America killed Phar Lap!

[drakkeness]

Many have suspected it for years but just recently it was proven. Phar Lap was poisened by the Americans, he was fed arsenic..The question is why? Was it because America couldnt stand the though of an Australian horse winning on their home tracks?

[liamc2]

[quote name='drakkeness']Many have suspected it for years but just recently it was proven. Phar Lap was poisened by the Americans, he was fed arsenic..The question is why? Was it because America couldnt stand the though of an Australian horse winning on their home tracks?[/quote]


[size="1"][FONT=Trebuchet MS]We-ell, it wasn't [b]America[/b] that killed Pharlap. Possibly one could trace it all back to the American Dream of money and justify it as America that way...But I escape on a tangeant.

Last I heard Pharlap was poisoned by an American Mob that had a gambling racket. The horse's high potential for a win [possibly overblown due to the limited nature of communication those days] probably posed a threat and had to be removed. I sincerely doubt it had to do with any America/Australia hostilities...[/FONT][/size]

[Sandy]

[quote name='drakkeness']The question is why? [/quote]

No, the question is who heck is Phar Lap? :P

Putting just a [I]bit[/I] more background information to the starting post of this thread wouldn't have hurt...

[Albert Flasher]

[COLOR=Sienna]Phar Lap was an Australian racing horse who was totally kicking the crap out of all his competition until he was found in great pain, and then died. The autopsy found that his intestines were inflammed and people suspected that he was poisoned; or at least, that's what Wikipedia says.

I don't buy it. During the 30's, Arsenic was given to people and animals as a form of [i]medicine[/i], as a tonic of sorts. Chances are it was arsenic that killed Phar Lap, but it was most likely by his own'ers doing.[/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[SIZE=1]Interesting, most interesting.

As liamc2 said, I think it's kind of hard to blame America for Phar Lap's death, in as much as America seems to indicate the nation rather than just a group of Americans, that is of course if Americans were indeed responsible for Phar Lap's poisoning.[/SIZE]

[QUOTE=Sandy]No, the question is who heck is Phar Lap? :P

Putting just a [I]bit[/I] more background information to the starting post of this thread wouldn't have hurt...[/QUOTE]

[SIZE=1]Maybe doing a Wiki search on Phar Lap, or heck even reading posts subsequent to the original might shed some light on your predicament Sandy.[/SIZE]

[AzureWolf]

[quote name='darkeness]The question is why? [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=Sandy]No, the question is who heck is Phar Lap? :P[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=HedonismBot']Phar Lap was an Australian racing horse who was totally kicking the crap out of all his competition[/quote][COLOR=maroon]Well, I think that wraps everything up nicely, haha. No, seriously: the @## kicking might be reason to kill him.[/COLOR]

[Panda]

I agree that stating it was America that killed the race horse is a bit off the mark. If it actually was a case of foul play more than likely it was someone involved in the gambling aspect of horse racing.

Let's say someone has a horse they want to win but Phar Lap keeps winning. One way to deal with the problem is to get rid of Phar Lap so the other horse has a better chance of winning. Thus, that person will win money. Get rid of the competition so they can come out on top.

To me this sounds like a financial issue not a Australia vs America one.

[AzureWolf]

[quote name='Panda']To me this sounds like a financial issue not a Australia vs America one.[/quote][COLOR=maroon]It could be that the individual who killed it for selfish, non-Nationalistic reasons, was an American citizen and that's why there's this uproar?[/COLOR]

[Sandy]

[quote name='Gavin][SIZE=1']Maybe doing a Wiki search on Phar Lap, or heck even reading posts subsequent to the original might shed some light on your predicament Sandy.[/SIZE][/quote]

Of course, because Phar-freaking-Lap is the most important thing in my life now and forevermore! I want to know just [I]everything[/I] about it!

Seriously, I didn't get that Phar Lap was the horse's name. Sounds more like a misspelled shortening of Pharmacy Laboratory or something. :P

[John]

[quote name='drakkeness']Many have suspected it for years but just recently it was proven. Phar Lap was poisened by the Americans, he was fed arsenic..The question is why? Was it because America couldnt stand the though of an Australian horse winning on their home tracks?[/quote] Blast! We've been foiled, gentlemen, after all these years! Looks like our moustache-twirling, track-dominating days are over. If it weren't for you meddling Australians and your stupid horse!

[DeathKnight]

[quote name='drakkeness']The question is why?[/quote]

[color=crimson]Americans are always very concerned about how we appear internationally in regards to horse racing.[/color]

[Raiyuu]

[quote name='drakkeness']The question is why?[/quote][FONT=Trebuchet MS]No the question is "who cares?"

And beyond that, "why are forensic scientists still testing a long-dead racehorse when people are out there getting away with rape and murder?"[/FONT]

[liamc2]

[QUOTE=Raiyuu][FONT=Trebuchet MS]No the question is "who cares?"

