Headlines You'd Never have seen b4 9-11

January 22, 2002 4:25 PM

Headlines You'd Never have seen b4 9-11
Owner of world's largest U.S. flag dies at 72
Thomas Demski, who owned the world's largest American flag, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, has died. He was 72.
This is what passes for news.
posted by Blake (13 comments total)

Red, white and blue clash.
posted by Aikido at 4:30 PM on January 22, 2002

This is what passes for news.

You're against the passing of this information so you post it to metafilter? Why ignore when one can bitch.

I really don't see this as post-9/11 rah-rah mentality at all. Its not like there's a four block parade and he's made the front page of the NYTimes or is the main feature on CNN. Looks like deservedly small potatoes to me.
posted by skallas at 4:33 PM on January 22, 2002

The Union Trib is a southern california paper.

the man in question was from southern california. makes sense to me.

unless you are against all forms of local news?
posted by o2b at 4:37 PM on January 22, 2002

FPP you'd never have seen b4 9-11
posted by chrisroberts at 4:38 PM on January 22, 2002

No, feed me more Enron brand potatoes! With Afghani goat's milk of course.
posted by Aikido at 4:40 PM on January 22, 2002

The guy was actually a lot cooler than that obit gave him credit for being. The LA Times ran a big peice on him in the Sports section not long ago and used some if it in their peice today.

He had USA flags tattooed all over his body the first being on his chest with the flag pole covering his heart bypass scar.

But the best thing that I liked about him was he looked at death with a "come on, already" attitude that I admire. I also like that he stuck his dead parrot, Mike, in one of the flag poles.

In light of all the trendiness surrounding literal flag waving, if it's weren't for 9/11, I doubt that such a kooky, kind-heated fellow be given so much attention despite his unusual collection.
posted by tsarfan at 4:46 PM on January 22, 2002

Actually, Blake, after reading the peice you linked and tsarfan's, I gotta say I kinda like the old duffer. Say what you want, the guy certainly wasn't some flagwaver-come-lately. To tell the truth a grizzled old coal miner with flag on his scarred chest kinda makes an interesting analogy for the state of our nation.

Oh god that was cheesy and bad...

No, it was just cheesy, but it was kinda truthful.
posted by jonmc at 4:59 PM on January 22, 2002

Its a huge flag! Only slightly smaller than a football field. Quite impressive for those of you that have never seen it.
posted by howa2396 at 5:02 PM on January 22, 2002

I agree with skallas and o2b.

As a self-proclaimed "grammar Nazi", I'd respect you so much more if you typed the extra four keystrokes to make "before" instead of "b4".

I think I speak for many in the community in hoping that the language on Metafilter doesn't devolve into that of an AOL chat room.
posted by ktheory at 5:07 PM on January 22, 2002

This is exactly the sort of news item you'd see in the back pages of news sections, or in the "Deaths Elsewhere" obits, since time immemorial. I don't see a 9-11 connection at all. (Oh, and can I take a small poke at "b4"? Is that SMS talk or what?)
posted by rodii at 5:10 PM on January 22, 2002

(Oh, and can I take a small poke at "b4"? Is that SMS talk or what?)

I thought he was talking about a new Prince song.
posted by chuq at 5:28 PM on January 22, 2002

I'd easily have expected to see something like this from Romanesko, regardless of the date. In fact, it could have been more likely to show up were there no topical date-related tie-in, being odd and trivial otherwise.

Oh, yeah: "b4" sux. kthxbi
posted by majick at 6:45 PM on January 22, 2002

OK, I'm sorry.
B4 I posted that I thought it was a good idea, but now, me thinks I was wrong.
I'll stick with my "headlines you'd not have seen b4 9-11" though. I shouldn't have been so sarchastic about it.
posted by Blake at 7:21 PM on January 22, 2002