Can this thread become the example of how not to use AskMe?

December 14, 2005 8:34 AM

Can this thread become the example of how not to use AskMe?

(It's also an example of why hit-and-run doesn't work. I know there are people who join purely for AskMe, but that still feels sleazy: most users have certain good faith assumptions, and it feels like they're being taken advantage of by these mongs.)
posted by bonaldi to Etiquette/Policy at 8:34 AM (34 comments total)

That's too bad that the asker decided to be crabby, I felt that considering the tenor of his post, people were actually pretty helpful and forthcoming with information. But hey now that Yahoo Answers is up and running, we can tell them where to go and then they'll see what crap answers really look like.
posted by jessamyn at 8:42 AM on December 14, 2005

It is certainly a disappointing thread to have been posted. I thought when I saw it yesterday that the poster was just using AskMe to blow off steam which in itself would be annoying and is why I didn't respond when I could have done, but seeing his response...
Lot of really crap answers from people to be honest. If i wanted a discussion on politics etc i would go find another message board.
...sort of shows that he is simply taking the piss. I say we hunt him down and kill him. He works in marketing, so really, I doubt anyone would miss him.
posted by chill at 8:49 AM on December 14, 2005

What a prat. There were plenty of good, detailed answers, and perfectly reasonable requests for more information; all in all, more than his daft question deserved.

On the plus side, it's pretty rare to see such knobshinery on AskMe.

I know there are people who join purely for AskMe

I'd really like to see some statistics on AskMe usage, maybe a pie chart or something - it's often said on MetaTalk that AskMe is the throbbing heart of the MetaFilter empire, but it still seems unlikely to me that folk could see it as the main business of the site.
posted by jack_mo at 8:58 AM on December 14, 2005

what the fuck is a mong?
posted by jonmc at 9:11 AM on December 14, 2005

jonmc: If you need to ask, you are one.
posted by xmutex at 9:13 AM on December 14, 2005

hmm, that's disappointing to see someone say that sort of thing to people trying to help him.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 9:13 AM on December 14, 2005

jonmc, Wikipedia is your friend. I'm guessing he wasn't trying to identify people as Hmongs.
posted by onalark at 9:15 AM on December 14, 2005

I'm sure and I kinda guessed the meaning, but that's a weird ass word.
posted by jonmc at 9:16 AM on December 14, 2005

Dictionary.com is also your friend and neighbor. (Aussie slang, how quaint.)
posted by Gator at 9:31 AM on December 14, 2005

Wikipedia is your friend.

not mine.
posted by quonsar at 9:42 AM on December 14, 2005

Ahhh .......I'm Claiming Ownership of the Mong .....Southern Bar , 1988.
posted by sgt.serenity at 9:54 AM on December 14, 2005

Indio1919 should emigrate right the fuck out of MetaFilter. Way to be a dick to the same group of people that helped you hide your obsession with gay animal porn, bro.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 9:55 AM on December 14, 2005

The rest of his posting history is pretty meh, too. A few other questions, and comments split between thin elaborations in his own questions and throwaway junk in others'.
posted by cortex at 9:58 AM on December 14, 2005

i wonder if/when they'll realise that they're blaming others for some fault in themselves? the country. askme. whatever.
posted by andrew cooke at 10:15 AM on December 14, 2005

Bad question but the early answers were informative. I was operating under the impression that everyone was automatically a citizen of where ever they were born.
posted by Mitheral at 10:20 AM on December 14, 2005

Oh . . . from mongoloid. I get it now.
posted by JanetLand at 10:21 AM on December 14, 2005

To my mind, you can usually tell by the way a question on AskMe is phrased whether or not it is worth replying to. I completely passed by this post.

The guy is obviously a mong.
posted by JeffK at 10:25 AM on December 14, 2005

The rest of his posting history is pretty meh, too. A few other questions, and comments split between thin elaborations in his own questions and throwaway junk in others'.

Like recommending Irreversible to a sexual assault vicitm movie night.
posted by 6550 at 10:29 AM on December 14, 2005

I can't believe my comment about jessamyn's wikipedia entry stayed on the talk page for quonsar's. I figured it would be deleted since I didn't have a wiki account.
posted by shmegegge at 11:24 AM on December 14, 2005

If i wanted a discussion on politics etc i would go find another message board

...and yet...

This county is f***ed

...isn't political?
posted by normy at 11:59 AM on December 14, 2005

Bad question but the early answers were informative. I was operating under the impression that everyone was automatically a citizen of where ever they were born.

