
When it comes to self-serving, what is on the mind of the Ghanaian politician is nothing but making hay while the sun shines (Or as my Nigerian friend puts it: Making HASTE while the sun shines---because the sun won't shine forever!). >>