Tasteless Humor January 12, 2006 12:23 PM   Subscribe

Witty isn't.
posted by wakko to Etiquette/Policy at 12:23 PM (177 comments total)

Sorry, but I think this level of douchebaggery deserves its own MeTa.
posted by wakko at 12:24 PM on January 12, 2006


No, no, you don't understand - that's just his name. His name really and truly is "douchebag."
posted by soyjoy at 12:28 PM on January 12, 2006


Not for the first time.
posted by NinjaPirate at 12:29 PM on January 12, 2006


Enough with the lack of wit jokes, it is his real name.

His behavior was still pretty awful in that thread.
posted by caddis at 12:30 PM on January 12, 2006


I removed them. meh.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 12:30 PM on January 12, 2006


that was quick! please get rid of all my comments too cause now they look silly.
posted by wakko at 12:31 PM on January 12, 2006


In related news, the planned WittyLand Saudi Arabia theme park has just been cancelled.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:35 PM on January 12, 2006


Next time I'll be sure to join the crowd by wishing pain and death on the Bush administration, conservatives and Christians alike. I forgot how pro-Islam and super-sensitive everyone is about our beloved Muslims.

Absolutely no sarcasm about Muslims please.... it makes Metafilter cry.

Whaaaa!
posted by Witty at 12:36 PM on January 12, 2006


haven't you done enough?
posted by wakko at 12:37 PM on January 12, 2006


Hypocritical pussies... the lot of ya.
posted by Witty at 12:37 PM on January 12, 2006


seriously, could you just shut up while there are still a few people left here who don't hate you?
posted by wakko at 12:39 PM on January 12, 2006


wakko's an incurable optimist; it's sweet.
posted by NinjaPirate at 12:44 PM on January 12, 2006


.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:45 PM on January 12, 2006


Stop hurting America!
posted by blue_beetle at 12:45 PM on January 12, 2006


Please - can't we show a little respect for the death of Witty's comments?
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:46 PM on January 12, 2006


can we get a reproduction of the offending comment so that we know exactly what he did this time? you know, 'cause I need more fuel for the fire.
posted by shmegegge at 12:46 PM on January 12, 2006


I don't care what you think of me wakko... I think you're a tool.

"Whaaaa... someone made a sarcastic comment about Muslims... boo hoo".
posted by Witty at 12:46 PM on January 12, 2006


it was something along the lines of an expression of undying and endearing love for Muslims. He also thinks they are brilliant.
posted by caddis at 12:48 PM on January 12, 2006


He said Muslims don't care about Google.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:49 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty's whole existance can be summed up in one word "meh".
posted by delmoi at 12:54 PM on January 12, 2006


I don't care what you think of me wakko... I think you're a tool.

Likewise. I'd just like to let you know that I and the rest of Metafilter think you're ten pounds of shit in a five pound bag.
posted by wakko at 12:54 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty: What you said in that thread was morally reprehensible. Instead of pawning it off as "sarcasm" why don't you admit that it was wrong. I don't consider myself a liberal, especially not of the bleeding heart variety, but your comments make me sad to be a human being. Please keep that trash inside your fucked up head. That is all.

Matthowie, thanks for deleting my comment as well.
posted by anomie at 12:54 PM on January 12, 2006


can we get a reproduction of the offending comment so that we know exactly what he did this time? you know, 'cause I need more fuel for the fire.

Sure... I said (make sure you're seated):

"A couple of these rituals every week might be a good thing."

In response to this, I said:

"That's because Muslims are fucking insane".

ACK! The horror...
posted by Witty at 12:56 PM on January 12, 2006


"Next time I'll be sure to join the crowd by wishing pain and death on the Bush administration, conservatives and Christians alike."

As messed up as Islam is, I think we can still agree the Bush administration and Christians are far *more* messed up.

Can anyone disagree that America wouldn't be better off if Saddam was still in power and Bush had never been elected? And Christians can't seem to shake the "Left Behind" blood lust where Jesus is getting ready to murder most of the people on Earth.

So I think we as a community have been pretty easy on Bush and the Christians. It's only fair that we treat Islam with the same kid gloves.
posted by y6y6y6 at 12:59 PM on January 12, 2006


Seems pretty offensive to me, and would have been just as offensive in that progressive trance obit. Par for the course, however.
posted by mrgrimm at 12:59 PM on January 12, 2006


I don't consider myself a liberal, especially not of the bleeding heart variety, but your comments make me sad to be a human being.

