Comments on: Breaking Lincoln News

Breaking Lincoln News

CunningLinguist — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:13:38 -0800

Breaking Lincoln news: possible last photo of the 16th President surfaces on same day a hidden message is discovered secreted in his pocket watch.

By: dhartung

dhartung — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:21:53 -0800

Heh, it does sound like the hook for the plot of National Treasure 3. Too bad the guy was wrong about his abolitionist message.

By: Malor

Malor — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:22:30 -0800

Wow, "breaking Lincoln news" is not a phrase you get to use every day.

By: LobsterMitten

LobsterMitten — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:24:46 -0800

That (the pocketwatch story) is so cool.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:25:08 -0800

Would it help if I squint?

By: TwelveTwo

TwelveTwo — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:25:18 -0800

Wow, he has an uncanny resemblance to Big Foot.

By: CunningLinguist

CunningLinguist — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:27:10 -0800

Wow, "breaking Lincoln news" is not a phrase you get to use every day. I confess that was the main reason for the post. Also, the pocket watch story gave me warm fuzzies.

By: ericb

ericb — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:29:31 -0800

This shit is great! Right up there with (and surpassing) episodes of History Detectives.

By: Caduceus

Caduceus — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:31:14 -0800

NPR did something on the pocket watch story, too. It's at the bottom of the last photo link. Hearing the watch repair guy's descendant is pretty neat.

By: Caduceus

Caduceus — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:31:40 -0800

Wow, he has an uncanny resemblance to Big Foot. You know, that might explain a lot.

By: Iron Rat

Iron Rat — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:33:51 -0800

It looks like a streetlight to me.

By: nanojath

nanojath — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:36:14 -0800

The most shattering revelation of that NPR pocket watch story is that apparently I can abbreviate my first name to Jonth. 37 years and nobody ever told me!

By: ob

ob — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:37:58 -0800

This is pretty damn cool, I must say.

By: Navelgazer

Navelgazer — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:38:29 -0800

Maryland was basically part of the South in the civil war, wherever the Mason-Dixon Line was drawn, and Washington was thus practically behind enemy lines the whole time. Irish-Americans were overwhelmingly in support of the confederacy. This particular Irishman etching his microscopic talisman of faith into Lincoln's wristwatch on the day the first shots were fired upon Ft. Sumter is awesome and chilling for me. "Thank god we still have a government" might not be as profound nor prophetic as "we will see the end of slavery," but as far as a snapshot of the moment goes, it might be even more meaningful.

By: twoleftfeet

twoleftfeet — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:43:16 -0800

The pocket watch link seems to be broken. Try here instead.

By: Astro Zombie

Astro Zombie — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:09:56 -0800

I just broke open my pocket watch to see what message the last repair guy scratched into it. And, indeed, he left a message. Unfortunately, he wrote the following: GIVE ME BACK THAT FILLET OF FISH! GIVE ME BACK THAT FISH!

By: BitterOldPunk

BitterOldPunk — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:14:13 -0800

The relatives of LE Grofs, who declined to be identified, said, "Yeah, family legend is that great-great-grandpa Grofs was an asshole who went around scrawling his name on other people's stuff."

By: maxwelton

maxwelton — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:21:21 -0800

Message, in its entirety: "Urgent--Do what you can to keep Jeremiah Limbaugh from siring offspring, or this country will suffer mighty humiliation many generations hence! "Your" GoP will be the refuge of vapid beauty-content winners and scurrilous millionaires otherwise! I must go, they are approaching aaaaaarrr"

By: mr_crash_davis mark II: Jazz Odyssey

mr_crash_davis mark II: Jazz Odyssey — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:22:16 -0800

LE grofs is clearly an anagram for "le frogs". The old man blamed the French for the attack, QED.

By: Tube

Tube — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:31:55 -0800

Wow, he has an uncanny resemblance to Big Foot. Believe it or not, within the unique subculture of Bigfootery, a fellow named Vito Quaranta actually coined a term for such a blurry image; "Blobsquatch". I doubt it's made it into the OED, but it's a real word, currently returning 3,540 Google hits.

By: Cyrano

Cyrano — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:39:27 -0800

Too bad the guy was wrong about his abolitionist message. You see that Union out there? I saved that Union. But you fuck up one abolitionist message...

By: graventy

graventy — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:58:44 -0800

Too bad, really. Lincoln's lost treasures could've saved the country from financial ruin.

By: jester69

jester69 — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:02:24 -0800

Astro Zombie: Was your watchmaker drinking Pepsi Blue?

By: Joey Michaels

Joey Michaels — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 03:05:23 -0800

This also surfaced on the same day as the first image of T-Rex Lincoln.

