Tekkie Challenge

Many tekkies think v-e-r-y slowly, so I only got some comments to a post from 2010 just now. Most of the text is the usual ad personam/ad hominem chip-on-the-shoulder stuff you'd expect from such a milieu, this one risably attempts to use big words and hyperbole to affect a position of superiority in their harassment of the author of this blog, but there's a bit at the end that is worth examination. Thomas Hall wrote 18 October 2022 at 13:01 ("Thomas Hall" is a pseudonym and an individual using that name has been here before)...

Paul, my dear fellow, still hiding behind the 'working in Poland' facade? Anyhow, I know my postings are most unwelcome and an affront to your archaeological sensibilities, but modern-day archeological (sic) thinking, in contrast to the oppressive head-in-the-sand viewpoint proffered by you and your steadily diminishing band of brothers, is slowly coming to realize that we, us, can, if not able to use all the terms, measurements and university learned techniques, can, nonetheless, advance historical knowledge immeasurably, I look forwards to your edited, twisted and biased version of my sincere posting./ Mt dear fellow, from all I witness here you are destined to, as all deniers are from early Christians to later Trump advocates, reap the rewards of your ignorance. to put it bluntly, you will, as archeological (sic) minds advance, be left, like a gasping fish wondering what strange forces have pulled you from the river of ignorance and left you floundering on the banks of enlightenment. / I will hound you my ignorant friend until you shrug off the cold coil of ignorance and embrace the warm coat of reality./

As far as finds, 'Real-Public Interest' finds are concerned, let me offer you this challenge, I, and members of my metal-detecting fraternity will, at our own expense, organize a display of our finds, and you and your archaeological comrades can, side by side with ours display yours. The ten thousand pounds prize for the most viewer interest, determined by an independent observer will be presented at the conclusion of the event. If you can be so brave as to put your money where your Gobellesian mouth is, then please, let me contact my friends in the local media and set a date.

We see from this that according to the harasser, the aim of "detecting" is to "get noticed", my finds are better than your finds, everyone agrees.... Real Donald Trump narcissistic attention-seeking. Real Public Interest Finds, are not the aim of archaeology. Like who can shoot the biggest elephant, or deer with the widest antlers. Gaining sound reliable information is.

So a pseudonymous artefact hunter challenges the archaeologists that he together with members of his "metal-detecting fraternity" (eh?) will, at their own expense, organize a display of metal detected finds. Alongside that he proposes someone ("you and your archaeological comrades") at somebody's expense can mount an archaeological display. Somehow magically a "ten thousand pounds prize" will materialise (who's putting up the money?) and it will be awarded to the exhibit generating "the most viewer interest, determined by an independent observer" (how will independence as well as competence be determined? How will they measure "interest"?) "If you can be so brave as to put your money where your Gobellesian mouth is, then please, let me contact my friends in the local media and set a date". Local media to where? Is he proposing we set up his challenge where I and my "comrades" (and the material and evidence we would show) are, that is Warsaw Poland?

More to the point, after saying he'd finance it, he asks me to commit to putting "your money where your mouth is". But I am not sure what he means by that - as far as I recall, I do not think I have ever specifically compared "real public interest" of one type of presenting the past over another.