Oh lord. Please save it.

Matt, can you delete that ridiculously dramatic horseshit of a comment please?

What I said was no more "morally reprehensible" than most of the crap you ding-dongs fling around her about whatever group you choose to target that day. So gimme a break already. I'm starting to feel sorry for you.
posted by Witty at 1:00 PM on January 12, 2006


As messed up as Islam is, I think we can still agree the Bush administration and Christians are far *more* messed up.

No, we can't all agree, knucklehead.
posted by Witty at 1:02 PM on January 12, 2006


You're an ass.
posted by wakko at 1:02 PM on January 12, 2006


It's part of the US guilt complex so large that it'd make a Catholic blush. Any time that anything that could be even tangentially be construed as critical to anyone or anything muslim, it's met with howls of derision by all those MeFites eager to once again put their highly polished political-correctness out on display. Then to complete the double-whammy, there is a brief flurry of revisionism that would put Winston Smith to shame, wherein all comments that conflict with the 'liberal' agenda are cast into the memory hole.

MetaFilter is well on its way to becoming a shining example of what the world would be like if the self-proclaimed liberals of the US had their way. Meet the new boss (if only he wasn't unelectable), same as the old boss.
posted by veedubya at 1:02 PM on January 12, 2006


(Pretty sure we all agree on that.)
posted by wakko at 1:02 PM on January 12, 2006


Good grief
Are you just being an asshole for fun today?
posted by edgeways at 1:03 PM on January 12, 2006


That's the strangest self-ad-hominem I've ever seen.

And yes, Witty, you're an ass. A huge, flaming ass.
posted by bshort at 1:04 PM on January 12, 2006


At this point, is it too early to ask for a ban?
posted by wakko at 1:04 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty is a gangster.
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:05 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty is a degenerate.
posted by delmoi at 1:07 PM on January 12, 2006


So are most gangsters.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 1:07 PM on January 12, 2006


Thank you for having the courage to confront all the Liberazi groupthink victims, Witty. Death is funny, especially when it involves the dusky races in the desert. Don't you let anyone tell you different.
posted by Devils Slide at 1:08 PM on January 12, 2006


Thanks for the callout, wakko, those comments were pretty gross.

Witty, sarcasm generally has a touch of humor, not racism. You might want to try and remember that. Are you trying to get your next level Troll ranking or something?
posted by fenriq at 1:09 PM on January 12, 2006


"MetaFilter is well on its way to becoming a shining example of what the world would be like if the self-proclaimed liberals of the US had their way."

How many years have we been hearing this? Seriously. Anyone want to go back to 2000 and find a political thread where this same thing was said? Word for word preferably.

And yet I see the same amount of conservative voices here as six years ago. Indeed, the place seems much more centrist than ever. So by "well on its way", I assume you mean some time in the next 30 years?
posted by y6y6y6 at 1:09 PM on January 12, 2006


Gangsters normally take their meds.
posted by bshort at 1:09 PM on January 12, 2006


*gets trampled in the rush to stone Witty*
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:10 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty impregnated me with the unholy demon seed of a Chihuahua. The burning is indescribably delicious, but I'm sick of the yapping already. It makes me hungry... so hungry.
posted by loquacious at 1:11 PM on January 12, 2006


morally reprehensible? those fuckers ARE batshitinsane, by our standards. seen the ritual where they all carve thier faces with knives? i'll respect 'em, i understand it's a cultural divide i can't see across, but i still think they're fucking insane. i think pat robertson is batshit insane too. how does witty (or me, for that matter) saying so about muslims cross some line of moral reprehensibility while saying so about the fascist christian right doesn't? hell, i think witty is batshitinsane, but this is an interesting knee-jerk phenomonon we got going on here.
posted by quonsar at 1:11 PM on January 12, 2006


I'm not even a liberal. I just hate trashy, classless, awful comments that add nothing. (Does that make me one? I hope not. I know lots of fun conservatives who wouldn't stand for those comments either.)
posted by wakko at 1:12 PM on January 12, 2006


But they're our Fascists...
posted by bshort at 1:13 PM on January 12, 2006


q: because he also implied that "a few of those" every month would be a good thing.
posted by wakko at 1:13 PM on January 12, 2006


Hey Veedubya,

He said a couple rituals that kill 100's of muslims every week would be a good thing, that is hardly anything that could be even tangentially be construed as critical to anyone or anything muslim. I mean do we have to do the whole replace the word muslims with the word jews or blacks to prove that it was a stupid and kinda teenager pretend psycho thing to say thing?

