Comments on: Grown men cried

Grown men cried

Artw — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:13:15 -0800

The 1906 fire that sent rivers of burning whisky flowing down the streets of Dundee

By: Namlit

Namlit — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:20:02 -0800

The loss of perfectly good Whisky makes grown men weep. Yes, I sympathize.

By: Artw

Artw — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:24:44 -0800

Even I, with my abiding love of Things That Are On Fire, feel their pain over the century gap.

By: kmz

kmz — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:25:22 -0800

Somewhat similarly: The Boston Molasses Disaster.

By: the cuban

the cuban — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:31:16 -0800

By: the cuban

the cuban — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:32:58 -0800

again

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:40:44 -0800

At least it wasn't whiskey! Faith, begorrah, etc.

By: Artw

Artw — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:49:26 -0800

You wouldn't want to confuse the two.

By: three blind mice

three blind mice — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 07:51:32 -0800

I am going, I am going Any which way the wind may be blowing I am going, I am going Where streams of whiskey are flowing.

By: Splunge

Splunge — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 08:10:13 -0800

The Horror. The Horror.

By: Krazor

Krazor — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 08:10:59 -0800

Talk about "firewater"!

By: pracowity

pracowity — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 08:27:38 -0800

I can't believe this isn't the first post with a Dundee tag.

By: dilettante

dilettante — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 08:33:52 -0800

And in 1996, the Heaven Hill distillery burned.

By: Bathtub Bobsled

Bathtub Bobsled — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 09:35:10 -0800

Things like this make me want a time machine. I want to travel back to this day/(s) in 1906, talk to someone fighting the fire, or enduring severe burns on their hands and legs, and ask them: "Would you mind, terribly, if we were to crack one-liners about this a century from now?" Then I would travel to 1916 and ask the same people the same question. If I get the opportunity, I'll post the statistical analysis. In fact, I'll even do a bar graph. Judging from the fact I haven't been visited by an older version of me right now, I can assume I won't have the opportunity. Still, I'll put the date/time in my wallet just in case.

By: three blind mice

three blind mice — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 09:43:30 -0800

"Would you mind, terribly, if we were to crack one-liners about this a century from now?" They might reply, as Oscar Wilde once suggested, that the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.

By: davebush

davebush — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 10:19:51 -0800

"Rivers of Burning Whisky" is begging to be the title of the next Tom Waits album.

By: mannequito

mannequito — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:07:24 -0800

*coddles bottle of whiskey* "There there baby, it'll be alright - tonight you sleep with me"

By: Flashman

Flashman — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:08:50 -0800

Would whisky actually burn so strongly? I wouldn't have thought the alcohol content was high enough. Perhaps he was referring to the flames reflected in the puddles of whisky.

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:10:10 -0800

7/19/06 NEVER FORGET

By: nathancaswell

nathancaswell — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:11:49 -0800

Would whisky actually burn so strongly? I wouldn't have thought the alcohol content was high enough. Perhaps he was referring to the flames reflected in the puddles of whisky. Huh? Not high enough alcohol content? I've spit a mouthful on a campfire and it pretty much explodes.

By: Artw

Artw — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:44:14 -0800

It better have been blend.

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:44:24 -0800

Would whisky actually burn so strongly? Oh, sure. Try flambeing something with ordinary brandy poured out of a bottle - burns like heck. It's unclear in the article, but it sounds like much of the whisky was in casks, and so not yet diluted to bottle-strength. In which case, it's even more flammable, being higher in alcohol content.

By: smirkette

smirkette — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:49:24 -0800

By: Dr Dracator

Dr Dracator — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 12:22:42 -0800

I've spit a mouthful on a campfire and it pretty much explodes. Getting a good fuel/air mixture is the basis of all successful explosions. Setting fire to a pool of standing whiskey would be far less exciting. Who's up for some experimenting?

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 12:35:50 -0800

I think that Mythbusters should build a similar warehouse over on Alameda, fill it with whisky....and then be unable to make themselves set fire to it, and then invite us all over to drink said whisky. SF mefites showed very recently that we're pretty good at drinking whisky, but it's not like we shouldn't keep practicing.

By: Bathtub Bobsled

Bathtub Bobsled — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 13:29:36 -0800

SF mefites showed very recently that we're pretty good at drinking whisky, but it's not like we shouldn't keep practicing. Ooh!! That gives me an idea!!!! THE METAFILTER-MASH (I'm not married to the name, but hear me out...)! MeFites from the colonies vs. Mefites from the Old World Last MeFite standing claims the Golden MetaFilter Snifter for their respective representation. I mean, not to leave the rest of the world out, we could turn it into a Ryder ~~Cup~~ Shotglass sorta deal and, if the whole idea of alcohol poisoning is a concern, we just cut people out when they're too drunk to snark. On preview, I have a feeling this has been suggested before...

By: dougrayrankin

dougrayrankin — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 14:01:51 -0800

I am going, I am going Any which way the wind may be blowing I am going, I am going Where streams of whiskey are flowing.

Curses! Beaten to it!

By: majonesing

majonesing — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 14:24:10 -0800

Whiskey river take my mind Don't let her memory torture me Whiskey river don't run dry You're all I've got, take care of me Yeah, I've got that song stuck in my head because of this post.

By: Skeptic

Skeptic — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 15:22:11 -0800

I wouldn't have thought the alcohol content was high enough. This was presumably cask-strength, so it must have burned well enough.

By: DU

DU — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 17:12:25 -0800

"fire postcard"?

By: arcticseal

arcticseal — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 06:16:57 -0800

No one made a crack about him being in high spirits despite being burnt yet? For shame!

By: Hugh Routley

Hugh Routley — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 01:31:38 -0800

Metafilter: Too drunk to snark.