And beyond that, "why are forensic scientists still testing a long-dead racehorse when people are out there getting away with rape and murder?"[/FONT][/QUOTE]

[size="1"][FONT=Trebuchet MS]Why are we also discussing a long dead horse when hundreds of thousands of people are dying each day due to wars or conflicts that our respective countries are involved in?

*cough*

You can't force a forensic scientist to study DNA from rape or murder. If there aren't any positions available that suit your qualifications, you take the first job you can get. I want to use my Biomedical Bachelor to work in the Leukemia research department of the Mater Hospital, but if the only position available is in MasterFood's Quality Control [No...nothing to do with tasting. Lots of statistics], I'll take it.

Fun fact!

Queensland's forensic department were so backed up in the amount of DNA testing they had to do, a large removable refridgerated crate was hired to store all of the material just off-site.

Case in point: It's an interesting subject. We've always loved our underdogs, and from the Wiki article it seems that PharLap was pretty much down in the dirt from day one. Though I'll agree that the life-size bronze statue is a bit much...[/FONT][/size]

[drakkeness]

Okay so I'll admit that blaming all of America for the death of Phar Lap is unfair but he was and still is an Aussie icon, not only because he was the underdog, but also because he was big in everyway. His heart was the size of a football and I've seen his preserved body in Melbourne and it's freakin huge! Even by race horse standards..

[DeadSeraphim]

[quote name='drakkeness']Okay so I'll admit that blaming all of America for the death of Phar Lap is unfair but he was and still is an Aussie icon, not only because he was the underdog, but also because he was big in everyway. His heart was the size of a football and I've seen his preserved body in Melbourne and it's freakin huge! Even by race horse standards..[/quote]
[size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]Like Russel Crowe, Phar Lap was an Australian icon that came from New Zealand. :)[/font][/color][/size]

[TheShinje]

[quote name='DeadSeraphim][size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]Like Russel Crowe, Phar Lap was an Australian icon that came from New Zealand. :)[/font][/color'][/size][/quote][color=crimson]We'll keep Phar Lap. But seriously, you Aussies can take Russel Crowe if you want. :D

It wasn't the American mafia that killed Phar Lap, it was the strapper, I tell you, the strapper!

What is a strapper? I don't know, but whatever the strapper is, he/she/it was giving Phar Lap a good dose of arsenic to help keep his shiny coat. This must have been before they knew arsenic was, like, deadly and stuff.

Who cares about some long-dead horse? How about those long-dead suspects who can now be exonerated! I doubt the Strapper will be cracking out the harp though.[/color]

[Gavin]

[QUOTE=Sandy]Of course, because Phar-freaking-Lap is the most important thing in my life now and forevermore! I want to know just [I]everything[/I] about it!

Seriously, I didn't get that Phar Lap was the horse's name. Sounds more like a misspelled shortening of Pharmacy Laboratory or something. :P[/QUOTE]

[SIZE=1]Well correct me if I'm wrong Sandy, but making a response to the thread would seem to indicate an interest in the topic, unless you're just posting for the sake of posting, not saying that you are, just that it seems odd you seem to have little interest in this thread you've post in.

As for finding out ever detail on the horse, I find it a bit hard to believe you don't have two minutes to breeze through a relatively short Wiki article to find out some basic knowledge. I'm not trying to be confrontational or anything, just replying when I'm quoted. [/SIZE]

[Sandy]

[QUOTE=Gavin][SIZE=1]
As for finding out ever detail on the horse, I find it a bit hard to believe you don't have two minutes to breeze through a relatively short Wiki article to find out some basic knowledge. [/SIZE][/QUOTE]

For starters, I just wanted to know what Phar Lap was. Now it's clear to me that it's a racing horse that died in shady circumstances. I really don't think I should need to go all the way to Wikipedia for [I]that[/I] information.

Isn't it a principle in starting a new thread to put enough background information to the first post so that anybody reading it would be on the clear on what is the topic of the matter? I know I've seen enough of those "[U]Link[/U]. Discuss."-type of threads online, not necessarily so much here, but on other forums.

I know Wiki and Google are handy tools for getting information, but isn't it quite bothersome if you're [I]always[/I] pointed to go to those places if you want to know something, no matter how small it is?

Okay, now I'm drifting away from the topic at hand, but I was only on this cause for principle, not to offend anybody.

[DeadSeraphim]

[QUOTE=Sandy]For starters, I just wanted to know what Phar Lap was. Now it's clear to me that it's a racing horse that died in shady circumstances. I really don't think I should need to go all the way to Wikipedia for [I]that[/I] information.

Isn't it a principle in starting a new thread to put enough background information to the first post so that anybody reading it would be on the clear on what is the topic of the matter? I know I've seen enough of those "[U]Link[/U]. Discuss."-type of threads online, not necessarily so much here, but on other forums.

I know Wiki and Google are handy tools for getting information, but isn't it quite bothersome if you're [I]always[/I] pointed to go to those places if you want to know something, no matter how small it is?

