Talk:Hamsterdam

"H"amsterdam??"

The episode is clearly called Amsterdam, both on HBO.com and the DVD. Would someone tell me why the fuck it's called HAMSTERDAM?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jdpeck2147 (talk • contribs) 15:31, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

The episode is in fact called Hamsterdam on the HBO website and episode listings. The DVD boxset does say Amsterdam, but it is a misprint.(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/episode/season3/episode29.shtml) Qjuad (talk) 15:21, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

• HBO's current episode list shows "Hamsterdam". --Dystopos (talk) 20:54, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

I was always unsure why the Wire chose the name Hamsterdam. I am from Maryland and there is a Baltimore neighborhood called Hampden but as far Baltimore neighborhoods go it is pretty safe -- it's where Johns Hopkins University is and not the kind of place that would tolerate street corner drug sales out in the open (although like pretty much anywhere in baltimore marijuana laws are not frequently enforced). But I always thought the Hamsterdam name was a combination of Hampden and Amsterdam, playing on the latter's official drug tolerance while making a reference to Baltimore.

If the episode is called "Hamsterdam" (which I agree it is) then we no longer need to disambiguate the page. Could an administrator please move this page which is currently at Hamsterdam (The Wire episode) to Hamsterdam please?--Opark 77 (talk) 09:56, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

I thought the name was just a mis-pronouciation that stuck, like D.B. Cooper (and thought that was very clever and real). Regardless, it is without a doubt "Hamsterdam" LoveUxoxo (talk) 02:52, 8 October 2011 (UTC)

Requested move

The following discussion is an archived discussion of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the proposal was move. JPG-GR (talk) 03:06, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

Hamsterdam (The Wire episode) → Hamsterdam — because the current title includes unnecessary disambiguation —Opark 77 (talk) 10:03, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

Survey

Feel free to state your position on the renaming proposal by beginning a new line in this section with *'''Support''' or *'''Oppose''', then sign your comment with ~~~~. Since polling is not a substitute for discussion, please explain your reasons, taking into account Wikipedia's naming conventions.

• Support per WP:NC ("disambiguate when necessary.) --Dystopos (talk) 13:45, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

• Support. Unnecessary disambiguation. Most other episodes have already been moved after a previous Requested Move, see Talk:List of The Wire episodes#Proposed moves for episodes of The Wire. Andrewa (talk) 03:19, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

Discussion

Any additional comments:

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Paragraph Title reference

I am not so sure wheather I like the "Title reference paragraph".

I think "The posited benefits, as in Amsterdam and other European cities," is rather judgemental. First of all marijuana is legal in all of the Netherlands and not only in Amsterdam. And the legelization of crack cokaine in one of the worst parts of the city of Baltimore is not really comparable. I get the reference and its obvious that the writers might want to kick of a discussion about this, but the whole "as in Amsterdam and other European cities" reads way to positive... --188.98.78.220 (talk) 13:15, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

Derivation: Ham or Hamster?

The article currently says:

• The name "Hamsterdam" comes from the drug dealers mishearing when Herc refers to "Amsterdam", and of course the reference to pork given that the police are controlling the area.

In other words:

• Police > pig > pork > ham + amsterdam = hamsterdam

But is this a true derivation? How can we know? From my watching of the show, I have been assuming:

• hamster (cage) + amsterdam = hamsterdam

-96.237.7.195 (talk) 17:45, 13 March 2012 (UTC)