Re: Snaping Spokes

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Dear Werehatrack,

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a
perfectly normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth
theory.

It really is hard for most of us to remember how many eyes
bulged out in anger and disbelief when we first read Jobst's
explanation of how a pre-tensioned wheel works--

Stands on the lower spokes? Fer chrissakes, cut a lower
spoke on a bare wheel and it falls out!

--because unlike Jobst, most of us haven't really thought
about it and need to hear "pre-tensioned" about a hundred
times before we stop boggling at the notion that a wheel
could effectively stand on its lower spokes with no
significant increase in the upper spokes, even if they were
all made of kevlar string--

Stand on a string? What have you been smoking?

--with enough pre-tension.

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it
reminds me of how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle
Wheel" and wasn't bright enough to follow his first few
pages.

Carl Fogel

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Dear Werehatrack,

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a
perfectly normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth
theory.

It really is hard for most of us to remember how many eyes
bulged out in anger and disbelief when we first read Jobst's
explanation of how a pre-tensioned wheel works--

Stands on the lower spokes? Fer chrissakes, cut a lower
spoke on a bare wheel and it falls out!

--because unlike Jobst, most of us haven't really thought
about it and need to hear "pre-tensioned" about a hundred
times before we stop boggling at the notion that a wheel
could effectively stand on its lower spokes with no
significant increase in the upper spokes, even if they were
all made of kevlar string--

Stand on a string? What have you been smoking?

--with enough pre-tension.

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it
reminds me of how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle
Wheel" and wasn't bright enough to follow his first few
pages.

Carl Fogel

On Sat, 05 Mar 2005 00:25:05 -0700, [email hidden] may have

Quoted message said:

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Dear Werehatrack,

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a
perfectly normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth
theory.

It might have been a good idea for him to have read enough of it to
get a little more of a clue about the subjects before presenting
himself as a target for a game of whack-a-mole though.

(I will note that Jobst did not disappoint me with *his* response,
though I was a bit surprised that like me, he didn't check the
reference line in the headers and backtrack to discover the staleness
of the thread before posting the initial reply. Beyond that, however,
he was in fine form.)

Quoted message said:

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it
reminds me of how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle
Wheel" and wasn't bright enough to follow his first few
pages.

As long as we don't end up with Yet Another Endless Rantfest about a
subject whose corpse was cremated and ashes scattered long ago, yes,
it's instructive to have such things brought up now and then...and for
those of us who are not presented with the opportunity to shred a
target often enough, it can provide some vicarious gratification to
see a master at work at that task.

(I will relate in passing that a different person with superficially
similar predilections was briefly the topic of conversation over
dinner recently, and it was posted that the term which most succintly
describes Harlan Ellison in social situations is "egoterrorist".
Jobst, however, has more reason for his responses, so I do not believe
the term is applicable in his case.)

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

HE the SF author? Will you explain, by e-mail if you wish?

"Werehatrack" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 05 Mar 2005 00:25:05 -0700, [email hidden] may have

Quoted message said:

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Dear Werehatrack,

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a
perfectly normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth
theory.

It might have been a good idea for him to have read enough of it to
get a little more of a clue about the subjects before presenting
himself as a target for a game of whack-a-mole though.

(I will note that Jobst did not disappoint me with *his* response,
though I was a bit surprised that like me, he didn't check the
reference line in the headers and backtrack to discover the staleness
of the thread before posting the initial reply. Beyond that, however,
he was in fine form.)

Quoted message said:

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it
reminds me of how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle
Wheel" and wasn't bright enough to follow his first few
pages.

As long as we don't end up with Yet Another Endless Rantfest about a
subject whose corpse was cremated and ashes scattered long ago, yes,
it's instructive to have such things brought up now and then...and for
those of us who are not presented with the opportunity to shred a
target often enough, it can provide some vicarious gratification to
see a master at work at that task.

(I will relate in passing that a different person with superficially
similar predilections was briefly the topic of conversation over
dinner recently, and it was posted that the term which most succintly
describes Harlan Ellison in social situations is "egoterrorist".
Jobst, however, has more reason for his responses, so I do not believe
the term is applicable in his case.)