Okay, now I'm drifting away from the topic at hand, but I was only on this cause for principle, not to offend anybody.[/QUOTE]
[size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]Clearly the thread poster assumed most people knew. And most people did. You're the exception here, and really, it wouldn't have taken you two minutes to check Wikipedia. It seems to me like you were just posting for the sake of playing mod in a forum that isn't your own, not out of any genuine interest. [i]Fail[/i].[/font][/color][/size]

[Sandy]

[quote name='DeadSeraphim][size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]It seems to me like you were just posting for the sake of playing mod in a forum that isn't your own, not out of any genuine interest. [i]Fail[/i].[/font][/color'][/size][/quote]

[I]Harsh[/I], man!

Just tell me, how can I have a genuine interest in something that I have never even heard about?! Phar Lap maybe some equinine hero to you American and Australian people, but can you really expect a Finnish person to instantly know who it is?

Again, I thought it was a principle that a thread is started so that everybody can understand it.

Also, it's ridiculous that you accuse [I]me[/I] of playing mod - I [I]am[/I] a mod! It's not like I'm using my authority here, but ensuring the quality of this place is every mod's duty, no matter what area he or she is assigned to.

[Horendithas]

[COLOR=DeepSkyBlue]Well finding information on this was simple, google is after all your friend when it comes to these things. And with that being said: [URL=http://www.physorg.com/news80813461.html ]Article[/URL] Here?s the article on the findings of that testing that solved the mystery behind the death of the horse.

Others have already said it, but it looks more like the work of gangsters instead of America the country. A financial issue due to illegal betting and such and nothing more, the gangsters just happened to be American, or so we are assuming. They could have been from different countries themselves. [/COLOR]

[Sandy]

[quote name='indifference][COLOR=DeepSkyBlue']Well finding information on this was simple, google is after all your friend when it comes to these things.[/COLOR][/quote]

I don't think I was being lazy for asking more background to the start of this post (again, not out of interest but out of principle) instead of googling/going to Wikipedia.

As an (overexaggerated) example, let's say I started a thread asking opinions if Anneli Jäätteenmäki was persecuted to step down from her office as a Prime Minister, without putting any background of the situation to the post.

Now, would [I]you[/I] use google, or just go "huh?!"?

[Horendithas]

[COLOR=DeepSkyBlue][QUOTE=Sandy]I don't think I was being lazy for asking more background to the start of this post (again, not out of interest but out of principle) instead of googling/going to Wikipedia.

As an (overexaggerated) example, let's say I started a thread asking opinions if Anneli Jäätteenmäki was persecuted to step down from her office as a Prime Minister, without putting any background of the situation to the post.

Now, would [I]you[/I] use google, or just go "huh?!"?[/QUOTE]You're being over sensitive; I didn't quote you because I was not implying that you were being lazy. I was simply pointing out that it was easy to find the information and nothing more.

I?m not questioning the reasoning behind asking a poster to put more information in the opening post of a thread. That?s pretty standard and expected.

Of course I would use google, because the opening post caused me to go [I]huh[/I]? So naturally I would want to know more. And then being a mod I would turn around and explain to the poster that a bit more information when creating a thread is helpful. However at this point, it's hardly necessary as so many others have already done so. So there would be no need to repeat what you yourself already mentioned in this thread.

[B]EDIT:[/B] It would be more accurate to say that I was implying that for the creator of the thread, it would have been simple to do what I did. Search google, and then provide a link to the details about determining the cause of death. An act that took less than a minute to do. [/COLOR]

[Sandy]

Okay, sorry for the misunderstandment, as well as seeming overly sensitive. I was just worried that nobody got my point and it frustrated me a bit. I wasn't really offended to the least. ;D I'm glad that my message got through, though.

Now I'll leave Phar Lap to it's no doubt well-deserved rest.

[Gavin]

[quote name='Sandy]Also, it's ridiculous that you accuse [I]me[/I] of playing mod - I [I]am[/I'] a mod! It's not like I'm using my authority here, but ensuring the quality of this place is every mod's duty, no matter what area he or she is assigned to.[/quote]

[SIZE=1]Actually Sandy he accused you playing mod in a forum that isn't yours, so regardless of whether or not you're a member of staff for another forum, it's still playing mod.[/SIZE]

[QUOTE=Sandy]As an (overexaggerated) example, let's say I started a thread asking opinions if Anneli Jäätteenmäki was persecuted to step down from her office as a Prime Minister, without putting any background of the situation to the post.

Now, would [I]you[/I] use google, or just go "huh?!"?[/QUOTE]

[SIZE=1]I think I'd agree with indifference and go "huh ?!" then use Google or Wiki to find out who exactly this woman was before making a post and complaining that the original poster [in this case you] did not supply enough information as to allow me to avoid having to search for exactly what they were talking about. Personally if you consider us harsh for pointing out that you could have remedied your own problem but didn't, and instead chose to complain about it, then I hope you'll take this as a lesson and avoid such situations in the future.

Don't take this as an attack Sandy, I'm merely giving you some constructive criticism, after all if your aim is to improve OB's overall quality, then it's best to start with yourself.[/SIZE]