when my wife or I have gone in for minor ailments, we've both had the experience of doctors shotgunning our diagnosis: i.e., half-attentively listen to our problems, do a cursory check of the lungs and ears, not do any more physical checks, then just say that some sort of virus is going around.

I think you just answered your own question. A good doctor will swallow their incredulity at you being in their office with a minor ailment and try to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by docpops at 8:51 PM on August 11, 2008

I say this as a white man who works in advertising - the "patriarchy" doesn't want you to get in shape. What it wants is for you to keep eating your candy bars, watch TV, work your ass off at your job for low pay, and die.

The high fructose corn syrup that you are consuming is not some kind of nectar made for feminists from a recipe embedded in a poem by Christina Rossetti. It is shit made for stupid, reactive people.

Are you a stupid,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by bingo at 7:55 PM on July 11, 2008

Regardless of your desire to have people answer a different question than the one that was asked, the question that was actually asked was "How do you pronounce read?"

This is ridicuous.

If someone comes up to you and asks "How do you spell prescient?" it's pretty clear that what they're looking for is THE CORRECT SPELLING, not the way you happen to write it.... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by neroli at 7:15 AM on May 30, 2008

If Obama gets the Dem nod, McCain will be the next President. There's NO WAY that Obama will beat McCain in FL and OH. With PA a close call. In fact, there's even an outside chance that Independent S. CA voters (ex-Republicans, 4-1) could tip the scales in that state against Obama (if he gets the Dem nod)

Metaman, why?

Let me acknowlege the elephant in the room. If, as seems highly probable, Hillary is behind in the pleged... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Ironmouth at 10:47 PM on March 18, 2008

I'm not sure why this is, but I find myself intensely disliking people that nitpick Obama speeches. I feel like it tells me everything I need to know about them, that they're kind of person that could read or watch a speech like that and then focus on trivialities just to tear the man down.
posted to MetaFilter by empath at 10:49 PM on March 18, 2008

Hey, I heard that Winston Churchill guy just made some speech about "blood, toil, tears and sweat." Eh, it's probably not worth talking about.

Hey, John Kennedy just gae some speech about a nuclear test ban treaty. Something about "let us re-examine our attitude toward the Soviet Union." Meh, we already have an open FPP about the Soviet Union.

Hey that Abe Lincoln guy just gave a speech about "a house divided". But... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by orthogonality at 6:22 PM on March 18, 2008

Rephrase the question in your mind in the most charitable way possible. If it ends up something you could answer, answer. If not, don't.

I read this one as, "I'm no longer sexually attracted to my wife. I really love her, and don't want to leave her, cheat, or offend her. I'd rather address the cause of the problem. What can I do? I already know Y, so don't bother telling me that.

Answers that say, in effect, "Y!"... or even... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by ctmf at 1:25 PM on March 16, 2008

It sounds to me like you're laboring under the following faulty reasoning:

1) My wife has gained weight
2) I don't see her making any effort to lose it, this must be because she doesn't care about being attractive to me anymore
3) If I withhold affection for long enough, maybe she'll become sufficiently unhappy with the status quo to do something about it
4) Once I've driven her into losing weight, we'll both be... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by tomcooke at 6:18 AM on March 16, 2008

Where was Nader when New Orleans drowned? Where was he when the government started tapping our phones and reading our emails en masse without warrants? Where was he when they outed an undercover CIA officer? When they scrubbed scientific reports, and censored James Hansen? Nowhere.

When the people need a strong independent voice, he's nowhere. And this makes him worse than the phoniest, most opportunistic politician. I guess he just wants to ride around in a limo, maybe... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by edverb at 8:37 AM on February 24, 2008

All this hate for Nader. Al Gore lost that election, even if it was stolen. Some people here have a real contempt for democracy.

