[With a tip o’ the tam to Ori Pomerantz, via John Lambshead]
Soldier Decapitates ISIS Thug with Spade in Afganistan
This is rich on so many levels. The primary story, sure: prevailing against odds with whatever weapon is to hand: great. But. . .
Calling a spade an “espada,” so to speak, and making it so: really rich.
spade?espada I like the etymology, too: [Gr] spatha? [L] spathan? [Sp] espada, especially since “spade” itself also shares some of those roots (pre-grecian). Using a spade as a [Middle Dutch] “spade” (sword) seems particularly fitting for a British subject, since the House of Hanover has roots in nationalities where “spade” also once meant “sword.”
Then again, root words for “spade” also meant “spoon” or “paddle” at times, in different languages, so “paddling” the ISIS thug to death with a “spoon” also makes me smile.