vacri t1_iwlq2sz wrote
Reply to comment by avoid3d in 'It's a pretty gross and offensive phrase': SA Premier under fire for 'sloppy seconds' comment by notinferno
>but I think it's an interesting exercise in believing things without actually checking whether they're true.
The person you're replying to has provided over a dozen pictures of actual cockpits...
avoid3d t1_iwlram1 wrote
What does that have to do with anything? We're discussing the origin of a phrase here...
vacri t1_iwlskjf wrote
... because you're pooh-poohing their explanation of that origin backed up with visual evidence, rather than a Slate article.
avoid3d t1_iwlt5bh wrote
I'm not arguing that the throttle or mixture / propeller controlls don't also have balls, which is what their picture's demonstrate though...
I'm arguing that the origin of the phrase comes from military aviation, where diving in order to gain speed involved moving the control column towards the firewall (one ball) and also the throttle towards the firewall (the other ball), and this lead to the phrase "balls to the wall":
https://www.quora.com/Where-did-the-phrase-balls-to-the-wall-originate
> Another control is the joystick—pushing it forward sends a plane into a dive.So, literally pushing the balls to the (fire)wall would put a plane intoa maximum-speed dive, and figuratively going balls to the wall is doingsomething all-out, with maximum effort.
*edit formatting*
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