And others have a contempt for logic. If Nader hadn't run in 2000, Al Gore would be president. If Al Gore had run a better campaign in 2000, Al Gore would be president. They're both true (or at least one doesn't exclude the other), and trying to deny that the first one is true is usually a sign of someone desperately trying... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by game warden to the events rhino at 2:17 PM on February 24, 2008

Rubbstone and Mister_A, a newspaper article isn't exactly definitive, especially when compared to the medical literature. In fact, that article on the efficacy of statins sucked. The literature definitely shows reductions in mortality/MI for patients with acute MI, previous MI, and clinically proven CAD. As for primary prevention in patients with *only* hypercholesterolemia, I can even find articles on Ovid that show reductions in mortality and MI for those patients (see CLIP study in 2002 in... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by desiderandus at 10:24 AM on January 28, 2008

I'll admit to a certain amount of guilt. Now, in order for me to make the personal point, you're going to have to accept the fact that I'm equating Neoconservatism with Nazism.

If you don't agree with that assessment, and many don't, then just consider it from the viewpoint as a guy who went along with a very conservative social movement even though it's since been found to be detrimental to self, friends, family, neighbors, strangers, and country.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by BrianBoyko at 3:03 AM on January 24, 2008

Damn, it's threads like this where I miss my bro Rakim!
posted to MetaTalk by ericb at 1:33 PM on January 6, 2008

The thing that scares me most about Ron Paul, or rather his supporters, is that Paul is as much of a moralistic, right-wing religious kook as Bush, Romney, or Huckabee—if not more so, but his supporters have a blind spot for his anti-Gay Marriage, pro-life ravings.

Anyone who supports constitutional amendments overturning Roe v. Wade and banning Gay Mariage is no candidate that should be getting the progressive vote.
posted to MetaFilter by SansPoint at 7:55 AM on January 6, 2008

I can't be the only one who sees Tex's comments as obvious, and pretty piss-poor, trolling.

You have to go to flamewar with the troll you have, not the troll you want.
posted to MetaTalk by "Tex" Connor and the Wily Roundup Boys at 7:23 PM on December 27, 2007

Hi Metafilter,

I just got out of a year long relationship (God, imagine that! A year! I suppose being too committed is one of my quirks!) because of how awesome I am, and I'd like to go bang a lot of chicks without having to do anything arduous like talk to them overly much or get to know them. I'm told I'm attractive, chicks dig me. Is that a good thing? I dress like a gangster, but with that signature flair that says "I know whether or not what I'm wearing is... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by shmegegge at 3:06 PM on December 18, 2007

I have a natural accent - I am often thought to be either British or Eastern European (having lived in both places), despite being born and raised in the States.

Some day you will look back on that and cringe. I hope.

Frankly, anonymous guy, I feel like you're the end product of way too much cheesy internet porn.

There's a dense mythology of men telling other men that there are lots and lots of girls... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by thehmsbeagle at 1:39 PM on December 18, 2007

The more apt STD analogy would be someone who has caught one, but doesn't want medication. And doesn't much like condoms. And wants to keep having unprotected sex with a lot more people.

OK, sure, but what difference does it make? You still can't tell the person to "stop whoring around, slut." That's not a helpful response, no matter how deep in denial the asker is.

Look, "tough love" may work when someone... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by "Tex" Connor and the Wily Roundup Boys at 9:23 PM on December 3, 2007

The post-DP badge I wear is the way I walk the next day
posted to MetaTalk by wemayfreeze at 10:07 AM on April 3, 2007

I spent 6 years as a grocery stocker/asst. grocery manager/janitor/whipping boy/cashier/bagger/jack of all trades for an asshole of a Food Lion, so my word is God here.

The hard truth is everyone turns into a complete drooling simpleton in the pursuit of consumption; the act of shopping is a barely veiled extension of the lizard-brain eating and rutting activites, despite the words, math and trolleys involved.

first, anyone who abandons their... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by Uther Bentrazor at 10:12 AM on April 3, 2007

This just in: site with disproportionate number of men who *live* on the *internet*

You can't live on the internet. Maybe IN the internet, since it is made up of tubes, but if you were on top of the tubes you would fall off from the vibration of all the data whooshing through them. Although perhaps if you were in the tubes you would be struck down by the data racing around.

Of course as long as it takes some people to get... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by weretable and the undead chairs at 9:29 AM on August 7, 2006