I got to the part where some guy called out "commie faggots!" and then another guy accused a voter registration program of causing the worldwide economic crisis.

Then I actually died. I heard my soul say "fuck this" and went to go play skeeball in limbo until the planet is cleansed by nuclear fire and my body can join it.

I lived in Arizona for twenty years, and I... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Optimus Chyme at 7:15 PM on October 9, 2008

Now do you think that guy has a legitimate beef that Obama worked with Ayers for years?

Not at all. Because since that time, Ayers has become not a dangerous domestic terrorist, but a serious, accomplished, leading thinker and professor on education reform. This is the Ayers Obama knows - a legitimate member of society representing an established and respected academic institution, a successful and well-connected nonprofit volunteer and fundraiser.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Miko at 8:15 PM on October 9, 2008

For the mob, "muslim" and "terrorist" is just a synonym for black.

When I'm doing campaign calls, a couple times a night I have to tell somebody Obama's not Muslim. Though that's true and important, I also feel a little lousy doing it. Because of course I also want to say "so what's so bad about being Muslim? So what if he was?" But that is a battle that's even harder to fight. "Muslim" is... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Miko at 9:45 PM on October 9, 2008

Colorado - Obama
Florida - McCain
Indiana - Obama
Minnesota - Obama
Missouri - McCain
Nevada - Obama
New Hampshire - Obama
North Carolina - McCain
Ohio - Obama
Virginia - Obama

Poplar - 2.6% Obama

Americans will be shooting each other in the streets and sucking the marrow from their neighbors' bones before the first Tuesday in... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Ryvar at 8:51 PM on October 2, 2008

Uh, aren't you an anarchist?

Just because I don't support the government doesn't mean that I have to be stupid about the fact that it's in place now, and that it has a direct, everyday impact on people's lives. The revolution isn't tomorrow, and refusing to improve people's lives because the means to do so isn't ideologically "correct" is self-righteous horseshit that takes the struggle against exploitation and oppression and makes it about... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Pope Guilty at 6:52 PM on September 30, 2008

smackfu, check this url out.

>What exactly is Perl?

>>There's more than one way to answer that question.

I was all set to favourite that answer until I saw that it was mine.

I crack me up.
posted to MetaTalk by timeistight at 9:30 AM on August 25, 2008

The thing about this blog is that it neglects the whole "Obama" phenomenon. How will this affect my taxes?

I know this is supposed to be a website for grownups, but I can see you there. Yeah, you. You know I'm talking to you. I'm on to you, kid. I know your dad walked away from the monitor for a sec to go polish his Ajax or tweak some CSS, and you thought you might get a quick look at some pictures of frogs having sex or something. It's all right, though,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Greg Nog at 10:44 AM on August 26, 2008

I've been spreading hummus on a big, thin, flatbread, then sprinkling sun dried tomatoes on that, and then adding about 2 cups of raw spinach. Drizzle some olive oil and balsamic vinegar over it, roll it up into a big burrito, and eat. It's incredibly filling (2 cups of spinach) and comes in around 225 calories. It's lasted me from lunch to dinner without cravings.
posted to Ask Metafilter by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 7:01 AM on July 28, 2008

Arguably far more profound than MeFites are letting themselves believe - its not the lottery tickets themselves which are the statement here, but the unique emotion of giving up a potentially winning lottery ticket never knowing if it was a winner. I'm curious to know how many of us could actually do it.
posted to MetaFilter by l33tpolicywonk at 10:10 AM on June 14, 2008

He's inept, at best.

He's a 46-year-old African-American first-term senator who built a machine that raised 270 million dollars and stole the nomination away from the presumed frontrunner. But whatever.
posted to MetaFilter by Armitage Shanks at 9:45 PM on June 3, 2008

Sorry, if your husband and father in law, who were much closer to the harm this man caused than you were, want him to come you don't really have any place to say he shouldn't come. He may be a bastard, but he's their brother and uncle, and you shouldn't be trying to break up their family out of your own spite.

This isn't to say the guy's not a bastard or you're wrong to hate him, just that he's more than just some random bastard. He's blood to your father in law, your... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Reverend John at 8:27 AM on April 2, 2008

Where I've worked, the assertive people have:

-- made their needs known once, see if they're met and then only speak again if their needs aren't weren't met the first time (or if they have new needs).

-- they confine their comments to their needs. They don't add all sorts of gratuitous stuff -- long stories, etc.

-- they explain simply and clearly why they have their needs. There are only one meaningful reasons for needs... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by grumblebee at 5:28 AM on March 12, 2008 marked best answer

The problem is that a lot of really good sci-fi does indeed get canonized as non-genre lit. Have the two of you talked about stuff like The Road or Infinite Jest or The Handmaid's Tale?