That having been said, it seemed more puerile and trollish than "morally reprehensible" or any of the other more dramatic outbursts. Witty is like a little boy proudly holding up a handful of his own shit and should be treated as such. Deleting serves no purpose other than to count coup on the other team and to erase these little monuments to stupidity.

feh.
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:13 PM on January 12, 2006


That's not my knee jerking, quonsar.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:14 PM on January 12, 2006


quonsar, yes, they do strange things but he was still trolling in a thread about 350 people being trampled to death.

Regardless of the why, that's just pretty despicable.
posted by fenriq at 1:14 PM on January 12, 2006


q: because he also implied that "a few of those" every month would be a good thing.

sounds like a one-liner i might have tossed off.
posted by quonsar at 1:15 PM on January 12, 2006


q: because he also implied that "a few of those" every month would be a good thing.

Yea, that's the sarcasm. Sorry you didn't think it was funny. But it wasn't meant for you.

I didn't think "Witty isn't" was funny either. But I assume it wasn't meant for me... right?
posted by Witty at 1:18 PM on January 12, 2006


I thought we were talking about knee jerking q?
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:19 PM on January 12, 2006


Divine_Wino, make no mistake, I'm in absolutely no way condoning or agreeing with Witty's comments. My problem is with censorship. Whether Witty is an arsehole or not is neither here nor there, as far as I'm concerned. What I am concerned about is the fact that any time that the same old bunch of self-righteous 'liberals' start hollering long and loud, the comments that caused them to holler are removed.

Witty's comments shouldn't be deleted. Nobody's comments should be deleted. They should all be around as long as this place is around. They should stand as our testament, or our shame.

The moment that you start deleting somebody's words, you've lost the battle.
posted by veedubya at 1:19 PM on January 12, 2006


So much hatred toward Witty. tsk tsk
posted by mischief at 1:20 PM on January 12, 2006


Right, well next time make sure you explicitly address your sociopathic comments to the appropriate parties.
posted by bshort at 1:20 PM on January 12, 2006


I sometimes have issues with the Anti-Rightist aspect of MeFi.
But I believe that if a member had made similar remarks regarding a tragedy at a tent revival in Alabama, their tasteless insensitivity would still be called out.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 1:21 PM on January 12, 2006


sounds like a one-liner i might have tossed off.

You know yourself best of course q, but I disagree. It lacks a certain jenny say qwahnsar.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 1:22 PM on January 12, 2006


morally ... those fuckers ... shit ... ritual ... knives ... can't see ... but i still think they're fucking ... pat robertson ... or me ... muslims cross some ... fascist christian right ... hell ... batshit ... interesting ... jerk phenomonon
posted by loquacious at 1:22 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty's comments shouldn't be deleted. Nobody's comments should be deleted. They should all be around as long as this place is around. They should stand as our testament, or our shame.

I couldn't agree more.
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:22 PM on January 12, 2006


I like Witty because his name rhymes with "Titty." And I like titties.
posted by ColdChef at 1:22 PM on January 12, 2006


I like Witty because his name rhymes with "Titty." And I like titties.

I couldn't agree more.
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:23 PM on January 12, 2006



q: because he also implied that "a few of those" every month would be a good thing.

Yea, that's the sarcasm.


Sarcasm really has no place in that thread. You were wrong to post that crap and you know it. And now you are getting owned here too.
posted by wakko at 1:24 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty's a juvenile little bigot, but I don't think deleting those comments was the right move. They should be part of his "permanent record."
posted by brundlefly at 1:24 PM on January 12, 2006


You must love Conway Twitty.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 1:24 PM on January 12, 2006


I don't like when people use the phrase "owned" because it reminds me of how old I am. Plus, it just fucking sounds stupid.
posted by ColdChef at 1:25 PM on January 12, 2006


I couldn't agree with you more.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:26 PM on January 12, 2006


On posting, what veedubya said.
posted by brundlefly at 1:26 PM on January 12, 2006


And now you are getting owned here too.

