Comments | jeneralist: Going medieval

jeneralist

Going medieval

Jun 26, 2006 09:24

Consider this news report from cnn.com: A weekend of heavy rain is creating a commuter nightmare in Washington, D.C., and the mid-Atlantic region, spilling mud over the Capital Beltway, washing out roads and disrupting Amtrak service. The National Archives closed because the moat surrounding the building has flooded. Forecasters warn the storms won ( Read more... )

Comments 8

About the moat elphaba_of_oz June 26 2006, 13:55:47 UTC

Haven't I seen photos of Karl Rove and Dick Cheney swimming around in there?

tigira June 27 2006, 02:14:58 UTC

Well, in insurance parlance, at least, a flood is what happens when ground water escapes its natural boundaries (either because of flow - like when the snow melts off and the rivers rise above their banks, or due to exessive rainfall, so that the water cannot runoff as quickly as it's falling).

selki June 27 2006, 04:04:25 UTC

Now I understand why I was IM'd today about whether my basement had flooded. We've had lots of rain, but no flooding around me, just some big puddles.

ow I'm wondering what the government uses to stock the moat: are there piranha protecting the Constitution?

If only! ;-)

oaktavia June 28 2006, 22:16:14 UTC

ROFLMAO
well, uhm - I would say that if it isn't flooded (as in no water) then isn't it just a ravine?

I absolutely LOVE your icon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
how/where'd you make it??????

jeneralist June 29 2006, 11:39:06 UTC

The icon? Same family of generate-your-own-manga-icon website that a lot of our friends have been using. I'll send you the link when I log in from the computer that I stored the bookmark on....

oaktavia June 29 2006, 16:12:14 UTC

oh yes!! please please please!!!???

jeneralist June 29 2006, 18:53:59 UTC

It's at

http://www.abi-station.com/iconmaker/index_en.shtml

I love words squishydish June 30 2006, 06:08:31 UTC

From Webster's New International, Unabridged, 2nd Edition (1950 -- yes, my office has a dictionary from last decade, but that one is abridged):

moat, n. [OF, mote -- hill, dike, bank (F. motte -- clod, turf), of obsc., perh. Teut. or Celt. origin. Cf mote -- a height .]
1. Fort. A deep and wide trench around the rampart of a castle or other fortified place, usually filled with water; a ditch.
2. A lake or ditch. Obsc. exc. Dial.

moat, v.t. To surround with or as with a moat.

I guess the key word here is usually -- so not ALWAYS filled with water.
So technically, cnn.com is correct.
It's certainly possible, however, that the word usage is correct via fortuity rather than philology.