Iran hostage crisis post? March 28, 2007 11:30 AM   Subscribe

Am I missing something or has no one posted about the unfolding Iranian hostage crisis with the UK soldiers? I think I may just have missed it, and if someone could point me to it, I would appreciate it. Thanks.
posted by shivohum to MetaFilter-Related at 11:30 AM (61 comments total)

Here you go.
posted by found missing at 11:47 AM on March 28, 2007


There are many current events that have not been posted about.
posted by Terminal Verbosity at 11:47 AM on March 28, 2007


Also, how are they "Hostages"? Generally soldiers running around where they shouldn't be are captured.
posted by delmoi at 11:55 AM on March 28, 2007 [1 favorite]


Also, how are they "Hostages"? Generally soldiers running around where they shouldn't be are captured.

The British soldiers were well inside Iraqi waters when captured. The MoD has released pictures and GPS data today which illustrate this.

Uninformed nonsense like delmoi's comment would be posted in a thread about this situation, so it's no great loss that we don't have one.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 11:59 AM on March 28, 2007 [1 favorite]


Also, how are they "Hostages"? Generally soldiers running around where they shouldn't be are captured.

The British soldiers were well inside Iraqi waters when captured.


Well, they really don't belong there, either.
posted by cmonkey at 12:01 PM on March 28, 2007 [6 favorites]


B-han---
That would have been my FIRST POST EVER but now you've ruined the surprise so I'm just gonna sit here and look for my pants.
posted by Dizzy at 12:01 PM on March 28, 2007


The British soldiers were well inside Iraqi waters when captured. The MoD has released pictures and GPS data today which illustrate this.

I think the problem is that the waters are actually disputed.
posted by delmoi at 12:02 PM on March 28, 2007


And yeah, also, no one made a post to metafilter about the fact that I bought a little box of jelly beans on impulse at the checkout aisle at Target today.

That's because the teller knew what it was.
posted by brundlefly at 12:05 PM on March 28, 2007 [7 favorites]


I think the problem is that the waters are actually disputed.

Some parts are disputed, yes. But the position where they were captured is indisputably inside Iraqi waters. The Iranians first claimed the soldiers were captured at a particular point, which the British government pointed out was actually inside Iraqi waters, which is pretty embarrassing the Iranians. The Iranians then claimed the soldiers were at another point, this time in Iranian waters. The evidence shown by the MoD contradicts this.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 12:07 PM on March 28, 2007


Tonkin Guf? Shades of the General Belgrano affair more like.
posted by Sk4n at 12:15 PM on March 28, 2007


I played that vid for my kid and now Child Services wants to "have a little chat."
Thanks, B-han.
posted by Dizzy at 12:21 PM on March 28, 2007


There are many current events that have not been posted about.
posted by Terminal Verbosity at 2:47 PM on March 28 [+]


Seconding that.

MetaFilter is supposed to be an aggregator of great links, not a news site.
posted by jason's_planet at 12:30 PM on March 28, 2007


When I held British students for 12 days for walking across the street from me, there was no thread on it. I even released grainy footage of them with bags over there head on YouTube. Metafilter's anti-Geoff bias.
posted by geoff. at 12:34 PM on March 28, 2007


I was a little surprised at the absence of this news item as well. Stuff like this always seems to make it to the blue.

I'm just waiting for the inevitable post about Eddie Griffin crashing his Ferrari.
posted by quin at 12:37 PM on March 28, 2007


It wasn't even his own car! Classic.
posted by tristeza at 12:45 PM on March 28, 2007


Not even his!
posted by smackfu at 12:45 PM on March 28, 2007


The British soldiers were well inside Iraqi waters when captured.

Irani waters. There are no Iraqi waters.
posted by phaedon at 12:48 PM on March 28, 2007


What's all this about Melanie Griffith and "I Ran"?
posted by mr_crash_davis at 12:50 PM on March 28, 2007


I hear Stephen King died and no one noticed :-(
posted by cmonkey at 12:53 PM on March 28, 2007


Irani waters. There are no Iraqi waters.

Not even the Iranians claim that!

Given even Iran doesn't claim Iraq has no territorial waters, where did you get this from?
posted by Aloysius Bear at 12:55 PM on March 28, 2007


It has been established in an earlier thread that I have a habit of totally overrating my own understanding of geography. I must've long ago concluded that Iraq has no direct access to the Persian Gulf. Oopsie.
posted by phaedon at 1:01 PM on March 28, 2007


I have an awesome idea: Let's just discuss/argue about this news item right here, in this thread. Get it out of our systems.

When World War III actually starts, I'm sure they'll be a post to the blue. Probably even a double.
posted by mr_roboto at 1:02 PM on March 28, 2007




mr_roboto - Metafilter in the Ruins. Oldie but goodie.
posted by brownpau at 1:12 PM on March 28, 2007


Wahaha.
posted by brownpau at 1:14 PM on March 28, 2007


tristeza : It wasn't even his own car! Classic.

Ha! I didn't catch that. They've been showing the crash on all the TVs at work, but the volume is off. All I knew was that he was the one driving.

Man, I don't know which is worse: crashing your own $1.5 million car, or crashing your bosses $1.5 million car.
posted by quin at 1:14 PM on March 28, 2007


This just in: Eddie Griffin has been named to direct the war effort.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 1:20 PM on March 28, 2007


Wait - now Griffin is being replaced by a team of Fung Wah bus drivers.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 1:24 PM on March 28, 2007


No Americans are involved so it doesn't count as news.
posted by timeistight at 1:26 PM on March 28, 2007


Eddie Griffin has just been shot by Dick Cheney.
posted by jefbla at 1:27 PM on March 28, 2007


Awesome, that metafilter in the ruins thing reminds me of these horrible but awesome youtube clips 1 2
posted by jourman2 at 1:29 PM on March 28, 2007


There has to be an understeer joke here somewhere, I just can't find it.
posted by Skorgu at 1:30 PM on March 28, 2007


this'll have to do
posted by phaedon at 1:35 PM on March 28, 2007


Heckuva job, Eddie.
posted by Cranberry at 1:55 PM on March 28, 2007


Stephen King is dead?
How could they tell?
posted by Dizzy at 2:07 PM on March 28, 2007


And yeah, also, no one made a post to metafilter about the fact that I bought a little box of jelly beans on impulse at the checkout aisle at Target today.

That's because we're waiting for you to Twitter that fact.
posted by ericb at 2:17 PM on March 28, 2007


Shouldn't a Ferrari corner better than that, even if the driver is an idiot?
posted by Armitage Shanks at 2:29 PM on March 28, 2007


"Man, I don't know which is worse: crashing your own $1.5 million car, or crashing your bosses $1.5 million car."

Or crashing your bosses’ $1.5 million car in a publicity stunt to hype a movie that opens in two weeks.
posted by Tenuki at 2:35 PM on March 28, 2007


My id, forever trapped in its grassy knoll, whispers that any publicity is good publicity and wrecking that machine was an excellent career move.
Prediction?
Opens at number one.
posted by Dizzy at 2:42 PM on March 28, 2007


I'm just glad it wasn't American soldiers, or we'd have another war to deal with.
posted by kirkaracha at 2:58 PM on March 28, 2007


There are many current events that have not been posted about.

Thank sweet-purple-jebus for that-
posted by signal at 2:58 PM on March 28, 2007


B-han---
Can't write much-- still being "questioned" by the sherriff and the child development specialists from the County...
posted by Dizzy at 3:00 PM on March 28, 2007


I DO NOT READ METAFILTER FOR NEWS THAT I CAN READ ON CNN.COM

That is all.
posted by nathancaswell at 3:41 PM on March 28, 2007


No this isn't a "news" site, however, the resulting commentary is so much more insightful and worthy of my reading than anything in the rags or on tv. (Well, most of the time.)
posted by snsranch at 3:51 PM on March 28, 2007


Agreed, snsranch. That is the bright side of NewsFilter.
posted by brundlefly at 4:50 PM on March 28, 2007


Metafilter in the Ruins. Oldie but goodie.

I have never seen that before, oddly, but: bah. Nobody has ever said either 'x-post' or 'self-post' on this site, that I can recall. Try to at least get the insular goofy geekspeak vernacular right, damn it, parodists.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:13 PM on March 28, 2007


Actually the reason for the lack of discussion regarding the British hostages is America's overwhelming concern for the fate of Sanjaya on tonight's American Idol.
posted by ericb at 5:32 PM on March 28, 2007


Hey, I'm trying to remember the name of that guy from Brooklyn who self-linked to his band's site... I'm drawing a total blank on his name, the band name, everything. But it's a pretty funny read, that thread. Can anyone direct me to it?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:03 PM on March 28, 2007


...regarding the British hostages...

I think you mean enemy combatants.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:04 PM on March 28, 2007


Pretty Flowers, I think, flapjax.
posted by dame at 8:56 PM on March 28, 2007


Yup, that's the one! Thanks dame!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 10:39 PM on March 28, 2007


pf thread.

It's a shame those threads get hidden. N00bs would be well-served by seeing them. Helps set the standards for FPPs.

Also, they're greatly entertaining. How I miss the img tag!
posted by five fresh fish at 11:48 PM on March 28, 2007


I'm just glad it wasn't American soldiers, or we'd have another war to deal with.

No shit.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:39 AM on March 29, 2007


Nobody has ever said either 'x-post' or 'self-post' on this site, that I can recall.

Your recollection needs correction:

"self-post" and "self-blog", both from none other than mathowie. Took a while for the site lingo to firm up.

This seems as good a place as any to state that I can no longer buy portobello mushrooms without immediately thinking of that one majestic thread.

You know how your grandparents jaw on endlessly about The War? We're going to bore the hell out of our grandchildren with this stuff.

"Now, the thing you have to understand about the portabello thread is—hey, come back here, you little ingrate!"
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:44 AM on March 29, 2007 [1 favorite]


These mushrooms - they have cameras?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 11:05 AM on March 29, 2007


Your recollection needs correction:

Yes, well, I know better than to use words like 'nobody' or 'never' because people just love to go and find the one case that makes that incorrect, as if that invalidates the entire argument being made.

In other words, pish-tosh on your pedantry, mr cortex, sir. That parody still sucked because it didn't come anywhere close to capturing the tone of the site, which was the whole point of the exercise.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:23 PM on March 29, 2007


Oh, I agree with you entirely about the tone thing. I just couldn't resist the rhyme. And I derive immense, evil pleasure from outing mistaken—even innocent, lazy, well-meaning—misapplications of 'nobody' and 'never'.
posted by cortex (staff) at 5:28 PM on March 29, 2007


Well, you know, I did say 'that I can recall', so there wasn't any misapplication here, and am neither innocent nor well-meaning, although lazy is a fair cop.

What I should have said, of course, is that there have never been any threads where people have said those things repeatedly in-thread. Never never never. Other than maybe mathowie.

And I'm totally not trying to bait you into wasting your time trying to find a counterexample. I promise. Really.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:47 PM on March 29, 2007


... I am...
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:47 PM on March 29, 2007


Heh. If it's any comfort (or disappointment), that initial bit of pedantry research was all of fifteen seconds with google based off actual recall.

I should do a refi job on the evolution of "self-link", though. But it's hard to research that sort of thing: I can't just search for "words that people used instead of self-link when they meant self-link", sadly.
posted by cortex (staff) at 5:52 PM on March 29, 2007


I'm just glad it wasn't American soldiers, or we'd have another war to deal with.

No shit.

Or another USS Pueblo. Or something.
posted by mlis at 9:29 PM on March 29, 2007


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