Archive for the 'Stupidity' Category
The Dunning-Kruger Effect
January 4th, 2008
I wish to bring your attention to a very serious disorder, one that probably affects millions of Americans. Do you know someone who’s incompetent but thinks s/he’s really intelligent and knows more than people who are actually experts in a field? If so, that person may be suffering from the Dunning-Kruger Effect.
Symptoms may include:
- Overestimating their own level of skill.
- Failing to recognize genuine skill in others.
- Failing to recognize the extremity of their inadequacy.
Seek medical attention for them immediately.
Sphere: Related ContentWhen Giving Away a $1000 Grand Prize, Make Sure There Aren’t 30,000 Winners
July 23rd, 2007
Today’s story of how not to run a promotion comes to us from Advertising Age and chronicles a major mistake made in Roswell, New Mexico. A local car dealer there ran a promotion whereby customers received scratchers after coming into the dealership. One lucky customer (or so the dealer thought) would be the grand prize winner of $1,000. Instead, 30,000 winning tickets were printed, many of which made their way into the hands of lucky customers. This story would make a perfect lesson for students on why proofreading and attention to detail are so important.
Sphere: Related ContentRoy Pearson’s Pants Are on Fire
June 25th, 2007
Roy Pearson, the man suing a cleaners for $54 million over lost pants, got his day in court today and shockingly lost (the case was tossed by the judge) and may now have to pay legal fees which unfortunately don’t amount to $54 million. According to ABC News, the hearing was brief yet emotional and “Pearson broke down in tears and had to take a break from his testimony because he became too emotional while questioning himself about his experience with the missing trousers.”
Is this guy for real? Pearson should sue himself for losing his dignity and the rest of us should sue him for waisting the court’s time with this insanely stupid lawsuit.
Sphere: Related ContentWatch Out McCarthy, Amazon.com Wants to Turn Me Into a Communist
June 8th, 2007
I went to buy a Father’s Day gift on Amazon.com this morning and happened to glance at the “Recommended for You” section of the home page. Imagine my surprise when Amazon.com recommended Karl Marx’s “The Communist Manifesto”! You know, only 40 years ago Amazon.com would have been dragged before Congress, shut down, and Jeff Bezos would be in prison somewhere. Funny how times change.
Department of Redundancy Department
May 23rd, 2007
This beauty comes courtesy of AOL Television. For months now, I’ve been searching for the ultimate TV listings and have looked at Yahoo TV, TV Guide, MeeVee, TV.com, ZAP2IT, AOL Television, and countless others. So far, I haven’t found one that I absolutely love so the search continues. While conducting my search, I took a look at AOL Television’s guide. In their guide listings, when I enter my ZIP code, I’m offered the following choices:
- Time Warner Cable – Standard, Los Angeles, CA
- Time Warner Cable – Digital Non-Reb, Los Angeles, CA
- Time Warner Cable – Standard, Los Angeles, CA
- Time Warner Cable – Digital Non-Reb, Los Angeles, CA
First of all, as a consumer, how am I supposed to know what “Digital Non-Reb” means? Even if for some reason, I knew, why is each option listed twice? Of course, this ultimately ends up being Time Warner Cable’s fault since they’re the one providing the names. This only goes to show that the merger of AOL and Time Warner is really paying off. Only together can they create such a crappy user experience.
Sphere: Related ContentWould You Like Pot with That?
May 16th, 2007
According to WMAQ in Chicago, a McDonalds employee accidentally gave a child a Happy Meal with pot and a lighter in it. I can’t think of a stupider place to hide your pot than a Happy Meal but if you can, feel free to let me know.
In other news, if you’re thinking about peeing on your old Playstation 2, you should unplug it before you do so or you’ll end up like this guy.
Sphere: Related ContentThe Easy Bullshit Button
April 30th, 2007
Forget the Staples Easy Button. This Bullshit Button is much more useful. You never know when you’ll have to call shenanigans so don’t leave home without it. There aren’t any customer reviews (at least not at the time I’m writing this) so who knows how effective it is. If the amount of times I call shenanigans in a day is any indication though, it sure will come in handy. All I need now is a “don’t bother me, I’m working” button and I’m set.
When Selling Your Car, Knowing the Name of the Person You’re Selling It to Might Be Helpful
April 26th, 2007
The car I drive isn’t registered to me. It’s a long story which I don’t want to go into right now but recently I’ve decided I should probably get the title transfered over to me so I started researching how to do that. Luckily, the California Department of Motor Vehicles Web site is full of useful information, especially this nugget from their FAQ:
Q: What if I cannot remember the name of the person to whom I sold or transferred the vehicle?
A: You may put “unknown” in the new buyer’s name and address fields
Other than Tony Soprano, who sells a car and doesn’t know the name of the person the car was sold to or forgets his/her name four days after the sale (by law, the seller is required to notify the DMV of the sale within 4 days)?
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