How about Slaughterhouse-Five? Fahrenheit 451? Brave New World? Hell, how about Frankenstein or Gulliver's Travels?

Part of the issue here is that sci-fi books that 'work' as literature... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by nebulawindphone at 6:58 AM on March 4, 2008

They should call it Serious Putty.
posted to MetaFilter by Citizen Premier at 9:15 PM on February 20, 2008

If you have the money to cover your share and you are genuinely offering, you know your intentions, who cares what the guy thinks? What you are doing is fine. Offer and if they refuse, don't push it. If they are offended by a kind gesture, do you really want to continue going out with that guy?

Anecdotally, there is the Chinese way that my parents taught me when we were at dim sum with family members. Check drops, violently slam your hand down on it and forcibly take it.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by spec80 at 12:31 PM on January 18, 2008

no no no no no! damn it!

.
posted to MetaFilter by moonbird at 5:48 AM on December 27, 2007

Protest against the Burmese military junta. Many of their generals are superstitious and believe women's underwear saps them of their strength.

(Embassy addresses)
posted to Ask Metafilter by H-Bar at 6:07 PM on November 30, 2007 marked best answer

ROU_Xenophobe said: Haitians' ancestors are overwhelmingly African. Ditto for other black Caribbean islanders... [and subsequently]... It annoys me that people seem so intentionally obtuse about this.

But, the question is about what's "correct" in terms of a "label"... And I am absolutely certain that Haitians and other black Caribbean islanders don't call themselves "African"... If you're wanting to go... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by amyms at 7:24 PM on November 16, 2007

It's weird because he and I have always been pretty close--united against The Parents--and he seems to have decided that I'm the enemy too.

Maybe because when he tried to pull away from The Parents, you've ratted him out to them several times, including giving them his address so that they could drive to his home to harass him?

I understand why you're worried; you have every reason to be. But I also understand why, from your... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by decathecting at 3:26 PM on October 15, 2007

Remember when you urinate an unsafe drop in blood pressure can occur leading to fainting also known as micturition syncope. To prevent this I recommend sitting down; using a wide stance, and tapping your feet. If you notice the person in the stall next to you tapping their feet, you might bump them to help keep them from passing out. Waving your hand under the stall to let them know you arn't passed out is also advised.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by humanfont at 12:20 PM on September 15, 2007

There has been a tremendous lack of restraint on this issue on many fronts.

The "problem" here is the following passage in the Archeological Survey of India's affidavit to the Supreme Court:
... contents of the Valmiki Ramayana, the Ramcharitamanas by Tulsidas and other mythological texts, which admittedly form an important part of ancient Indian literature... cannot be said to be historical record to incontrovertibly prove the existence of the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by the cydonian at 9:11 AM on September 14, 2007

You can never go wrong taking people at face value.

It may turn out that what they said was not what they actually meant, but then that means that they were unclear or dishonest, which is their fault, not yours. If someone says "yes" but means "no," then it's their responsibility to fix it and to learn to communicate honestly and clearly. It is never your responsibility to invent 50 different possible meanings for each person's... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by occhiblu at 8:56 AM on August 31, 2007

Excuse me sandra_s, but that's inflammatory hogwash. There are millions of immigrants in Canada who are every bit as much Canadian as any other citizen. It's pure US propaganda that you're spouting, and that you believe it is also the source of many of the equivocal answers to this question.

As a non-American who nevertheless has spent a lot of time there and has a brother who is a naturalized citizen, America is wonderful because it is inherently a paradox. A great... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mikel at 6:01 AM on August 17, 2007

yhbc: "This is not what MetaTalk is for."

LarryC: "I think it is."

Maybe, LarryC, yhbc was saying that that was the best dating advice he ever saw. I would agree.

One night while out on the town, treading the boards, I caught the eye of this incredible blonde whose eye would normally have never caught me. I can't say why she asked me to come over to the bar for a... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Effigy2000 at 10:13 PM on August 15, 2007

simplyhired + indeed. It worked for me.
posted to Ask Metafilter by brownpau at 4:51 PM on July 30, 2007

I have lost every single chess game that I have ever played against an adult. I've been at "I know how to move the pieces" skill level for 23 years. This radical "study it to get better at it" tactic that Edgewise suggests seems like a lot of work. What I need to do is start a league of crappy chess players who do not care to hone their skills but enjoy moving the pieces. Anyone else in?
posted to MetaFilter by Cookiebastard at 5:52 AM on June 20, 2007

Lots of great advice here!

I'm very much like you, philosophistry. Besides being shy and introverted (or maybe because I'm shy and introverted), I've spent several decades holed up with books and an inquiring mind. I'm not smarter than most of the people I meet (though I can fool myself into thinking that I am), but I tend to be more informed and more in the habit of thinking critically. When I'm out with people -- even at a casual bar or party -- what I really want to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by grumblebee at 10:22 AM on June 10, 2007 marked best answer

I sympathize with her, like I sympathize with every parent that's lost a child. But that doesn't give her expertise on any subject but grief.

