MetaFilter posts tagged with bullshit

my grandma married an engineer, so did my mom, oh and I'm one too

infini — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 08:57:08 -0800

Islamic terrorists are more likely to be engineers than members of any other profession--and not because engineers possess superior technological skills. That's the conclusion of a controversial Oxford University study that has the engineering community buzzing. (PDF) The study's disturbing finding blames what it calls a universal engineering mindset, which it describes as one drawn to structure and rules plus clear, single solutions to complex problems. When coupled with the harsh realities of life in many Islamic countries, terrorism can be the result, the study says. ~ Via EETimes Some righteous snarking online includes, This assertion based on some very fuzzy numbers indeed. We compiled a list of 404 members of violent Islamist groups drawing from a variety of sources... Our sources include... the press, governmental and nongovernmental organisations and websites... We searched in Lexis Nexis... and in Google. We also searched... Fox News; CTV News; Dutch News...

when they pry it from my cold, dead hands

allkindsoftime — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:34:09 -0800

Net Neutrality Update: Comcast admits to paying people to stack the room in their favor at a public hearing with FCC commissioners in Boston. Via savetheinternet. Previously.

Politics never changes.

telstar — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 14:12:30 -0800

Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes.

Myth-busters have the odds against them

homunculus — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 22:30:38 -0800

Persistence of Myths Could Alter Public Policy Approach. "The conventional response to myths and urban legends is to counter bad information with accurate information. But the new psychological studies (PDFs) show that denials and clarifications, for all their intuitive appeal, can paradoxically contribute to the resiliency of popular myths." [Via Firedoglake, more at MindHacks.]

Superstring Backswing

chuckdarwin — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 15:22:06 -0800

The hucksters behind the QLink Pendant claim that it "utilises Sympathetic Resonance Technology to rebalance the energetic systems of the body". Apparently, some scientists and engineers think £69.99 is a fair price for a necklace consisting of a copper coil and a zero-ohm resistor [neither of which are actually connected to anything]. The inventor claims that the QLink does not use electronics components “in a conventional electronic way” yet it "increases your capacity to function in EMF saturated environments."I guess golfers will buy anything that promises an improved score. It's the perfect accessory for my new Faraday suit.

Yet more Bullshit

hoverboards don't work on water — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 15:22:49 -0800

There's been plenty of Bullshit! on MetaFilter before, and now there's more: Boy Scouts [1, 2, 3] ("Duty to God ahead of country, others, and self, is the credo of suicide bombers."); Wal-Mart Hatred ("Wal-Mart is one of the great anti-poverty programmes in the country."); Circumcision ("By the end of this programme, one of these three will drop their pants and show us the restored foreskin on their penis."); and The Best ("Stupid? How many of you are searching for it on the web right now?").

Keepin' It Real

dhammond — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 18:55:18 -0800

The Rise Of Bullshit In The Black Community [YouTube, NSFW] Author/humorist Sabrina Lamb tackles "the epidemic of bullshit sweeping the black community" in a new book.

Ooo...kay...

Iridic — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 13:38:45 -0800

Magician David Copperfield has succeeded where Alexander the Great and Ponce De Leon failed--he's discovered the fabled Fountain of Youth. As it turns out, it's conveniently located on his posh resort in the Exuma Chain, Bahama Islands.

BULLSH*T!

crunchland — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 09:22:19 -0800

BULLSHIT! Penn & Teller present their rational, libertarian bent views on diverse subjects, now available for free download on Google Video ::: profanity; creationism; alien abductions; conspiracy theories; recycling; gun control; endangered species; religion; the bible; family values; the apocalypse; signs from heaven; the occult; 12-step recovery programs; exercise v. genetics; environmentalism; hypnosis; ghosts; the war on drugs; feng shui / bottled water; college; PETA; and abstinence.

Bigfoot is Bullshit?

kyleg — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 21:34:03 -0800

"After our transparently bogus story and our impossibly shitty video appeared on the website... we received a flood of messages from big-shot bigfoot hunters who were dying to find out about [the] footage. Our plan was working." So, Penn and Teller faked the Sonoma bigfoot footage. But only the BFRO fell for it. Conveniently, they deleted the evidence of that. With so many sasquatch enthusiasts expressing doubt about the video when it was released, can our favorite Libertarian and mime really use it to prove that bigfoot is bullshit?

Yeah, that's the ticket!

EarBucket — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 17:26:25 -0800

One day after President Bush vowed to reduce America's dependence on Middle East oil by cutting imports from there 75 percent by 2025, his energy secretary and national economic adviser said Wednesday that the president didn't mean it literally.

Creation Tectonics

notsnot — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 17:12:07 -0800

Computer Modeling of the large-scale tectonics associated with the Genesis flood...

Hypertextual antimony contra postmodernist discourse claims

painquale — Mon, 24 Oct 2005 13:40:57 -0800

Characterizing a Fogbank. A prominent analytic philosopher discusses whether postmodernism is worth taking seriously.

When the president talks to God

kirkaracha — Wed, 04 May 2005 23:10:22 -0800

When the president talks to God [8MB wmv, also mov] Are the conservations brief or long? Suprisingly blunt protest song (lyrics) performed by Bright Eyes last night on The Tonight Show. (The single is available as a free download from the iTunes Music Store.)

On Bullshit

trharlan — Tue, 01 Feb 2005 06:33:43 -0800

Harry Frankfurt's "On Bullshit" One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit. Everyone knows this. Each of us contributes his share. But we tend to take the situation for granted.... I propose to begin the development of a theoretical understanding of bullshit, mainly by providing some tentative and exploratory philosophical analysis.

Pink Floyd and Indecency

tgrundke — Sat, 13 Mar 2004 07:01:43 -0800

Crap - now they FCC Thought Police are going after Pink Floyd. Is nothing sacred?! WNCX, a local Cleveland "Classic rock" station (who just happens to be the same station that airs The Howard Stern Show in the area) is unable to play Pink Floyd's "Money" because of the use of the word "bullshit" within the song. To be honest, until this was brought to my attention, I had completely overlooked that lyric in the song. But thanks to the FCC War Against Indency, I'm now fully aware of it! What other cases of 'indecency' would you have overlooked had the authorities not brought it to your attention?

Sorry

titboy — Wed, 17 Dec 2003 04:59:10 -0800

Sorry. We at Showtime Online express our apologies; however, these pages are intended for access only from within the United States.

I'm not reading this. This is bullshit.

CrazyJub — Sat, 31 May 2003 08:16:28 -0800

Dissent in the ranks. US Secretary of State Colin Powell was under persistent pressure from the Pentagon and White House to include questionable intelligence in his report on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction he delivered at the United Nations last February, source: US News and World Report Magazine. According to the report, the draft contained such questionable material that Powell lost his temper, throwing several pages in the air and declaring, "I'm not reading this. This is bullshit."

Bane — Mon, 24 Jul 2000 20:27:36 -0800

Bullshit Analyzer is bullshit.
(either that or it's rigged)...
I made up a nice page of pure bullshit, and the best score I've been able to get is 100% BS, 14 points...
this is after days of looking through EULA's and clickwrap licences for inspiration... Is BA BS? or is it just too smart for me???