As an engineer/tech writer/mechanic (etc) I can tell you that the metric system is something I use all the time. I have to have metric tools, write metric measurements into manuals, and use things like meters, kilograms, Centigrade, kph...
However, probably because the southern dimwit political class studies at Bob Jones University for theology and receives law degrees from Oral Roberts U., they don't realize that a base-10 measurement system is more logical than one based on how long your arm is from elbow to finger-tip.
The metric system is the kind of thing that you can expect from the 60-vote filibuster-proof majority Democrats now have in the United States Senate... Most Americans still don't use the metric system...
- John Feehery
http://www.cnn.com/...
Now, I hate to tell you, John, but Karl Malden is dead, the streets of San Francisco are alive with happy gay people, GM/Ford/Chrysler/NASA/GE haven't relied on the english system of measurement (only) for tooling since probably the mid 1970s because it's a good thing if the cars you make in Europe can use the same fasteners in the USA.
Also, John, you said:
...most certainly don't stick to the 55 mile an hour speed limit on the highways of America...
- John Feehery
Maybe that's because the double-nickel isn't the speed limit in most areas of the country. You can't win elections by invoking the spirit of Jimmy Carter, John, because most people, when thinking of Jimmy, remember his charitable works like Habitat for Humanity, not his one-term Presidency.
Republicans are stuck fighting the last war all the time. Like the French and their Maginot Line http://en.wikipedia.org/... at the beginning of WWII, you don't see the Big Picture. The world has moved on, John. Building Fortress Mason-Dixon against scary blacks, gays, the Clintons and the metric system aren't going to win you back a majority anywhere any more than having your opinions on CNN will give CNN a ratings boost.
http://www.cnn.com/...
Have a good day John, and remember, when you are working on your car, unless you drive a 1970s Oldsmobile, you had better have a nice metric socket set.
- Dana Curtis Kincaid, Indianapolis, IN, USA
PS - Note to CNN... Having people like this write opinions on your site isn't fair and balanced, it just makes you look a little slow. Not all opinions carry the same weight. Not all opinions should have a soapbox.