A Hypothetical Conceived Whilst Drunk
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| Author | Topic: A Hypothetical Conceived Whilst Drunk |
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...b10010b...
Member # 869
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 16:51
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Let us suppose that a rare genetic disease has been discovered, affecting, say, one in every million people throughout the world. Its only symptom is that affected individuals instantly suffer a heart attack and die upon hearing or seeing the word "Constantinople". 1) Is this sufficient reason to make all use of the word "Constantinople" illegal? Should this law be applied retrospectively to all currently existing works containing the word "Constantinople", requiring that they be destroyed or altered to remove the offending word? If so, should their owners receive compensation? 2) If so, should the band They Might Be Giants receive any financial compensation for the banning of Istanbul Not Constantinople, one of their best-known songs? 3) How should the publishers of history books handle this issue? -------------------- My BoE Page Bandwagons are fun! Roots Hunted! Posts: 9973 | Registered: Saturday, March 30 2002 08:00 |
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Lifecrafter
Member # 34
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:19
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Only an inebriated Thuryl could yield such wisdom. :) -------------------- Fo shizzle, my lord. Two goldfish are in a tank. One says to the other, "Do you know how to drive this thing?" Posts: 702 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00 |
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Law Bringer
Member # 335
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:20
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I'd rather have all doctors and midwives shout "Constantinople! Congratulations, it's a <boy/girl/corpse>!" at every birth. That way the problem can be minimized without hurting either history or They Might be Giants. —Alorael, who think the politically correct term for the victims would have to be "spontaneous post-natal abortion." Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00 |
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Too Sexy for my Title
Member # 5654
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:27
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quote:That's horrible, even on a joke. Posts: 1035 | Registered: Friday, April 1 2005 08:00 |
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Skip to My Lou
Member # 40
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:32
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 -------------------- Take the Personality Test! INTJ 100% 75% 100% 44% Huzzah for the Masterminds! www.Keirsey.com for personality information. The Sloganizer! "Swing your Archmage Alex." Deep down, you wish you were a stick figure. Posts: 1629 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00 |
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Law Bringer
Member # 335
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:39
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I'm just espousing a view that I know Thuryl can appreciate. —Alorael, who would actually like to give SIDS another look. This may not be so hypothetical after all! Posts: 14579 | Registered: Saturday, December 1 2001 08:00 |
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Shaper
Member # 6292
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 17:54
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Not to put too fine a point on it Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Even old New York was once New Amsterdam Why they changed it I can't say People just liked it better that way And that's all I have to say about that. -------------------- [Insert Signature Here] Posts: 2009 | Registered: Monday, September 12 2005 07:00 |
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E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 18:05
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The song would only have to be bleeped, not banned. -------------------- Sex is easier than love. Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00 |
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...b10010b...
Member # 869
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 18:36
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It'd also need a name change. :P -------------------- My BoE Page Bandwagons are fun! Roots Hunted! Posts: 9973 | Registered: Saturday, March 30 2002 08:00 |
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E Equals MC What!!!!
Member # 5491
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 18:39
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Hey, the Black-eyed Peas did it. :P -------------------- Sex is easier than love. Posts: 1861 | Registered: Friday, February 11 2005 08:00 |
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Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire!
Member # 919
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 18:40
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Where would we be without Alorael, Thuryl, and Alex? I don't even know. My answer is no, although some regulations would surely have to be put in place. We don't make peanuts illegal, for instance, just because some people are dealthy allergic to them; we simply take care not to expose those people to them. Protecting the victims of the Constantinople disease without banning the offending word outright would obviously be more difficult, but not impossible; we would have to spread awareness and provide the victims with some way to identify themselves. EDIT: Thanks, spy. [ Friday, October 14, 2005 18:46: Message edited by: Lady Davida ] -------------------- And though the musicians would die, the music would live on in the imaginations of all who heard it. -The Last Pendragon Polaris = joy. In case of emergency, break glass. Posts: 3351 | Registered: Saturday, April 6 2002 08:00 |
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Too Sexy for my Title
Member # 5654
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 20:02
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quote:In case you were all wondering. New Amsterdam was taken from the Dutch in 1664, and King Charles II (king of England) decided to give the state to his brother the Duke of York, who decided to honor the state with his name. And people thought you didn't learn anything from taking DNY class. Edit: I vote yes, it's just a word. Besides, how many of us do actually use it? [ Thursday, October 13, 2005 20:03: Message edited by: Marlenny ] Posts: 1035 | Registered: Friday, April 1 2005 08:00 |
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? Man, ? Amazing
Member # 5755
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 20:17
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Wusses. *this message sponsored by ing* Posts: 4114 | Registered: Monday, April 25 2005 07:00 |
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Law Bringer
Member # 2984
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 21:02
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quote:And what do we meanwhile do with all the adult/adolescent people who are already infected? Are they post-natally aborted as well, or do we have to ban the word Constantinople outside nurseries for a generation? That wouldn't fix the problem. -------------------- The Encyclopaedia Ermariana <-- Now a Wiki! "Polaris leers down from the black vault, winking hideously like an insane watching eye which strives to convey some strange message, yet recalls nothing save that it once had a message to convey." --- HP Lovecraft. "I single Aran out due to his nasty temperament, and his superior intellect." --- SupaNik Posts: 8752 | Registered: Wednesday, May 14 2003 07:00 |
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...b10010b...
Member # 869
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 21:17
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quote:Now this touches on an interesting point: does your answer change depending on whether there exists a practical and reliable test to identify people who suffer from the disease? (I mean, a test other than shouting "Constantinople!" and seeing if they die or not.) [ Thursday, October 13, 2005 21:17: Message edited by: Thuryl ] -------------------- My BoE Page Bandwagons are fun! Roots Hunted! Posts: 9973 | Registered: Saturday, March 30 2002 08:00 |
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Shaper
Member # 5450
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written Thursday, October 13 2005 22:35
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Get them to say it? It won't be murder. And I would vote yes. -------------------- Mugglenet--The ULTIMATE Harry Potter Site. Polaris-- New location. Posts: 2396 | Registered: Saturday, January 29 2005 08:00 |
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Mongolian Barbeque
Member # 1528
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written Friday, October 14 2005 11:02
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Cars kill more people than "Constantinople" would. Yet as I look out my window I still see cars zooming around. Maybe it's a good thing the Turks took over the city and renamed it Istanbul, yes? Remember — "Constantinople" doesn't kill people. People who hear or read "Constantinople" kill people. -------------------- The A.E. van Vogt Information Site My Tribute to the Greatest Writer of the Science Fiction Golden Age Posts: 907 | Registered: Monday, July 15 2002 07:00 |
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Agent
Member # 1993
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written Friday, October 14 2005 13:58
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As long as the Constantinople-disease is so rare, the word would not be banned. Where would you find a lobby for a 1 man per million-disease? ^_^ The "Constantinople!"-shouting midwives have nevertheless my sympathy, especially for capital slums. I only doubt that they ever would cause heart attacks at unconscious babies (not able yet to understand the difference between Constantinople and Istanbul). quote::confused: "...without Alorael, Thuryl..." maybe? :) And yes: ban the cars, not the names.! -------------------- ^ö^ I was a cannibal for twenty-five years. For the rest I have been a vegetarian. George Bernard Shaw Posts: 1420 | Registered: Wednesday, October 2 2002 07:00 |
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Too Sexy for my Title
Member # 5654
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written Friday, October 14 2005 15:37
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quote:Yet cars facilitate live for us. What has Constantinople ever done for us? Posts: 1035 | Registered: Friday, April 1 2005 08:00 |
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Triad Mage
Member # 7
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written Friday, October 14 2005 15:50
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The title of this topic makes me think of an abortion debate. -------------------- "At times discretion should be thrown aside, and with the foolish we should play the fool." - Menander ==== Drakefyre's Demesne - Happy Happy Joy Joy desperance.net - We're Everywhere ==== You can take my Mac when you pry my cold, dead fingers off the mouse! Posts: 9436 | Registered: Wednesday, September 19 2001 07:00 |
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Infiltrator
Member # 5991
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written Friday, October 14 2005 16:07
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quote:how so? In other words this topic is designed to confuse us me [ Friday, October 14, 2005 17:37: Message edited by: Dark_Crusader ] -------------------- Visit the RIFQ Forums Posts: 462 | Registered: Tuesday, June 21 2005 07:00 |
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Mongolian Barbeque
Member # 1528
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written Friday, October 14 2005 16:17
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quote:Ask not what Constantinople can do for you — ask what you can do for Constantinople! -------------------- The A.E. van Vogt Information Site My Tribute to the Greatest Writer of the Science Fiction Golden Age Posts: 907 | Registered: Monday, July 15 2002 07:00 |
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Master
Member # 4614
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written Friday, October 14 2005 16:27
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Or more questionably, what makes the word "Constantinople" any more toxic and a given other word? Anyway, while a little caution should be advertised when with those diseased, the word it there, and they're going to come upon it sooner or later (eventually they'll wonder why they're told they're direly diseased but can't know what disease it is). I'd sure hate to be one of those people. -------------------- -ben4808 For those who love to spam: CSM Forums RIFQ Posts: 3360 | Registered: Friday, June 25 2004 07:00 |
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...b10010b...
Member # 869
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written Friday, October 14 2005 17:15
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quote:It's an intentionally silly hypothetical, you know. Hence the topic title. Don't think too hard about why the C-word is fatal. :P -------------------- My BoE Page Bandwagons are fun! Roots Hunted! Posts: 9973 | Registered: Saturday, March 30 2002 08:00 |
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Skip to My Lou
Member # 40
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written Friday, October 14 2005 18:00
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What if some one says "conch pan tin opal!" in a high wind and some one with the disease believes they heard "Constantinople". Do they die? -------------------- Take the Personality Test! INTJ 100% 75% 100% 44% Huzzah for the Masterminds! www.Keirsey.com for personality information. The Sloganizer! "Swing your Archmage Alex." Deep down, you wish you were a stick figure. Posts: 1629 | Registered: Wednesday, October 3 2001 07:00 |