Why won't the USA go metric?

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

From http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Metrics/factors.htm :

"The metric system of measurement was developed during the French Revolution and was first promoted in the U.S. by Thomas Jefferson. Its use was legalized in the U.S. in 1866. In 1902, proposed congressional legislation requiring the U.S. Government to use the metric system exclusively was defeated by a single vote."

Do freepers think the Metric System is part of the Great Anti-American, Anti-God, One-World Socialist Conspiracy?

Edit: I don't know whether "Why doesn't the USA go metric?" or "Why don't the USA go metric?" is right, so I copped out. :spank:

[Burma Jones]

1. 'cuz we're lazy (n/t)

[Bertha Venation]

7. welcome to DU

from another Marylander. :hi:

[terrya]

2. There was an attempt in the 70's to go metric here.

I remember that there was an attempt to adopt the metric system while Jimmy Carter was in the White House, as I recall.

It just didn't catch on.

To our detrminent. We're the only industrialized nation on Earth who hasn't adopted the metric system.

Terry

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

5. I thought Britain hadn't, either?

Or did they?

[GOPisEvil]

10. Officially, the UK is metric...although, colloquially,

they still use imperial measurements. But as far as commerce is concerned, I believe they are metric.

They'll never give up the Imperial Pint, though. :beer:

[TheMightyFavog]

48. Yeah, we were supposed to go metric in the 80s,

But IIRC, this was one of the first things Mr "I... Cannot... Remember." killed when he took office.

[GOPisEvil]

3. We tried it (or so I recall) there was a big push in '70s to go metric.

Didn't we even have football games with meter lines? I seem to recall that.

I think the problem with the metric system was that no one wanted to deal with the change and initial pain of converting. Plus, we like our gallons, pints and cups, dammit. :P

[terrya]

15. There was a lot of change around that time.

First, our attempt at the metric system.

Then, the automakers tried to force car owners to use their seat belts (by setting up the ignition so you couldn't start your car unless you buckled your seat belt. Remember that one?)

Plus, we were trying gas rationing (because of the energy crisis...oops, the ALLEGED energy crisis)

I think it was too much change at once. A lot of people couldn't handle that. IMO.

Terry

[liberalhistorian]

17. Well, frankly, when you've grown up with

a particular system, it's very hard to try to change your hardwiring, not to mention annoying as hell. I frankly don't understand why the big push to go metric, anyway, it's a major pain in the ass. Especially the temperature system.

I find it very hard to conceive of 38 being equivalent to 98 degrees, etc., etc., and if that makes me a lazy, shiftless American, then so be it, I don't really care. And I find it especially annoying when metric measurements are given without any equivalents to our system, that just drives me fucking crazy. I suppose if I had learned it side by side with our own system in school while I was growing up it'd be different, but I didn't and I think that makes it all the harder. My son is learning it that way, so it will probably be a lot easier for him in the future.

And don't even get me started on driving in Canada and trying to figure out the damned speed limits based on metric!!!!!!!!!!

Of course, if the Bushistas are still in power this time next year and, therefore, I move to Canada as is my plan should that happen, I supposed I'll have to finally learn and get used to it, as well as a new money system. But it would be a sacrifice worth making as far as I'm concerned.

[ConcernedCanuk]

26. "driving in Canada and trying to figure out the damned speed limits"

.
.

Reminds me of a humorous, and true memory of my own

Me and my significant other were on a boozecruze and :smoke: back in the 70's during the summer that Canada, well Ontario anyways, changed all the signage for the speed limits.

After touring the NorthEastern States for two weeks we crossed the border into Ontario in somewhat of a euphoric (possibly chemically induced) state.

Being a law abiding citizen I increased my speed to 100 to comply with the new HUMONGOUS sign that greated me on the Canadian side.

I took about 10 kilometers, (6.2 miles) b4 I realized that I was passing everythng on the road at breakneck speed, and finally realized that the talked about "change" had happened in my absence.

So I slowed down to 80 (mph)

:evilgrin:

[CanuckAmok]

46. Another sidebar:

My dad came to visit me once in Canada in the 70s (my parents divoreced in England, and he stayed there). He left Pearson Airport (then still Toronto Int'l) and got on the 427 South on the wrong side. Driving the wrong way down a freeway at 120KM/h, just like Ronin!!

Anyway, the police were successful in helping him safely stop, and miraculously, no accidents or injuries were caused. They were going to let him go with a warning, until he started to rant thusly:

He pulled out his wallet, and grabbed a handful of Canaian bills he'd just got from the Airport...he then decided to argue his point to the friendly OPP Constable, in his, er, colourful Cockney:

"Do you see this f***ing money, my son?! Who's f***ing picture is on this f***ing money? Is it the Queen of f***ing England? Is it?! Because if it's the Queen of f***ing England, you f***ing people are driving on the f***ing wrong side of the f***ing road!!"

