Talk:Shoe flinging

Deletion

From VfD:

59 google hits for this practice, most from message boards. Non-notable. [[User:Meelar|Meelar (talk)]] 16:44, 2004 Aug 23 (UTC)

• Congratulations, I've been proven wrong. [[User:Meelar|Meelar (talk)]] 06:21, 2004 Aug 24 (UTC)

I'd delete this. But I wonder, does anyone have a particular name to the practice of tying one's shoelaces together and tossing the assembled shoes at overhead wires in hopes of making them hang there? There might be an article worth writing about this folk practice. Smerdis of Tlön 16:55, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

The sneakers flung on top of overhead wires thing is especially common in Philadelphia, and has been since before I was born. I'm not really voting, I just wanted to say that I agree with Ihcoyc's point, and that the current article would become more valuable if it dealt with shoe flinging as a relatively wide spread phenomenon throughout the U.S. AdmN 17:03, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Delete: This particular practice is a funny thing all over the US, if not the world. However, since it has no stable motivation or effect, I'm not sure that there is much to say. People throw shoes over power and phone lines. Once past that, what, exactly, can we say? Any claim of origins is likely to be guessing. There are folk lorists who might know, but we're going to have to wait for one of them before we have an article that's up to standards. Geogre 17:13, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Keep new version, though I'm worried about the mental health of Smerdis of Tion's muse. Geogre 01:20, 24 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Keep. Although as I wrote the piece I am slightly biased, i appreciate your comments and maybe if it was expanded upon and recognised that it is a spontaneous game played by children around the world it would not be listed here. Saint will18:31, 23 Aug 2004 (BST)

• Who can fight the Muse when she strikes? I did some internet research on why shoes get flung at wires, and found some strongly contradictory, urban-legend sounding, explanations. I have expanded the page with the results of my investigations. As such, I change to keep. Smerdis of Tlön 19:12, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)
  • I'd move it to Shoe flinging in any case. Smerdis of Tlön

• I am delighted to see my original simple idea expanded dramatically by some dedicated research, and am myself fascinated by the new findings. Surely this is one of the true meanings of the Wiki?! Saint will 20:36, 23 Aug 2004 (BST)

As it currently stands, keep. Another user memorably observed somewhere that Wikipedia is already a repository for silliness; I think Shoe Flinging has the potential to become another of our memorably silly and delightful articles. By the way, shoe-flinging is a common way of showing contempt in the Middle East, and this could be added to the article (I'm a tad too lazy to research it right at the moment) Antandrus 19:45, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Keep. Great job, Smerdis of Tlön! AdmN 19:56, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

• Keep. The phenomenon is real and widespread. It's one of those everyday things that occasionally makes people wonder, which is something Wikipedia handles well. — Gwalla | Talk 20:43, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

• Keep, moving it to the conventional capitalisation - David Gerard 21:14, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Keep. I always wondered what were those shoes hanging on overhead wires. cesarb 02:14, 24 Aug 2004 (UTC)

• Keep. The bizarre practice of tying shoes together and hanging them on wires is deserving of its own article on the Wikipedia. Also, in the Arab world, flinging one's shoes is a disrespectful gesture — also encyclopedic. • Benc • 02:33, 24 Aug 2004 (UTC)

• Keep. A very well-done rescue. Livajo 14:10, 24 Aug 2004 (UTC)

• Keep, excellent work [[User:Siroxo|—siroχo

—siroχo]] 02:55, Aug 26, 2004 (UTC)

• Comment - Shoe flinging is as good a name as any for... [overhead wires etc] - [raises eyebrow]. --[[User:Bodnotbod|bodnotbod » .....TALKQuietly)]] 04:01, Aug 26, 2004 (UTC)

• Keep. It's informative enough. Lockeownzj00 18:28, 28 Aug 2004 (UTC)

end moved discussion

International Boot-Throwing (Funsport)

The word Boot throwing is a redirect to this article - but the article does not explain the internal concept of boot throwing as a funsport as it is common in countries around the Baltic Sea in europe. See also http://www.saappaanheitto.com/engindex.htm and de:Gummistiefelweitwurf. Greets, Guidod

Merge with Shoe Tossing?

The Shoe_tossing article has pretty much the exact same info as this one does, and I suggest it should be merged into this page (or vice versa, but this page seems more general in its current form). 64.142.95.196

• I agree with the merge idea. Which term is more popularly used? Joyous (talk) 03:29, 13 November 2005 (UTC)

• Well, according to googlefight.com, the phrase Shoe_tossing is used on nearly twice as many webpages as Shoe_flinging

• I'm afraid I added Shoe tree to wiki, so now there's another article that needs merging. We probably need a few more redirect pages to keep the same page from repeatedly springing up under different names.JDowning 03:55, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

• Merge for the reasons above, including Shoe tree. It's been a couple of months, is anyone going to act on this? CPAScott 14:16, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

• Agree with merger, but under which name should a merged article continue? My preference is for shoe tossing, or perhaps a brand new article on shoe throwing. Also note the existence of abandoned footwear, which has content that may also be profitably merged. Smerdis of Tlön 15:19, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

Shoe Flinging

In my suburb and in one neighbouring suburb, I counted 8 pairs of shoes suspended from power lines — and I have only explored a small part of it. Rintrah 10:03, 13 September 2006 (UTC)