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Journal nizo's Journal: Why the US will never go metric *sigh* 5

        About 6 years ago, I was in a Walmart in Podunk, NC shopping for my (then) wife's christmas present (a brand spankin new sewing machine). Normally I would never be caught dead in this section of the store, but my quest for the perfect gift (that would sit unused in the closet for 4 years even though she asked for it constantly) knew no bounds. As I looked at the wide array of shiney new machines with extra thingamajiggers and whatchyamacallits, I overheard two women talking to each other. Normally I am pretty good at tuning people out, but my ears perked up when I heard the topic of conversation: the metric system!

        Intrigued, I listened to them argue (well, complain it turned out) that it would be so very difficult for 'merkins to switch to the metric system. Like two bobble-heads they nodded to each other, exclaiming how much harder things would be. Then finally one brightens and says, "yes, like.. money! Money would be so much harder with the metric system!"

        Yes indeedy, money would be so hard if it was metric! We would have screwy things like "cents" that would be 1/100th of a dollar and weird crap like that! I was absolutely floored when I heard this. How could anyone be so utterly ignornant of the metric system?

        Rather than find out, I grabbed a sewing machine and made my way to the cash register, sadly assured that I would never have to buy gasoline by the liter or rope by the meter. Now if I could have bought that sewing machine with chickens or sheep I would have been set.

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Why the US will never go metric *sigh*

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  • by nizo ( 81281 )
    And for everyone's reading pleasure, my journal entry translated to Spanish by babelfish and then back (and yes I am easily amused):

    Approximately 6 years ago, it was in a Walmart in Podunk, NC doing purchases for my (then) present of Christmas of wife's (a new seam machine of spankin of the trade name). Absolutely never they would take to me normally in this section of the warehouse, but my search for the perfect gift (that would seat unusual in the closet by 4 years although she requested he constantly) d
    • I don't even want to know about your spankin seam machine!
    • Approximately, I was buying 6 years in a Walmart in Podunk, numerical control for gift of my (then) wife before Weihnachts(eine new sewing machine of the Markenspankin). Normally I was never gotten caught absolutely in this section of the memory, but my search for the perfect gift (that would sit unused in the wandschrank for 4 years, although she constantly asked for it), did not know borders. Since I regarded the broad number of the new machines shiney with Extrathingamajiggers and whatchyamacallits, ov
  • If stupid people were the only thing preventing the United States from adopting the metric system, we would have changed a long time ago.

    Nope, I see a vast right wing conspiracy (only because it's more fun that way). One where foreign manufacturers find it difficult to sell things into the US because we don't do metric.

    O.K. well that excuse started dying nearly 30 years ago when auto mechanics were finally forced to purchase all their tools in both Metric and Imperial units, and was finalized when Americ

According to all the latest reports, there was no truth in any of the earlier reports.

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