[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia_talk:Today%27s_featured_article/requests#April_Fools_blurb]Nope[/url].

Thanks for the link! I've never heard of this practice.

Below is the thoughts of the widows who were being sold:
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What? Did you get any idéas?

LOL. I'll have to take the 5th on that one. ;)
No, rather it's not everyday that you learn something new about your culture.
My earliest documented ancestor came to North America indentured to his step father. Kind of an odd situation. Stuff like wife selling allows for amusing explanations.

So you're saying Americans are bent?

The country was found by religious zealots (Massachusetts and Pennsylvania in particular) and tax evaders (Georgia was a penal colony), so I think we were set up to be 'bent' at the outset. You folks in Europe moved all your rejects to the colonies, so it is YOUR fault. Sweden might not be that culpable, but I am lumping you in with England and Spain et al anyway!
Australia was the hardcore penal colony and got all the murderers and rapists. It explains a lot about Australians too, doesn't it? I will note that I have NOTHING against Australians, in fact, I think I like them better than my own countrymen. However, what I say about the origins of the colony is true... at least in part (I am sure a kind Australian will correct me, and I welcome it).

Does not compute.

South Australia was a non convict state. On the other hand, we gave the country people like Atkinson... Win some, lose some I guess :)

Good, lets just keep it that way and we'll all be happy, if you follow my drift...

Your a moron.

Heh, thanks! I might be poor at making text-based jokes, but I don't think what I wrote was factually incorrect.
Also, I think you meant to say: "You're a moron". Either that or you are telling me I own "a moron", and you have yet to complete your full comment. It's okay, I'll wait, I know English can be hard sometimes...
EDIT:
To explain my observation/joke better, I will describe the qualities of Americans and Australians that I was thinking of when I made the comment.
Americans: Historically distrustful of government in our country, however, we do like to be judgmental of other countries and throw our armies around.
Australians: Fiercely independent and driven, historically, but much less judgmental (people like Atkinson being the exception, rather than the rule).
People, generally, just don't up and leave a developed nation for a shack halfway around the world without good reason (e.g. forced out by crimes or persecution). Thus most European colonies have similar roots. It isn't a bad thing, it just is, in my opinion.

That would actually make sense to me. I think Georgia was more for debtors (either to the government or to an individual, which in many cases were one and the same) sent to work off their crimes during a period of indenture. Australia was for everyone else, iirc (violent crimes and petty crimes lumped together).
Do keep in mind, even stealing a loaf of bread was sometimes punishable by death in medieval times (not positive this carried through into the colonization era), but usually it was _only_ the loss of a hand; petty criminals were still treated fairly harshly. No idea what the deal is with the gun though... possibly some broken rule of etiquette that offended some noble or something?
Edit:
Since you shared, I will as well. My colonist relatives with my surname were a lady and a merchant that were caught having an affair in the early 18th century. Once the jig was up, the lady left in disgrace for her uncle's estate in Virginia (Lord Fairfax, it is said), and the lover went with her to escape punishment. So, yeah, I am the progeny of disgraced nobility and adulterers, at least on that side of the family tree.