3 ms·

Is it just me or is that headline impossible to parse? I have read it several times and still I have no idea what it is saying.

munificent 2y ago
"put a rocket up" is a completely weird phrase and the author clearly tried really hard to jam some rocket pun into the title but it just doesn't work.
- tsegratis 2y ago
  it's the kerosene on the bonfire equivalent of "step on the gas" i.e. "seriously get SpaceX moving (hopefully at speed) on the issue of unpaid bills"
- Doctor_Fegg 2y ago
  It’s a British website using British idiom. Nothing weird about it at all.
frob 2y ago
I think it's supposed to be a play on the word "racket." As in, "to put up a racket" or "make a racket" meaning make a bunch of noise. I agree that it's horrendously written and really forced.
- ojbyrne 2y ago
  I would guess that I less safe for work domains, putting something (phallic) up is usually followed by a name for an orifice.
  - Ylpertnodi 2y ago
    "They don't like it up 'em" - well-known phrase from the British sitcom 'Dad's Army'.
  - frob 2y ago
    And now the idiom makes sense. Thank you!
gamepsys 2y ago
Even after reading the article I'm not sure what the headline means. It seems to be some sort of a debt dispute (unpaid contractors). Is the rocket put up as collateral on the lien? Are the contractors refusing to hand over the physical rocket to SpaceX until they are paid?
raimondious 2y ago
Not just you… Seems like it might be a Britishism? I think it’s saying something like “construction workers light up SpaceX”, like say bad things about them?
- wiedelphine 2y ago
  It is a british phrase. I think the most commmon usage is 'put a rocket up their arse, or 'put a rocket under them; It's similar to 'light a fire under'. It means to suggest getting somebody who has been previously sluggish in acting, to act quicker.
- owlbite 2y ago
  Yeah, definitely a common phrase in the UK, basically the sense is that if you put a (firework) rocket up someone's behind and light it, they're going to move pretty damn fast to rectify the situation before the fuse runs out.
ianburrell 2y ago
The Register is known to make funny, confusing headlines. I think I found the definition of rocket that makes sense: "(UK slang, originally military) A severe reprimand; a telling-off. [from 20th c.]." The decoded headline would be: Texas construction workers tell off SpaceX. Or just Texas construction workers place lien on SpaceX.
- trilbyglens 2y ago
  I deeply hate the modern trend if "clever" headline writing. A headline with a shitty pun or work joke gets an instant skip from me. Might as well label your media outlet as satire for all I'm going to trust you.

munificent 2y ago

"put a rocket up" is a completely weird phrase and the author clearly tried really hard to jam some rocket pun into the title but it just doesn't work.

tsegratis 2y ago
it's the kerosene on the bonfire equivalent of "step on the gas" i.e. "seriously get SpaceX moving (hopefully at speed) on the issue of unpaid bills"
Doctor_Fegg 2y ago
It’s a British website using British idiom. Nothing weird about it at all.

frob 2y ago

I think it's supposed to be a play on the word "racket." As in, "to put up a racket" or "make a racket" meaning make a bunch of noise. I agree that it's horrendously written and really forced.

ojbyrne 2y ago
I would guess that I less safe for work domains, putting something (phallic) up is usually followed by a name for an orifice.
- Ylpertnodi 2y ago
  "They don't like it up 'em" - well-known phrase from the British sitcom 'Dad's Army'.
- frob 2y ago
  And now the idiom makes sense. Thank you!

gamepsys 2y ago

Even after reading the article I'm not sure what the headline means. It seems to be some sort of a debt dispute (unpaid contractors). Is the rocket put up as collateral on the lien? Are the contractors refusing to hand over the physical rocket to SpaceX until they are paid?

raimondious 2y ago

Not just you… Seems like it might be a Britishism? I think it’s saying something like “construction workers light up SpaceX”, like say bad things about them?

wiedelphine 2y ago
It is a british phrase. I think the most commmon usage is 'put a rocket up their arse, or 'put a rocket under them; It's similar to 'light a fire under'. It means to suggest getting somebody who has been previously sluggish in acting, to act quicker.
owlbite 2y ago
Yeah, definitely a common phrase in the UK, basically the sense is that if you put a (firework) rocket up someone's behind and light it, they're going to move pretty damn fast to rectify the situation before the fuse runs out.

ianburrell 2y ago

The Register is known to make funny, confusing headlines. I think I found the definition of rocket that makes sense: "(UK slang, originally military) A severe reprimand; a telling-off. [from 20th c.]." The decoded headline would be: Texas construction workers tell off SpaceX. Or just Texas construction workers place lien on SpaceX.

trilbyglens 2y ago
I deeply hate the modern trend if "clever" headline writing. A headline with a shitty pun or work joke gets an instant skip from me. Might as well label your media outlet as satire for all I'm going to trust you.