White elephant

From Freepedia

A white elephant (also albino elephant) is a rare kind of elephant. In Myanmar two have been found and caught, the second one in 2002 after an elephant finding team had searched for one month.

In Thailand, white elephants are sacred and a symbol of royal power; all those discovered are presented to the king (usually this is ceremonial — they are not taken into captivity) and the more white elephants the king has, the greater his standing. The current king Bhumibol Adulyadej owns ten — considered a great achievement, and probably due to modern communications.

A white elephant in Thailand is not necessarily albino, although it must have pale skin. Candidate animals are assessed according to a series of physical and behavioural criteria (including eye colour, the shape of the tail and ears, and intelligence). Those which pass the tests are then assigned to one of four categories and are offered to the king, although the lower grades are sometimes refused.

In the past, lower grade white elephants were given as gifts to the king's friends and allies. The animals needed a lot of care and, being sacred, could not be put to work, so were a great financial burden on the recipient - and only the monarch and the very rich could afford them. According to one story, white elephants were sometimes given as a present to some enemy (often a lesser noble with whom the king was displeased). The unfortunate recipient, unable to make any profit of it, and obliged to take care of it, would suffer bankruptcy and ruin.

Because of this, the term "white elephant" came, in English, to mean a thing which is more trouble than it is worth, or has outlived its usefulness to the person who has it. While the item may be useful to others, its current owner would usually be glad to be rid of it. By reason of this, commercially, a "white elephant" might be available to purchase at a very favorable price. An example of such an item might be a mansion whose maintenance costs exceed the capacity of its owners.

The term is often used to refer to an extremely tacky gift, or one that does not fit the tastes of the recipient, that is given by a friend or close relative (such as a mother-in-law) and therefore cannot be exchanged or thrown away.

White elephants are also used as a metaphor for an unborn child in Ernest Hemingway's short story, "Hills Like White Elephants".

1 Other
2 A list of white elephants
3 See also
4 Reference

Other

The NSA maintained two secure document destruction facilities, known as White Elephant 1 and 2.

Since the Giants' John McGraw called the Athletics a "White Elephant," the Athletics have won 9 world series compared to the total of 5 by the Giants. The Athletics have won 4 while in Oakland (the last in 1989 against the Giants). The Giants however have won 0 since 1954 and 0 while in San Francisco.

A list of white elephants

The term was coined after New York Giants manager John McGraw told the press that Philadelphia businessman Benjamin Shibe had "bought himself a white elephant" by acquiring the Philadelphia Athletics baseball team in 1901, A's manager Connie Mack selected the elephant as the team symbol and mascot. The team is occasionally referred to as the White Elephants.

Other examples include:

Aircraft:
- Concorde, a supersonic transport built by Aérospatiale and BAC, intended to allow high-speed intercontinental travel. Only fourteen examples saw service, though development costs were to be amortized over hundreds of units.
- Bristol Brabazon, an airliner built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in 1949 to fly a large number of passengers on transatlantic routes from England to the United States.
- The U.S. Space Shuttle is also considered an example of a white elephant, as its continued existence is debated versus other forms of space transportation, which are thought by some to be more reliable and affordable.
- The Hughes H-4 Hercules, or "Spruce Goose," was often called Howard Hughes's white elephant before and during Senate War Investigating Committee
Structures and engineering projects:
- Kansai International Airport, located on an artificial island in Osaka Bay, south of Osaka, Japan, is considered an example of a white elephant, as it was constructed largely as a matter of pride, and though at a fraction of nominal capacity, is being doubled in size.
- Montréal-Mirabel International Airport, a large airport located in Mirabel, Quebec, near Montréal.
- Three Gorges Dam, a monumental project to bring hydroelectric power to the Yangtze River basin in China, beset with construction and environmental issues.
- World Trade Center Mexico, World Trade Center México is a building complex located in Mexico City, Mexico, a building and complex that never really performed their intended functions and were known as a white elephant which eventually bankrupted their owners without ever being finished.
Nautical:
- SS Great Eastern, a ship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. She was the largest ship ever built at the time of her launch, and had the capacity to carry 4,000 passengers around the world without refuelling.
Other examples:
- North East Line, along with Bukit Panjang LRT Line are considered to be white elephants.
- Waterloo Vase, a great urn, 15 ft (5 m) high and weighing 20 tons, fashioned from a single piece of Carrara marble.