It's all a devious plan to keep mathematical skills going. If the USA  
went with a 10 based system for everything, how would people ever  
keep their brains active without having to convert a 12 base system  
to a 3 base system to a 5280 base system? Gotta keep synapses firing.  
Never mind that after conversion, the real work has to start.

Lyle Browning


On Sep 29, 2007, at 2:54 PM, Bob Skiles wrote:

> geoff,
>
> guess what ... the U.S. "officially" switched to the metric system  
> in 1975
>
> but only liquor bottlers converted (and only because the feds have  
> them by the shorthairs due to the alcohol revenue tax-stamp bully- 
> boy situation) ... the rest of us true 'Mericans ignored it (like  
> we do with any assinine law we don't like ... what seeks to  
> Frenchify us)
>
> ~ bob
>
> ps - we still refer to our favourite size bottles of whiskey as  
> "fifths" ... not 750ml
>
> pps - The Metric Conversion Act of 1975 (Public Law 94-168) passed  
> by Congress. The Metric Act established the U.S. Metric Board to  
> coordinate and plan the increasing use and voluntary conversion to  
> the metric system. However, the Metric Act was devoid of any target  
> dates for metric conversion.
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "geoff carver" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, September 29, 2007 1:23 PM
> Subject: Re: Metric Graph Paper?
>
>
>> in science, yes, but even the BBC was reporting how the EU has all  
>> but
>> decided to give up on converting you guys to anything but pints,  
>> acres, etc.
>> ----- Original Message -----
>>
>>> but we have been metric in archaeology/science etc in UK for a  
>>> long time.
>>> Admittedly we still use miles.
>>