For Real?

Filed under:Authors,Blogging,Cool — posted by Anwyn on October 24, 2007 @ 9:55 am

Man. I procrastinate reading Lileks for a few days, and this is what I miss:

… young idiots [drove] by and [shouted] obscenities at everyone … the gentleman at the next table whipped out a long thin bamboo tube and shot what appeared to be a sharp dart into the rear right wheel of the vehicle … the POP of the tire’s explosion was followed by two more, each punctuated by a sharp concise exhalation from the man at the next table … the vehicle had come to a stop, its driver too stunned to proceed, and by the time the driver regained his composure the fellow had opened the door and removed he youth who had shouted the obscenities to the ladies. He marched the youth back, and with the slightest pressure on his upper ear – a gesture that seemed to inflict a great deal of discomfort – he compelled the youth to apologize to the ladies, and empty his pockets to pay for the meal he had sullied with his vulgarities. Then he dispatched him with a kick on the seat of his trousers, but you could tell it was intended more for show than the actual infliction of injury. We rose in a round of applause, and thereafter amused ourselves watching the youths push their vehicle off to the side of the road. Shouts of “Get a horse” and “that’s right, lads, get your back into it” were laughingly proffered.

I hope Mr. Lileks forgives me for reprinting the heart of his story, but I’ve started three emails to him and abandoned them all as too fatuous, basically asking: “Are you pulling our legs?” So I guess I will just post the fatuousness here on the blog for all to see, instead.

Is he or isn’t he? He tells the story with what passes on the web for a straight face and gives no indication that he’s joking. But my basic experience of modern life inclines me to believe this is so unfathomably unlikely that I’m left … flummoxed. Not to mention that the “youths,” morons or not, would have had a good case of destruction of property to take to the police. Real or Not?

Verdict: Consult the laws of physics, Anwyn, you credulous girly girl. I’m going to credit it to Lileks having an Owl Creek Bridge moment, then.

3 comments »

  1. I’ve not read the source you’ve linked but, I have some experience with tires going flat from projectiles into their sidewalls. They don’t “POP”, they just “Hissss”

    Also, it takes a fairly goodly amount of energy to puncture a modern auto tire even in the sidewall. Much more energy than can be provided by any blow gun I am familiar with. And then as far as how powerful a blow gun could be if it were a “long thin bamboo tube” that could be whipped out of some discrete location, not by half!

    And how would the blow gun sniper manage to hit three tires from one side of the vehicle? All *after* they drove by hurling insults!?!?

    Followed by the youths pushing instead of driving the vehicle. Why? Because a car with flats makes the motor not work?

    All in all, not very likely. Not even very possible.

    Comment by Bill — October 24, 2007 @ 10:18 am

  2. Yeah, you must be right. Eah, I tend to be credulous. I try to avoid getting into downright gullible territory, but … eah.

    Comment by Anwyn — October 24, 2007 @ 10:30 am

  3. Lileks could make me believe anything, but I think this was simply a fantasy he had — and that we all share.

    Got to go practice with my dart gun now…..

    Comment by Anne — October 24, 2007 @ 2:59 pm

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