"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...

In article ,
"michael adams" writes:
|
| Digital dyslexia must put you at a marked disadvantage as a
| mathematician I'd have thought.
|
| You have my deepest sympathy.

You're trolling AGAIN. Please desist. Or at least be a bit more
subtle.

| I posted the following - (to save you wearing your fingers any nearer
| to the bone I should perhaps add that "unassailable Internet authority"
| is intended with tongue firmly in cheek)

You also posted the following. I have included enough references
that you should be able to track the original down. If you read what
you wrote, you will see that you claimed 1589.

Yes, yes. I explained that that was a mistake. In the bit you
snipped.

Anyone can make a mistake.

However the possibly repeated use of a totally meaningless cliché
is more than a simple mistake IMO. Whereas most clichés mean something
to start with, at least.

This is totally unrelated to any possible frisson over the use of
the term "spade" in relation to black Afro Carribeans who in the UK
at least, were perfectly happy with it in the 50's and 60's.
At least the cooler dudes who McInnes hung out with in Notting
Hill, were.

So it only remains for you to explain what you meant to
imply by your the use of phrase -

"We call a spade a spade."

Unless you can describe any circumstance in which anyone could
possibly be offended by the use of the term "spade", I fail to
see the point of stating the blindingly obvious.

Anyone who decided to call a spade a fork, or a spade a rake would
very soon find themselves at a marked disadvantage, I'd have thought.

Wouldn't you ?

This is a serious question. (This being Usenet after all) How did
this phrase gain such currency when it's essentially meaningless.
i.e. people think they know what it means - when on even a cursory
examination, it turns out it means nothing at all.

Or perhaps you can produce some evidence to the contrary ?


michael adams

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