On 7/5/2013 6:24 PM, anorton wrote:

The answer is that there is nothing that fundamentally sets the ratio of
tensions at the two tie-downs. ...

So then you will ask, "what if the lever is infinitely stiff as are both
tie-downs, and both tie downs have exactly equal length?" This is the
same class of question as "what happens when an infinite force meets an
infinite mass?"...

Thanks - that makes sense. Instead of making up rules, I need to
re-state the problem less abstractly. More at 11:00. Thanks, Bob