By: ronin21

ronin21 — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 03:37:58 -0800

Why is Jeff Davis' name dominating the works, yet no one notices?

By: yhbc

yhbc — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:16:56 -0800

maxwelton: surely he wouldn't engrave "aaaaaarrr", he would just say it. someone had to do it

By: rokusan

rokusan — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:36:02 -0800

[picks up red phone] Somebody get me Nicolas Cage!

By: rokusan

rokusan — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:44:52 -0800

"That's Lincoln's watch," he said, after putting it down, "and my ancestor put graffiti on it!" Next up, DNA evidence proving that Ebenezer Jebediah Bush pissed all over the original constitution.

By: Devils Rancher

Devils Rancher — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:45:33 -0800

But you fuck up one abolitionist message... "That's one small step for... man... Dammit! I'll come in again."

By: Bromius

Bromius — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 05:58:53 -0800

Isn't this really the last photo of Lincoln? (context)

By: East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94

East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 06:26:46 -0800

If I fill my Lincoln Navigator with 10% ethanol, how many carbon atoms are present from Lincoln's dying breath?

By: mannequito

mannequito — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 06:52:58 -0800

rokusan : Nic Cage is busy, we're sending Tom Hanks instead. We tried to cut his mullet but the bastard ran.

By: fusinski

fusinski — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:00:15 -0800

Washington Post link is broken?

By: digsrus

digsrus — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:19:22 -0800

Just for the hell of it, I opened the hood of my car after it was worked on at the car dealership. Lo and behold, scratched into the underside of the hood were the words: "I hope the owner of this car doesn't kick my lazy mechanic ass for writing this shit here instead of fixing his car."

By: Dr.Enormous

Dr.Enormous — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:24:28 -0800

Maryland was basically part of the South in the civil war, wherever the Mason-Dixon Line was drawn, and Washington was thus practically behind enemy lines the whole time. Irish-Americans were overwhelmingly in support of the confederacy. This is a horrifically un-nuanced view; for one thing, western MD was largely hostile towards the Confederacy (Lee expected local support there, and found little to none). Central and eastern Maryland were mostly sympathetic to the south (see: the guns on Federal Hill), but all-in-all, the state was just as confused about its identity then as now. As for Irish-Americans, if we're going to paint with a broad brush, it would be more accurate to say that those in the north were more anti-"being drafted to go out and die for a bunch of people who discriminate mercilessly against us" than pro-confederacy. Finding a Unionist Irish immigrant hanging around Maryland is hardly surprising. Finding one who vandalized the President's watch sure is, though.

By: ericbop

ericbop — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:34:35 -0800

That's not Lincoln - it's just a naked lady looking out a window.

By: otolith

otolith — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:46:16 -0800

It looks like Jesus to me. Right there you can see an eye, a mouth, the mustache. Clearly Jesus. Looks like I'm gonna have to stop drinking.

By: troybob

troybob — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 08:56:14 -0800

This is not the kind of secretion I clicked the link for.

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 09:06:34 -0800

WaPo link borked.

By: CunningLinguist

CunningLinguist — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 09:14:39 -0800

It wasn't when I posted it - I checked! It was this - I set it to the print version, maybe that screwed it up somehow?

By: hayvac

hayvac — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:05:43 -0800

It bothers me that the author of the Washington Post article doesn't know what a shaggy dog story is.

By: joecacti

joecacti — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:17:42 -0800

But now I know what a shaggy dog story is, and I love it. Thanks hayvac!

By: Flunkie

Flunkie — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 10:28:40 -0800

"Thank God we have a President who at least will try." Agreed.

By: Marisa Stole the Precious Thing

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 11:05:51 -0800

Maryland was basically part of the South in the civil war, wherever the Mason-Dixon Line was drawn, and Washington was thus practically behind enemy lines the whole time. Central Maryland had southern sympathies (with Baltimore pro-south and Annapolis pro-union), but the entire state was put under martial law to keep Maryland union. At Federal Hill in Baltimore, you can still see the cannons that were aimed at city government offices in the event things got out of hand. Union troops even had a small fort there. This was in response to the infamous Pratt Street Riots, where a slew of pro-confederate Baltimoreans started throwing bottles and rocks at Union troops marching down Pratt Street on their way south. This erupted into a full-scale riot that led to the deaths of four soldiers and twelve civilians, and a ginormous fire. So there may have been strong pro-confederate feelings in Maryland, but they had them in every state in the Union, and Maryland was definitely Union, if by force.

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 12:19:21 -0800

Maryland in the American Civil War. About 25% of the 85,000 Maryland citizens that fought in the Civil War joined the Confederates.