# The Ryan, Master of Semantics **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 27, 2002, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923 "2002-04-27T06:18:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/1 "2002-04-27T06:18:58Z")
And remember, kiddies, thus sayeth **The Ryan** - [taking a same-sex date to the prom has nothing at all to do with homosexuality.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&postid=2039686#post2039686) Really. Just ask the Catholic church. They really, really, really don’t want anyone to bring a same-sex date to the prom, including heterosexuals - because, as we all know, the epidemic of heterosexuals dating members of the same sex is simply outrageous! Scandalous! So, indeed, this brave Catholic school has stood up and said, “No more! No more shall these wanton heterosexuals (and, we suppose, a few homosexuals, too) arrive in boy/boy or girl/girl pairs! It shall stop! The line has been drawn!” Sure, it may _look_ like it’s some kind of anti-gay stance, but, thankfully, we have **The Ryan** to point out very clearly to us that we are, indeed, all completely and utterly wrong in this issue. Dude, you’re a fucking idiot. Truly. Get bent. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/2 "2002-04-27T06:59:18Z")
I honestly couldn’t believe he made that claim. Yes, you can read the words the way he did, if you try really, really, really hard and close your mind completely, but the ever tolerant Mary Ann Martin also said she’d use Marc Hall’s boyfriend’s age (21) to keep him out of the prom if this tactic didn’t work. Sounds like someone with a bigger agenda than keeping heteros from bringing same sex dates. What bothered me more than his claiming to have read it that way, was the fact that he claimed any reasonable person would agree with him. ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/3 "2002-04-27T07:10:12Z")
Jeez, **Esprix** , it was because this guy’s date was **male** - not because he was the same gender. You don’t really think this is about homophobia do you? Why, they most surely would have prevented young women taking males as their partners, too - really they would have. Frankly, I’m curious about the fact that 12 year olds are allowed to attend. Twenty-one year olds can’t attend (actually, they probably wouldn’t be allowed to attend here, either), but 12 year olds can (as long as they aren’t male, apparently). ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/4 "2002-04-27T07:20:58Z")
You heterosexuals ruin it for the rest of us! :mad: Esprix ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/5 "2002-04-27T07:32:04Z")
Come on **Esprix** , you know the only reason they aren’t letting this young man attend is because he’ll out-sparkle all the girls whose parents have paid hundreds of dollars to make them look _fabulous_. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/6 "2002-04-27T07:32:19Z")
I’m sorry. **The Ryan** is an idiot… ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/7 "2002-04-27T07:39:22Z")
Esprix, don’t you know anything? The reason parents don’t want their heterosexual children going out with those of the same gender is because they really want to promote teen sex and promiscuity! Now, a heterosexual kid sure ain’t gonna get a lot of action unless he’s got a girl around, see? How DARE you promote abstinence, Esprix! Abstinence is an abomination before God and nachos! Begone from my sight! ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/8 "2002-04-27T12:31:36Z")
I’m convinced the Ryan neither believes nor cares about the positions he takes. His enjoyment comes from the challenge of defending an absurd point of view solely by parsing phrases out of context and twisted semantic games. There is no point in arguing issues with him, because the issues are completely ancillary to his fascination with how imprecise language be if you really put some effort into misunderstanding it. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/9 "2002-04-27T12:33:36Z")
frick. I even previewed. ---
**Author:** ![SisterCoyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@SisterCoyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SisterCoyote)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/10 "2002-04-27T19:49:39Z")
**The Ryan** = the _only_ poster on my “Coventry” (thanks, **Monty** and **Jodi** ) list. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/11 "2002-04-27T20:02:33Z")
I understand what you’re saying, SisterCoyote, but where does the reference come from? ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/12 "2002-04-27T20:24:20Z")
**Derleth** , being “sent to Coventry” originates in the town of the same name in Midlands England. IIRC there are two possible explanations for the term. The one I’ve heard most often is that Coventry was strongly pro-Roundhead during the Civil War, and royalist prisoners were sent there as a little extra punishment. The other one I’ve heard is that the townsfolk of Coventry disliked soldiers intensely, so for a soldier to be stationed there was a virtual exile. Either way, it still means what you think it means–a cultural/social exile. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/13 "2002-04-27T21:10:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SPOOFE \* > \*\* Abstinence is an abomination before God and nachos! \*\* Lesson learned: When you’re eating rigatoni and read something like this, if you laugh, you’ll end up snorking pasta into your nose. It’s quite uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Truth\_Seeker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@Truth\_Seeker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truth_Seeker)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/14 "2002-04-27T21:49:26Z")
[hijack] > [@](#): > > \*\ ***The Ryan** = the _only_ poster on my “Coventry” (thanks, **Monty** and **Jodi** ) list. \*\* I believe that mentioning this is definite no-no as if we don’t play nice, the mods have said they’ll take our new toy away. 😉 [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![SisterCoyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@SisterCoyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SisterCoyote)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/15 "2002-04-27T21:54:10Z")
😕 As opposed to the OP? Besides, I _do_ play nice. I ignore the guy. For the most part, although I thought the pederast question was worth answering (TR thought the prefix “ped” automatically meant feet, and I corrected him. Hopefully, he learned something. ;)) ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2002, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/16 "2002-04-27T23:01:58Z")
**Truth Seeker** , you’re talking about ignore lists through the new board software, and talking about who is on your list is forbidden - Coventry is just an act of ignoring someone, not electronically putting them on a list. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![Truth\_Seeker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@Truth\_Seeker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truth_Seeker)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2002, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/17 "2002-04-28T00:06:18Z")
Perhaps you’re correct, **Esprix**. However, “sending someone to Coventry” was mentioned as a synonym for putting someone on the “ignore” list in a lengthy thread discussing this feature in ATMB. Her comment certainly suggested to me that she had, indeed, done just that. I mean, c’mon, she put someone on a “list” and she put the word “Coventry” in quotes. Whether or not she actually did so is immaterial. The reason behind not mentioning who’s on your “ignore” list is to avoid bad feelings and flame wars. Creating the impression, even accidentally, that you did so will cause many of same problems. This is such a potentially sensitive topic, we ought to be careful to avoid even hinting at who’s on the list. ---
**Author:** ![SisterCoyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@SisterCoyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SisterCoyote)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2002, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/18 "2002-04-28T00:13:00Z")
Um…The Ryan and I don’t particularly like each other anyway, AFAICT. And I don’t use any of the new board features. I didn’t even know ignore was working. And I don’t generally read ATMB anyway. And I put Coventry in quotes because I haven’t literally sent him there, after all. AFAIK he’s still wherever he lives - and if he’s not, well, damnit, it’s not MY fault. They’re his molecules, he’s responsible for their placement. ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2002, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/19 "2002-04-28T06:35:33Z")
**The Ryan** takes responsibility for nothing. Esprix ---
**Author:** ![Phoenix\_Dragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Phoenix\_Dragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phoenix_Dragon)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2002, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923/20 "2002-04-28T13:04:35Z")
I’m glad you started this thread, Esprix. _Somebody_ had to say it. I’m looking back at my last three posts in that thread and wondering why I bothered… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-ryan-master-of-semantics/105923.md?page=2)