IDIOTIC WAYS TO DIE

[+ Charlie]

4 hours ago, newatthis said:

Thanks to @mike carey and @Luv2play for their responses.  I did google it myself later in the day and found the explanation.  But both @mike carey and wikipedia seemed to think that "Operation Market Garden" was something I would know about.  Am I really so out of things?  Is this something well-known to the most people?

It is something that is known to most people who are interested in World War Two history. E.g., my uncle was killed in battle in Germany in 1945, so of course I know a lot about that period.

[Luv2play]

6 hours ago, newatthis said:

Thanks to @mike carey and @Luv2play for their responses.  I did google it myself later in the day and found the explanation.  But both @mike carey and wikipedia seemed to think that "Operation Market Garden" was something I would know about.  Am I really so out of things?  Is this something well-known to the most people?

During WWII major strategic operations decisions were given these quixotic names, perhaps for security reasons during the planning stages. Names like Operation Overlord ( D-Day), Operation Torch (African invasion), Operation Jupiter (Norway), etc. 

Historians and fans of reading about the war are the only people familiar with these names. 

[Luv2play]

9 hours ago, SouthOfTheBorder said:

if you’ve been to India - you would not make that statement 

I guess you haven’t taken notice of the fact that India is now part of the BRICS group of countries that over the next 20 years are expected to achieve parity with the most developed countries. At least that is the path they are on.
India with its 1.42billion people has a GDP of over $10,000 per capita. Like China if you ignore the billion or so who are mired in poverty, the rest which number in the hundreds of millions, enjoy an educational and wealth status like those in the upper reaches of the developed world. 

They left the third world quite some time ago. 

Edited January 23 by Luv2play

[mike carey]

7 hours ago, newatthis said:

Thanks to @mike carey and @Luv2play for their responses.  I did google it myself later in the day and found the explanation.  But both @mike carey and wikipedia seemed to think that "Operation Market Garden" was something I would know about.  Am I really so out of things?  Is this something well-known to the most people?

On reflection, guilty as charged, so sorry for that. At first I was only familiar with the name of the operation from the film but have read more about it since. As others have said, knowledge of the battles themselves or the film are a snapshot of a certain time now well in the past. Unconsciously I had been answering the question, 'Is the term a bridge too far really about an actual bridge that was too far away to be captured in WW2', rather than what you wanted to know.

[Luv2play]

I started it all with my remark that “inconceivable “ was “a bridge too far” 

It started with a poster calling something axiomatic. That was followed by another saying “self evident”or “unquestionable”, both synonyms to axiomatic. Then another said “incontrovertible”, another synonym. Then another poster said “inconceivable”.

That was the “bridge too far” as I saw it meaning you don’t expect us to go there, do you? OK a bit obscure. My idea of humour. 

[+ newatthis]

17 hours ago, Luv2play said:

During WWII major strategic operations decisions were given these quixotic names, perhaps for security reasons during the planning stages. Names like Operation Overlord ( D-Day), Operation Torch (African invasion), Operation Jupiter (Norway), etc. 

Historians and fans of reading about the war are the only people familiar with these names. 

I'm not a particular fan of WWII history, but Torch and Overlord are familiar to me.  Market Garden and Jupiter are a bridge too far.