Birthright citizenship may be on the way out in the states too, if Rep. Tancredo has his way.
posted by dash_slot- at 12:16 PM on December 14, 2005

If it's not too much trouble, I would be very happy if we could avoid the word "mong" here. Just a request, no offense intended bonaldi.
posted by teleskiving at 12:48 PM on December 14, 2005

I'm sure and I kinda guessed the meaning, but that's a weird ass word.

Very common insult in Britain, dear chap. Along with "spacker", "spazz", "div" and "Assperg".

Actually I made the last one up. Sorry.
posted by Decani at 3:53 PM on December 14, 2005

(It's also an example of why hit-and-run doesn't work. I know there are people who join purely for AskMe, but that still feels sleazy: most users have certain good faith assumptions, and it feels like they're being taken advantage of by these mongs.)

I totally agree. Its not a huge problem, of course... if it were, you'd see the average number of responses per question drop, and I haven't noticed that . But more out of a sense of fairness, I think we should do more to discourage that. When I joined, before you could post to the frontpage of the blue, you had to waiting period and had to comment a bit (I assume this is still true). Could something like this be implemented for AskMe?

My personal preferred solution to this and the sockpuppet problem would be to double the registration fee, but I'm sure Matt didn't choose that value lightly.
posted by gsteff at 4:58 PM on December 14, 2005

I thought it might be worth making you have to post in the blue or grey before you used the green -- so at least we know that users know about them.

teleskiving: sure! I didn't realise that a) it was uncommon, b) could give offence to anyone. I take it back. Indio1919 is a chumping spunk biscuit.
posted by bonaldi at 5:39 PM on December 14, 2005

and a scoper.
sorry
posted by bonaldi at 5:39 PM on December 14, 2005

I'm sure Matt didn't choose that value lightly.

Really? Do you think he employed a team of economists to generate a demand curve?
posted by Kwantsar at 7:00 PM on December 14, 2005

I can still remember being in English class and discussing the Spastics' Society's change of name to Scope, because of the negative and pejorative connotations the word "Spastic" had. Almost instantaneouly, huddles of insenstive youngsters were debating amongst themselves whether "Scopo", "Scopy" or "Scoper" would be the preferred new insult-du-jour.

Words only have the power you give them, was the point I took away from that lesson.

I've actually emigrated from the UK myself, and would have probably posted a reply if the guy hadn't phrased his quite question so shmuckily.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 10:32 PM on December 14, 2005

bonaldi, thanks. You might be interested in this UK survey. It's interesting that more people voted for "retard" as being the most offensive, I suspect this is mainly due to the relative infrequency and unfamiliarity of "mong". "Scoper" didn't even make the list, I'm guessing for the same reasons.

FWIW, Matt Dillon's character in "There's Something About Mary" trying to impress Cameron Diaz with his professed affection for Down syndrome children was one of the funniest things I've ever seen in a movie, and wouldn't have worked nearly as well if he hadn't used all the wrong words.
posted by teleskiving at 2:33 AM on December 15, 2005

Very common insult in Britain, dear chap. Along with "spacker", "spazz", "div" and "Assperg".

Actually I made the last one up. Sorry.

Near miss. "Aspie" is perfectly acceptable as both a respectable term and childish insult, depending on your intentions.
posted by londonmark at 2:54 AM on December 15, 2005

But what I meant to say was: sure, the guy's a jerk, but there are plenty of them. Didn't somebody once ask why we lift our butt cheeks up to fart? Where was the callout for that?
posted by londonmark at 2:56 AM on December 15, 2005

If it's not too much trouble, I would be very happy if we could avoid the word "mong" here.

When I worked in a school for severly disabled children, all the staff referred to the kids as mongs. Which was quite disturbing. (Not as disturbing as dealing with a 6' 5" grinning megamong hurling shit from his nappy at me with one hand and wanking with the other, admittedly. That I will never forget.)
posted by jack_mo at 4:13 AM on December 15, 2005

Quonsar: non-notable blogging non-deity.
posted by blag at 4:40 AM on December 15, 2005

Didn't somebody once ask why we lift our butt cheeks up to fart? Where was the callout for that?
posted by londonmark at 2:56 AM PST on December 15

Did he castigate the answerers for not doing a good job? I don't really care what someone asks as long as they appreciate the effort put forth by others; that's why I'm such a (sincere, take note) ass-kisser in my AskMe threads.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 7:50 AM on December 15, 2005