Reply #30: first off... [View All]

[veganwitch]

riley mentioned that "only dean supporters" would do this. and i stated that other supporters have done the same and i came with the same conclusion re: asshole-ism.

and on the etymology of "running the gauntlet" http://www.urbanlegends.com/language/keelhauling_running_the_gauntlet.html

"On running the gauntlet:

One of the worst crimes in a ship is theft: in a ship of the line with 800 or so men on board, the presence of a thief on board could make everyone's life a misery, poisoning the air with suspicion, particularly because most men could not lock up their valued possessions. For minor offences a thief was made to run the gantlet (probably from the Dutch gantlope: _gant_, all; _loopen_, run). For this men were given rope yarns which they plaited into knittles, with a half hitch in the end. They then stood in two rows, facing each other and leaving a corridor between them. The thief then had to strip off his shirt and was made to pass along the corridor, the master-at-arms walking slowly backwards in front of him and holding a cutlass at his chest and a ship's corporal following with another cutlass. The men then thrashed him with the knittles as he passed - as he slowly walked, not ran, the gantlet."

and if you look at a previous post of mine, you will notice that i was surprised about the civility of the thread before. i mentioned in my original post that this was simply a personal observation based on limited and personal experiences. (which i added about things i saw in a second hand way.)