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

On Sat, 5 Mar 2005 11:39:32 -0500, "Doug Huffman"

may have said:

"Werehatrack" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

(I will relate in passing that a different person with superficially
similar predilections was briefly the topic of conversation over
dinner recently, and it was posited that the term which most succintly
describes Harlan Ellison in social situations is "egoterrorist".
Jobst, however, has more reason for his responses, so I do not believe
the term is applicable in his case.)

Quoted message said:

HE the SF author? Will you explain, by e-mail if you wish?

Harlan Ellison, if you've never met him, is not one to mince words or
to let the opportunity to aggrandize himself of belittle others pass
unused. It has been said, by those who have had to spend more time
than they would like in his presence, that it is a miracle that he has
survived this long...or perhaps it's proof of the perversity of the
universe.

Jobst Brandt, for all that he can be insulting, does not do it without
reason, however tenuous the rationale might be. Ellison does.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

Quoted message said:

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Dear Werehatrack,

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a
perfectly normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth
theory.

It really is hard for most of us to remember how many eyes
bulged out in anger and disbelief when we first read Jobst's
explanation of how a pre-tensioned wheel works--

Stands on the lower spokes? Fer chrissakes, cut a lower
spoke on a bare wheel and it falls out!

--because unlike Jobst, most of us haven't really thought
about it and need to hear "pre-tensioned" about a hundred
times before we stop boggling at the notion that a wheel
could effectively stand on its lower spokes with no
significant increase in the upper spokes, even if they were
all made of kevlar string--

Stand on a string? What have you been smoking?

--with enough pre-tension.

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it
reminds me of how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle
Wheel" and wasn't bright enough to follow his first few
pages.

Carl Fogel

I'm glad to see such a post because I have a cruel sense of humor that delights
when a highrise falcon takes out a popcorn-fatted pigeon in mid feeding.

This cross-toed, head-bobbing newbie is about to leave in a cloud of dust and
feathers.

Oh, sure whatsisbeam is gonna weigh in and make it all tedious and humorless
before it's over, but until then I watch.

Ron

On Sat, 05 Mar 2005 18:04:46 GMT, RonSonic <[email hidden]>

may have said:

Oh, sure whatsisbeam is gonna weigh in and make it all tedious and humorless
before it's over, but until then I watch.

The dampening effects can be minimized by the judicious application of
a little Ctrl-K, I've found.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

Carl Fogel said:

Quoted message said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

Quoted message said:

He probably just began browsing old threads and had a perfectly
normal flat-earth reaction to Jobst's round-earth theory.

Quoted message said:

It really is hard for most of us to remember how many eyes bulged
out in anger and disbelief when we first read Jobst's explanation of
how a pre-tensioned wheel works--

Quoted message said:

Stands on the lower spokes? Fer chrissakes, cut a lower spoke on a
bare wheel and it falls out!

Quoted message said:

--because unlike Jobst, most of us haven't really thought about it
and need to hear "pre-tensioned" about a hundred times before we
stop boggling at the notion that a wheel could effectively stand on
its lower spokes with no significant increase in the upper spokes,
even if they were all made of Kevlar string--

Quoted message said:

Stand on a string? What have you been smoking?

Quoted message said:

--with enough pre-tension.

Quoted message said:

If anything, I'm pleased to see such a post because it reminds me of
how I felt when I first looked at "The Bicycle Wheel" and wasn't
bright enough to follow his first few pages.

Thanks, that was a generous assessment and coming from a critic such
as you it has more substance than others who might have risen to the
occasion. As you see, I had little sympathy for Mr. ztwnyer and his
brash attack while you found time to explain the matter. Having tried
that approach over the years, I have given up for writers who use the
insulting smartass tone in their first approach to the subject.

Jobst Brandt
[email hidden]

Werehatrack said:

And why on earth are you resurrecting a thread that's been dead for
three years?

I wondered about that myself, the distinctive mispeling of the thread
being the giveaway.

Carl Fogel said:

...
Most of us just need to take lessons in good manners from
posters like Dianne, Sheldon, and Andrew.

Not trying to derive the motives of other posters, then accusing them of
lying when you guess wrong would be a good start.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth