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Fwd: Giving the Finger(non-roc)

here's a retort to yester day's rant of the day

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In a message dated 3/7/99 10:12:21 PM Eastern Standard Time, CYBERJANA writes:

<< 
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 >                       /    / 
 >                 /'_'/'   '/'__'7, 
 >              /'/    /    /    /" /_\ 
 >             ('(    '    '     _~/'   ') 
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   Giving the Finger: 
 Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over
the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English
soldiers. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the
renowned English longbow and therefore be 
 incapable of fighting in the future. 
  
   This famous weapon was made of the native English Yew tree, and the act of
drawing the longbow was known as "plucking the yew" (or "pluck yew"). 
  
 Much to the bewilderment of the French, the English won a major upset and
began mocking the French by waving their middle fingers at the defeated
French,saying, "See, we can still pluck yew! PLUCK YEW!" 
 
 Since 'pluck yew' is rather difficult to say, the difficult consonant cluster
at the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative 'F', and
thus the words often used in conjunction with the 
 one- finger-salute are mistakenly thought to have something to do with an
intimate encounter. 
  
   It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows used with the
longbow that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird". 
  
   And yew thought yew knew everything! 
  >>

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  • Subject: Giving the Finger
  • From: CYBERJANA@aol.com
  • Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 22:12:21 EST
                             /'_/) 
>                        ,/_  / 
>                       /    / 
>                 /'_'/'   '/'__'7, 
>              /'/    /    /    /" /_\ 
>             ('(    '    '     _~/'   ') 
>             \                 '     / 
>               '\'   \           _.7' 
>                 \              ( 
                   \             \ 
 
 
  Giving the Finger: 
Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over
the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English
soldiers. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the
renowned English longbow and therefore be 
incapable of fighting in the future. 
 
  This famous weapon was made of the native English Yew tree, and the act of
drawing the longbow was known as "plucking the yew" (or "pluck yew"). 
 
Much to the bewilderment of the French, the English won a major upset and
began mocking the French by waving their middle fingers at the defeated
French,saying, "See, we can still pluck yew! PLUCK YEW!" 

Since 'pluck yew' is rather difficult to say, the difficult consonant cluster
at the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative 'F', and
thus the words often used in conjunction with the 
one- finger-salute are mistakenly thought to have something to do with an
intimate encounter. 
 
  It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows used with the
longbow that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird". 
 
  And yew thought yew knew everything!
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