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US Government Seeks Open-Source Translation

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the penguins-at-the-keyboards dept.

valdean writes "The Boston Globe is reporting that last week the United States Government began publishing captured Iraqi documents on the web in order to harness the translating talents of the bilingual public. The article calls it 'the same open source principle' that created Linux. Check out the Foreign Military Studies Office's document portal."

8 of 309 comments (clear)

  1. Here it is by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

    "I want to rip the American's throats out and shove it up their asses -- Anonymous Pissed Sunni"

    "I want to rip the American's throats out and shove it up their asses -- Saddam"

    "I want to rip the American's throats out and shove it up their asses -- Bin Laden"

    "I want to rip the American's throats out and shove it up their asses -- Iran"

    I think I'm getting the hang of this translation stuff.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  2. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Funny

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  3. are we changing the definition? by the_skywise · · Score: 3, Funny

    So "open source" is now anything that's a free/community project?

    Do the Amish then have "open source" barn raisings?

    1. Re:are we changing the definition? by Quixote · · Score: 4, Funny

      Do the Amish then have "open source" barn raisings?
      ... until it is raised; then it becomes closed source.

  4. Re:Classification? by plumby · · Score: 5, Funny
    ... such as proof Hussein hid stockpiles of chemical weapons.

    I think that's a pretty safe bet.

  5. Work for free? by Beuno · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking about doing, working for free for the US government ...

  6. They need help! by NXIL · · Score: 3, Funny

    Just worked on one, got this: REQUEST FOR URGENT BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP first, i must solicit your strictest confidence in this transaction. this is by virtue of its nature as being utterly confidential and 'top secret'. i am sure and have confidence of your ability and reliability to prosecute a transaction of this great magnitude involving a pending transaction requiring maxiimum confidence. we are top official of the iraqi government contract review panel who are interested in imporation of goods into our country with funds which are presently trapped in fallujah. in order to commence this business we solicit your assistance to enable us transfer into your account the said trapped funds. the source of this fund is as follows; during the last military regime here in iraq, the government officials set up companies and awarded themselves contracts which were grossly over-invoiced in various ministries. the present civilian government set up a contract review panel and we have identified a lot of inflated contract funds which are presently floating in the central bank of iraq ready for payment, some to halliburton, some to you.

  7. Whew! That's reassuring! by woolio · · Score: 5, Funny

    Whew! You had me scared for a second.

    Luckily, your expert usage of English grammer re-assures me.

    Apparently they are only upset at one (unnamed) American who has multiple throats, and they wish to shove each of these up the asses of an (unnamed) third party that consists of more than one person. Or it could be that this particular individual's throats also have asses... which makes the action somewhat circular...

    Well, I don't have multiple throats, so my neck must be out of danger... But my ass might be the target of their threat.