Re: [META] Ad Hominem and Thumbs down.
Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2004 08:46:32 -0500
Message-ID: <ltydnThlue1cSBHcRVn-og_at_comcast.com>
"frosty" <frosty_at_bogus.tld> wrote in message
news:PKydnVEnYYgpIRrcRVn-rw_at_adelphia.com...
> Laconic2 wrote:
> [snip]
> > Well, if I trace them both back to ancient Rome, I think there's a
> > connection. The thumbs down signal was used by the crowds in the
> > coliseum to indicate to a victorious gladiator that he should kill
> > the vanquished gladiator. It doesn't get any more "ad hominem" than
> > that.
> [snip]
>
> The NonExperts say, at http://tinyurl.com/5kmsv
> "But some Latin scholars think that's backwards. They believe
> 'thumbs up' was a vote for the victor to run through the vanquished
> man with his sword, while 'thumbs down' was a call for him to lay
> down his weapon, letting his foe live to fight again."
>
> This actually makes more sense to me; YMMV.
>
Hmmm... Why don't you go on over to dbdebunk, and suggest to Fabian Pascal that he reverse his usage on "thumbs up" Vs "thumbs down". I'd love to see how he responds to your suggestion, but I think there's some second order logic lurking in here!
When you see your suggestion printed with a "thumbs down" next to it, does it mean that he rejected your suggestion, or does it mean that he accepted it?? ;-) Received on Sat Nov 06 2004 - 14:46:32 CET