It doesn't take a Ph.D. in military history to know that the essence of her critique--we were lied into a war that is serving no good purpose--is right on track. If it's experts you want, though, there are plenty of them who are saying that. But the retired generals and the Ph.D.s who were against this war... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Pater Aletheias at 10:12 AM on May 29, 2007

I thought blogging was for the technically challenged?
posted to MetaFilter by b1tr0t at 10:53 AM on April 21, 2007

Whatever, it's DC. DC is already so racially and demographically fucked up you aren't going to be able to make it all ok by the personal choices you make. There's a lot of BS "this is how it's a good thing for everyone" sentiment on this thread, but really, you moving into that condo is just the visible (to you) part of a whole system of exclusion. You don't have as much power in this situation as you might feel - by the time you're thinking "Petworth looks ok" the damage is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by crabintheocean at 9:09 AM on March 21, 2007

When I read Vonnegut's work, it makes me want to run out and save the world.

This one's really hard. As Stavros mentions, he's been ready to die for a while (clearly evident when one reads A Man Without A Country), and he's stated several times that he wasn't writing anymore, so we needn't wonder about "what might have been." None of this makes his death hurt any less.

My favorite author, and damn near my favorite person ever.
posted to MetaFilter by the_bone at 12:07 AM on April 12, 2007

There's that classic conundrum: The teacher announces a surprise quiz to be held some time in the next month. The clever students try to outsmart the teacher to avoid having to study every night.

The quiz won't be held on the last day of the month, because when there's no quiz by the end of the day before, there's no surprise. By similar reasoning, it won't happen the day before the last day. And since it can't happen that day either, the day before that is ruled out.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by ardgedee at 3:27 AM on April 12, 2007

Invoke the Bill Farthinham Gin and Tonic rule.

Bill Farthinham was my first boss when I bartended. He taught me that whenever you have a customer that exhibits any kind of behavior that drives you nuts, just treat them with kindness and give them good service and think to yourself "For the rest of my life, everytime I'm out drinking gin and tonics with other service industry people, I will tell the story of what a douchebag you are". It's remarkably effective.
posted to Ask Metafilter by vito90 at 10:37 PM on March 16, 2007

After 15 years as a vegetarian, I began eating fish roughly five years ago. I do not eat turkey or chicken. Once every 1-2 years I succumb to a bizarre craving for beef jerky. So am I now a one-time vegetarian who currently eats fish but will eat beef jerky on occasion? Do I really need to explain that? Would my server even care? I prefer restaurants that add a little vegetarian symbol next to all the vegetarian dishes on the menu. Then I can choose one of those dishes or a fish entree.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by snez at 3:09 AM on March 17, 2007

Huh. Reading your post I was thinking: you're really ready for corporate life.

Low expectations are the key to happiness in this life. You're in a position to take any old job, and absolutely revel in your enjoyment of it. Go for it. You've earned it.

Ambition is highly overrated, but it will probably sneak up on you again one day. Enjoy its absence while you can.
posted to Ask Metafilter by tkolar at 9:38 AM on February 8, 2007

First of all, you don't need ten million dollars. I was spitballing with a friend a couple years ago and we decided $2M in the bank was enough. With $2M, 5% interest gives you $100,000 a year, and you can make more than 5% just by sitting on your money. Anyway, it's no fun to be completely idle after you become rich; you can probably make another 20K-30K per year in whatever high-satisfaction job you pick after that. View the $100K/year as a supplement that allows you to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by rkent at 7:58 AM on December 15, 2006 marked best answer

I'm not sure that Randall does love his son. It seems more like he loves what he wishes his son were.
posted to MetaFilter by owhydididoit at 11:01 PM on November 17, 2006

When I interact with someone who fits that description, I try very hard to help them within my own capacity. If they are so difficult that it drives me batty, I generally avoid the interaction because I don't want to do further damage. But this is rare as I get older and more forgiving of others and perhaps more aware of my own behavior and how I want that to be.

If I can, I try to help in gentle, nonjudgmental ways. I engage them in pleasant small talk. I make an effort... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by dog food sugar at 8:23 AM on October 17, 2006

I have no clue, but my lawyers are looking into it.
posted to Ask Metafilter by malp at 12:57 PM on September 29, 2006

This may seem sort of morose, but I've always found it very comforting in an odd way:

"I used to think it was awful that life was so unfair. Then I thought, wouldn't it be much worse if life were fair and all the terrible things that happen to us came because we actually deserved them? So now I take great comfort in the general hostility and unfairness of the universe." -J. Michael Straczynski
posted to Ask Metafilter by Amy Phillips at 7:52 AM on August 30, 2006