P.S. And I have to say I wonder just a little bit about the propriety of discussing, in clearly distinguishable tones, plans for attacks on Rumania, Smyrna, Sevastopol, etc., while going right past--not the apartment of the guy playing Russia--but THE ACTUAL LITERAL RUSSIAN EMBASSY. Just saying. :)

could you be more specific on what exactly this person said? i guarantee it wasn't me, though i do live in wisconsin... it's not even 9:15 pm, do you mean am?

could be that he doesn't play on this site at all... if you see him again, recruit!

Sounds like this was in D.C., in which case he may not've been playing a game. :-/

Was he talking to himself? I've found myself talking quietly while thinking about Diplomacy.

He was on the phone. And it's Wisconsin Avenue in Washington, DC, not Wisconsin Wisconsin. :)

And the tip-off that he was playing a game (not "the real thing"!) was the use of "Constantinople". I mean, who calls it Constantinople these days, anyway? Besides They Might Be Giants, of course.

Can we have a description of the guy? Age? Height? Level of IQ?

Cross post this to Craigslist's missed connections.

that's rediculously cool.

Actualy it was a disinformation campain.

I'm not exactly volunteering information about myself (other than that I ride that particular bus!) so it would be a bit unfair to give a description of him. For a half a minute, I was tempted to interrupt his conversation--just to make sure it wasn't a gunboat game where he was circumventing the no-press rule. :) But he slipped off the bus before I could catch him.

the worst i've done is met up with printed maps to discuss plans with my ally in person... which usually occurs in starbucks. (in the rare instance that i play with RL friends now-a-days)

emmm this is indeed a two pipe puzzle.

First what do we know about the subject.
Male - our spotter said 'He was on the phone'
Lives or works in Washington DC, therefore most likely an american
He travels by bus so presumably is fairly brave
He speaks English as our spotter heard him use the word 'constantinople'
He is currently in a game where he ahas an interest in the balkans but not necessarily on this site.
His IQ isn't that high - he allowed him self to be overheard.
He isn't a person known to our spotter

It doesn't take a genius to work out that our subject is non other than Babak.

Step forward man and admit it. I understand if you want to wait until the gamne in question has expired.

"His IQ isn't that high - he allowed him self to be overheard."
Well, we don't know that. Firstly he might well have been confident no-one in his game could overhear or indeed that if he was overheard they wouldn't know it was him. Supposing he *was* in the same game as PV then maybe it was intentional to throw him off the scent.

And of course this all assumes he was talking about diplomacy, on the internet, on this site :P

You're right figles, His IQ is beyond measure
(a) he was able to determine the real life persona of PV
(b) he then travelled to where PV might be getting on a bus and
(c) he blurted out his plans knowing he was being overheard as part of his dis-information campaign.

Thank you for showing me the light, now I am aware of the lengths others are going to to gain a SC. This probably explains why I don't win many games.

Exactly, his only error was not to be in a game with PV at the time

Babak is from DC, no? Just sayin'....

PV said earlier "it's Wisconsin Avenue in Washington, DC, not Wisconsin Wisconsin. :)"

haha that is really funny. babak moved to florida so he's out of the running. i'm a girl, and don't generally ride the 32 bus (wrong side of town), so i know it's not me. intriguing indeed!

HEY!!!

"His IQ isn't that high...
It doesn't take a genius to work out that our subject is non other than Babak."

i'm quite proud of 82 IQ thank you very much.

and indeed, I no longer reside in DC (though I do miss it much). and even when I did, I was in NoVA not near Georgetown. or on Wisconsin ave...

but PV - that is an awesome story... though if I were in your shoes, I would have chased him off the bus. ;)

Somehow I doubt you have an IQ of 82, especially when translated into current figures!

I'm guessing IQ of 180 if you are our mystery man spreading dis-information, or low 70s if not :)

Babak is like Rainman.... a diplomacy savant.

For the record can I just say that I was paradying Sherlock Holmes (and House's) ability to take the smallest of details to deduce who committed the 'crime' and chose Babak by chance as he name appeared in a thread next to the one we are now in at the time. I had no idea he had lived in DC - pure fluck. Maybe my reference to it being a two pipe puzzle was too obscure?

Two pipe as in Holmes talking about how long it will take him to solve a case right?

Like, duh... <grin>

and fluck,... a fluke of luck??

@rojo - yes fluck is my made up word for a fluke of luck, I thought you'd all understand it with explanation :)

@figles - yes Holmes spoke about a two pipe puzzle being how long it would take him to solve a puzzle apparently. I'm no expert on Holmes but heard the expression 'two pipe puzzle' and enquired about its origin and was reliably informed it is a Conan Doyle reference.

This is a funny thread.

Should be, is in the right lines.
Watched the film last week, and I noticed that quite a lot of the famous phrases have been taken over from the stories. What did others think of the film btw?

I do still wonder if your bus person is here though. Watching... Waiting...

I liked Holmes but I feel like it could have been much better. The detective parts felt rushed, Watson was undefined, and the set up of the sequel detracted from this movie. But it was still entertaining

:O Thank you!! That's my view as well, and it caused outrage from my friend (she thought it was awesome). As you say, the set up for the sequal was a real shame. Leaving the cinema I was rather underwhelmed. Thinking back to it now, I think the film would have been much better had it finished the last time they visit Tower Bridge (wont say more for sake of those who haven't seen it). Adding the 'set-up' after this just made the main plotline feel almost insignificant.

I'm not sure about Watson being undefined, I felt I "understood" what the character was about, and it was interesting to see the relationship defined in such a desperate way, with Holmes seemingly dependant on Watson (indeed, with a Holmes like this how on earth would they portray Mycroft!?).
As a Holmes fan who first met him through the short stories, it rather irked me to see the role given to Irene Adler, turning a woman with an interesting history into a criminal.
Oh, and whilst it wasn't such an issue to me I can see why so many people have criticised the way the film hints Holmes is homosexual.

I see your point about Watson, I really did not like Irene Adler... I read the stories a while ago wasn't she from A Scandal in Bohemia? If so they really changed the character. I don't mind the bromance between Holmes and Watson, I like Paul Rudd movies!

Haha. I must admit this relationship (reminds me of schoolboy friends who grow up, with one becoming successful and the other never having the drive to succeed always being chivied along) stark contrast to the Master-servant feeling of the Basil Rathbourne TV movies (previously my favourite version, and I'm yet undecided on this-will have to find out from the sequel!).

Yes she is, and again I won't talk about what she does for fear of damaging the plot.
Paul Rudd movies: no comment :)

There will never be a better Holmes than Jeremy Brett. And David Burke made an outstanding Watson. Edward Hardwicke was good, but I think Burke was better. However, that matters not for just as Sean Connery is James bond and Roger Moore is the Saint, Jeremy Brett is Sherlock Holmes.

How easily threads can be hijacked

Lots of football postponed in England today.

Bad weather?

Yeah, snow and ice.

fire and ice, a poem by robert frost

gjdip, otto, don't u want a live game?

Not now, thanks.

Haha, you're right Draug. Serves me right for posting at 2am.
Not so sure about Connery as bond though - I prefer Moore. I think often its just a case of who you see first.