roy@phri.UUCP (Roy Smith) (09/20/86)
In article <1860@ihlpa.UUCP> zazam@ihlpa.UUCP (Azam) writes: > The other day we were talking about mexican beers and I mentioned "Carta > Blanca". [...] It was interesting to find that it meant blank message. Close, but no cigar. The proper idiomatic translation is "White Card". Just like the French "Carte Blanche". Ever wonder why there's a credit card with that name? In the old days of French Royalty (I guess were talking like the 17th or 18th century) the King would issue to his friends a document identifying them as somebody who should be granted favors, right of passage, etc. Sort of like diplomatic immunity. This document took the form of a white card. Thus, saying "J Random Foobar has carte blanche in this affair" is saying that you should give him whatever he asks for because he is acting on the authority of the King. -- Roy Smith, {allegra,philabs}!phri!roy System Administrator, Public Health Research Institute 455 First Avenue, New York, NY 10016