# History's greatest ironies **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 17, 2002, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401 "2002-12-17T20:22:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Blackeyes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f6c823/32.png) [@Blackeyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackeyes)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2002, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/61 "2002-12-19T23:04:33Z")
“Julian ran off with the Nanny Noreen”. They have a whole scene on that in that movie, featuring that nice Tom Hanks. But nothing historical; unless you count it as the _third_ Meg Ryan- Tom Hanks movie. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2002, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/62 "2002-12-20T00:12:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Blackeyes \* > \*\*“No, Alanis. A black fly in your chardonnay is not ironic; that would be _unfortunate_. Irony is a stark contrast between what is expected and what actually is. You get points for effort, though.” \*\* Or maybe **the lyrics** are what was Ironic. :smack: 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2002, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/63 "2002-12-20T03:22:28Z")
A remember a comedian talking about that song and he didn’t think it was particularly ironic, either. > [@](#): > > Getting caught in traffic when you’re already late? How is that ironic? Now, if you were a City Planner, driving to a convention of City Planners to give a lecture on city planning, _that_ would be ironic. > > Rain on your wedding day? Now, if you were a weatherman, and you had picked the day… ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2002, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/64 "2002-12-21T17:28:58Z")
How about a custom-made girl band, a product of a multi-millionaire cross-media production, combining pop music, television, telecommunications and marketing, cynically designed to create as much publicity and profit possible using a collection of green-behind the-ears popettes and a mock rivalry with another band? Then you release their first single that vouches that theirs indeed is [The Sound Of The Underground](http://www.ukbritney.tv/girlsaloud/) . Now **that’s** irony. Or maybe just brazen cheek, I’m not sure. ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2002, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/65 "2002-12-21T17:56:19Z")
Don’t worry, they’ll be in oblivion within 18 months. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2002, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/66 "2002-12-21T18:03:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fox in the Snow \* > \*\*William of Orange, great hero of the Ulster Unionists, was a Catholic. \*\* Was he? As far as I can tell, he was a Calvinist. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2002, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/67 "2002-12-21T22:28:41Z")
The Dutch Catholic (homophobic as any Catholic church) still insist on strict celibacy for its priests. As a result, more than half of the few new priest that take the vow, are closet homosexuals. ---
**Author:** ![Nichol\_storm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Nichol\_storm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nichol_storm)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2002, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/68 "2002-12-21T22:35:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Oblong \* > \*\*Hitler having some Jewish blood in him? \*\* Erroneous. Cecil’s already covered it [here](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_325b.html). In short, Hitler’s grandfather _could_ have been Jewish, but he was just as likely to be Roma or Austrian or German or a half-Swahili, half-Lebanese singer from the Hindu Kush. Okay, that last one is pushing it, but still. .:Nichol:. ---
**Author:** ![Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raymond_luxury_yacht/32/4099_2.png) [@Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raymond_Luxury_Yacht)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2002, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/69 "2002-12-22T00:01:53Z")
Osama bin Laden receiving military training along with thousands of other radical muslims from the U.S. ---
**Author:** ![Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raymond_luxury_yacht/32/4099_2.png) [@Raymond\_Luxury\_Yacht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raymond_Luxury_Yacht)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2002, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401/70 "2002-12-22T00:04:01Z")
Err. I didn’t mean that the radical muslims were from America. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historys-greatest-ironies/143401.md?page=3)