Luckily, he naver came back to Canada, so he didn't have to deal with thew 10+ tickets the officer issued after my dad's rant.

My dad was a prick.

[liberalhistorian]

47. LOL!

My stepdad got a speeding ticket in Canada about fifteen years ago, when we were driving from Ohio to the Stratford Theater Festival, because he had no clue how to read the speed limit signs and thought he'd get away with it since he was American.

Unfortunately, it didn't work that way, and he even had his radar detector confiscated because they were illegal in Canada (he had no idea of that either, and was really pissed, since it had been expensive!).

[Bertha Venation]

4. LOL We were taught in grade school that

the U.S. would soon switch over to the metric system to be on an even footing w/ the rest of the world.

When was I in grade school? Hmm... I think I got this lesson in the 3rd grade, and that would've been 1972.

JCCyC, I don't think this country will ever leave the dark ages in some regards. This is one of them.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

14. yes, in grade school we spent a lot of time on the metric system too

because "the u.s. is gonna convert in the future". i guess that was around 1984 or 1985.

[bowens43]

6. We tried it....it didn't work.

[Loonman]

8. As soon as Esparantu catches on

LOL

[Kamika]

9. We dont want that pinko, liberal, commie french system

topic

[liberalhistorian]

20. LOL!

Blunt as always, Kamika!

[Rowdyboy]

11. Because we didn't want to

Back in the early '70's wee were told that the conversion was mandatory. America simply said "No, but thanks for the offer". You try to get this country to do something it doesn't want to! Its impossible.

[fleetus]

12. Because it would involve effort.

It is hard to get used to a new system when everyone already is pretty good at estimating things in inches, feet, gallons, etc. It would be way better in the long run, but in the short term not enough people are willing to relearn new tricks.

Kind of like why people who are pretty good at "hunt and peck" do not learn to type. It would be faster in the long run, but slower at first.

Or why Americans don't learn other languages when they already can get by just fine with English.

Too bad, really.

:shrug:

[catmandu57]

13. Too expensive

the costs to change everything over would be too large, and even trying to graduating it in like they tried back in the seventies would still be too expensive.

[terrya]

18. We have a kind of half assed attempt at metric.

Cars nowadays have the speedometers in both miles and kilometers. Which ain't much, I know.

Terry

[VelmaD]

16. Because..."My car gets 40 rods...

to the hogshead and that's the way I like it."

:-)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

19. I had that as a wav somewhere.

I lost it to some HD failure. :argh:

[VelmaD]

21. aww man...that sucks

I love the Simpsons (and not just because that's my last name in real life). According to short bus president there is a Simpsons quote for every occasion (SQFEO). :-)

[ConcernedCanuk]

32. Her y'are , that and more of them simpsons's .wav files

.
.

You can find that .wav file here (called "metric"] and lots more


http://www.jahozafat.com/TV_Shows/grampa.shtml

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

42. Yeah!

:yourock:

[dolo amber]

22. YAY!

Best. Answer. EVER. :D:D

I remember all the hubbub in the 70s; kinda makes me mad we didn't switch, I was much better at metric. :(

[militarymanusaf]

23. The corporations

don't want to spend their money to convert their assembly lines to metric measurements. This is one instance where being a heavily industrialized nation actually hurts us!

[Blue-Jay]

24. What could more accurate

than a measuring system based on the size of body parts?

<tries to figure out how many cubits it is from home to work....>

[Anaxamander]

25. Well... our soda comes in liters, so that's a start (nt)

But seriously, could you imagine it?

Quarter pounders would be 0.11 of a kilometer-ers.

"Ten pounds of monkey crap in a five pound bag" would be "4.5 kg of monkey crap in a 2.2 kg bag."

"The whole 9 yards" would be "the whole 8.2 meters."

One of the only situations I think we'd be willing to accept would be using centigrade in the case of the weather being -40 degrees... because it's the same as -40 F.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

27. The quarter pounder in Brazil

Became "Quarteirão", which means "city block" in Portuguese, to give an impression of "big".

Not that I'd eat the crappy food they sell, mind you. I became sick of it more than ten years ago.

[Warren Stuart]

28. It is incrementally

You don't see cause it's like watching a tree grow.

Take any science course and all the measurements are metric, look under the hood of most any car, check out the nuts and bolts, chances are they are metric.

Some things will be hard to change, sheet rock and plywood will be 4' x 8', studs will be 16" on center. It will be a long time before 3 millimeters will replace an 1/8th of an inch. But eventually it will.

[northzax]

29. ironically

one thing that will increase the chances of it happening is the movement of manufacturing offshore. as long as we are using factories in China to make everything, it becomes easier to do it in metric, since the factories are already built that way.

[Radical__Moderate]

30. Well, Ya Know

The next thing we all are going to need to go to our local walmart and buy a God damn communist metric wrench to work on our John Deere Tractor.

[GOPisEvil]

31. You know what they call a Quarter Pounder with cheese in France?

They don't call it a Quarter Pounder with cheese?
Naw, man, they got the metric system over there. They wouldn't know what the fuck a quarter pounder is. They call it a Royale with cheese.

</Pulp Fiction>

[Kamika]

33. a ten centimeter burger?

guessing

[Kellanved]

35. nope

Royal(e) is correct; same thing in Germany etc.
I don't really understand why: a pound simply got replaced with 0.5 kg. It's very usual to order groceries by the "Pfund"; everyone understands it.

I guess it's because an European Quarter pounder would have to be larger than a US one (125g instead of 113g) :shrug:.

[pmbryant]

34. I suspect we already have, in areas where it matters

In areas where it doesn't matter, we haven't, because there is no reason to.

Who cares if road signs are labelled in miles or kilometers, or if temperatures are forecast in Celsius or Fahrenheit, or whether the lumber used to build your house is specified in inches or centimeters? Those are essentially meaningless distinctions.

In areas where we need to communicate with the rest of the world (e.g., science, exports, etc), metric is no doubt the measurement system of choice already.

--Peter

[DS1]

36. Because there's no official 'fuckload' in metric

That's why :grr:

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

40. Oh, but we have the metric fuckload here

In Portuguese, it's called "um caralhão". Um caralhão de gente = A fuckload of people = the population of China.

[TheMightyFavog]

49. I've actually got a conversion factor for that...

1 Metric fuckload = 3.4457892388 Imperial fuckloads.

[denverbill]

37. Do you know any women who want measurements like 92-61-90?

Of course, 12 cm sounds better for men than 4 1/2 inches, but still.

[Kellanved]

38. several

:evilgrin:

[PVnRT]

39. For one thing

it would require a hell of a lot of retooling on a hell of a lot of things. To make a complete switch, you have to stop selling stuff in the old system, which means that you have to redo a bunch of pipes, engines, and all manner of mechanical things.

For another, why? Are Americans that afraid of doing math?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

43. Other countries have done it

I believe that both Australia and New Zealand have switched to metric for all purposes. And Australia, New Zealand, AND Ireland and the U.K. switched from pence/shillings/pounds/guineas to decimal systems (pounds and pence for the U.K., dollars and cents for the Southern Hemisphere crowd, and euros for the Irish) within the past 30 years.

When I lived in Japan, I learned metric pretty quickly by memorizing a couple of reference points: a pound is about 500 grams, a meter is about a yard, a liter is a little more than a quart, my height is 177 cm, my weight is...never mind, 10 km is about 6 miles, and for Celsius, 0C is 32F, 10C is 50F, 20C is 68F, 30C is 86F, and 40C is 104F. I never got a feel for hectares and the like, but then, I never had to buy land. With the others, it took me only a couple of months to acquire an "instinct" for these measurements. I also learned to "think in yen" without converting everything to dollars as I found out what the average prices of various things were.

I'm not sure when Japan converted to metric, but they did have a traditional system of measurements, which is still used in traditional crafts. If you make kimono or old-style furniture, you have to know the old measurements, but otherwise, why bother? Even the old people are comfortable with metric.

[CanuckAmok]

50. Canada converted, too.

When I was in Elementary School, in the 70s. Big media and academic information campaign, and 'dual' roadsigns for a couple of years.

I think we're kind of a hybrid, being so tied to the US. Example: speed limits are posted exclusively in metric now, but clothing is still sized in the imperial system. Temperature is in Celcius, but building materals and construction are imperial (drywall: 4'x8'x1/2"). You still buy bar liquor in ounces or pints (but whole bottles of liquor or wine are metric--go figure).

For me, since I was 9 when the switch occurred, I'm 'bimeasaural'. I seem to be able to grasp both systems, but I prefer metric, for it's simplicity. Freezing point is "0". What's so confusing about that?

[Edge]

41. Because the lay person doesn't like change...

and they're too lazy to learn metric. Flame me all you want, but it's true.

[g_philli]

44. Caltrans is metric

The california DOT uses the metric system.

[Loonman]

45. Metrics is lame?

nt

[noonwitch]

51. The same reason some states are not allowing evolution to be taught

to encourage the continuing ignorance of the american people.

[Loonman]

53. Ignorance?

Because we don't base our measuremnt system on 10s, we're ignorant?

That's a new one. Metrics is lame, and that's all there is to it.

[pmbryant]

54. No, this isn't about ignorance

I think most Americans are vaguely familiar with the metric system. And that's all they need to be. It really makes no difference what units one measures things in. It's just a matter of preference.

This is not at all the same as the evolution/creationism debate.

--Peter

[Throckmorton]

52. Stone Cutters keep it that way.

Who props up the British Crown?
Who Keep the Metric System Down?

We Do!
We Do!

[ScreamingMeemie]

55. Because MrsGrumpy would get a headache. Although they

do measure babies weights using the metric system. Perhaps because the scales are made out of the country?? All I know is that my son came to me in grams, not pounds. :hi: