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Originally Posted by Quillan
I've never liked that phrase. If you were up the creek but had no paddle, you could just float back down with the current. Being down the creek without a paddle would be bad. :p
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Do not quote me on this but I recall someone explaining this to me. The origins are from America. It concerned the slaves attempting to head north into the part of the country were salvery was not allowed. Slaves would attempt to make it north via the underground railroad or going up the Mississippi. Therefore, if they were up the creek(Mississippi) without a paddle, they would in fact float downstream back to the south and into slavery again. In other words, they were in trouble. At least this is how it was explained to me sometime ago.
There are other variations around the world and claiming origins of this saying. All mean the same thing. You are in deep doo doo and it is getting worse as you drift down stream.