Subject: Re: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Encyclopedia
From: Erik Naggum <erik@naggum.net>
Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2001 09:50:21 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.lang.lisp
Message-ID: <3213942620464305@naggum.net>

* Kent M Pitman <pitman@world.std.com>
| It seems to me like whatever the group is, they got a bad rap.  Things
| were mostly only taken from them and NOT given back.  I don't know why
| they, of ALL people, would be associated with inappropriate desire to
| have things returned.

  The history of this expression seems to be that Indians (or whatever) did
  not deal with one-way gifts, only two-way gifts, and so wanted something
  in return for giving you something.  It seems more applicable when I know
  the story of this expression, however politically incorrect.

///
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