Well, then you must be hard as a rock by now. Work the base wakko... work the base.
posted by Witty at 1:26 PM on January 12, 2006


I think I have to defend Witty on this one. Not his comments, but but his right to have them unedited. We have our share of asses around here who make unhelpful, snarky, obnoxious, and/or idiotic comments every day. If Matt were to delete every one of those posts, I think the community would be lesser for it. In fact, I first joined shortly after 9/11 and, like many Americans, was caught up in a bit of bloodlust. One of my first posts was some to the effect of: "Let all the towel-headed motherfuckers burn in hell". I was summarily slapped down in that thread and learned my lesson well, but my post remained for posterity. Just because dorks like Witty never learn their lesson (racist name-calling is not welcome on MetaFilter), should we censor their remarks? Are we so fragile that we cannot bear to see offensive words and/or ideas posted posted within our beloved MeFi? I hope not.
posted by JeffK at 1:28 PM on January 12, 2006


Some people call you the elites; I call you my base.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:28 PM on January 12, 2006


Actually I'm at work, so just stay under the desk until the boss leaves for the day.
posted by wakko at 1:28 PM on January 12, 2006


Just because dorks like Witty never learn their lesson (racist name-calling is not welcome on MetaFilter)...

Uhhh... I never called anyone a "name" or used anything like "towel-headed motherfuckers". Thank you.
posted by Witty at 1:34 PM on January 12, 2006


For the record, I wasn't worked up about Witty's calling Muslims insane, or whatever. I thought his request for weekly Muslim deaths, however, to be disgusting, especially when taken in context.

Witty seems to think that a few people wishing death on Bush gives him licence to be a total prick. Although I don't endorse either practice, the situations are not analogous. The comments Witty made reference to were not made in a thread dealing with deaths within the republican party, or the Bush family, or a similar tragedy. That's the difference, asshole.
posted by anomie at 1:35 PM on January 12, 2006


JeffK - If conditioning worked on Witty, then we wouldn't be having this discussion. I think in general slap-downs should be visible for everyone to see, but in this case Witty is just making himself a spectacle. He's craving the attention and he's oblivious to the affect his words have on others.

So, in this case, I think he should be expunged from that thread. I also think he should be given a timeout until such time as he's able to relate to other MeFites without being such a prick.
posted by bshort at 1:36 PM on January 12, 2006


"effect," even.
posted by bshort at 1:38 PM on January 12, 2006


It may be a nit, but I would classify "That's because Muslims are fucking insane" as racist name-calling.
posted by JeffK at 1:38 PM on January 12, 2006


It's also pretty insensitive to the fucking insane.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:40 PM on January 12, 2006


I mean "bio-chemically challenged."
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:41 PM on January 12, 2006


IANAD
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:42 PM on January 12, 2006


You know, I don't post so much here, but read a lot, and I have to say that this is one of the more unusual overreactions I've seen. Yeah, Witty's comments were insensitive, but whatever.

People are insensitive--gasp! He didn't say "hey guys, let's meet and make a plan to go and murder lots of muslims, because I really hate them". He just sarcastically registered his opinion of a culture for which he has no respect. His right. Everyone else's right to call him out.

I'm with the deleting-comments=bad point of view---for good or ill, the record should stand. But I understand that Matt has a delicate job in this regard, keeping things from devolving too far. His judgment is pretty sound, IMO.

If Witty is such an asshole, why even acknowledge his comments? He only made a couple of (short, easily ignorable) posts--he didn't flood the thread or anything.
posted by LooseFilter at 1:42 PM on January 12, 2006


I agree with the decision to delete the comments for much the same reason as Alvy Ampersand stated:

I sometimes have issues with the Anti-Rightist aspect of MeFi.
But I believe that if a member had made similar remarks regarding a tragedy at a tent revival in Alabama, their tasteless insensitivity would still be called out.

posted by Alvy Ampersand at 4:21 PM EST on January 12 [!]

I don't think that being offended by the calling for the deaths of muslims in a thread about a tragedy is white liberal guilt. I think that if someone had said in one of the Sago Mine threads, "Good, hick coal-miners are all bush supporting Christian dicks, and the world could do with less of them"; then the reaction by the majority of people here would be the same or stronger than the reaction to witty's comments, and it would be rightfully deleted.
posted by ND¢ at 1:43 PM on January 12, 2006


It may be a nit, but I would classify "That's because Muslims are fucking insane" as racist name-calling.

That didn't bug me so much as the wishing-death-upon-muslims post, which was just absolutely uncalled-for.
posted by wakko at 1:43 PM on January 12, 2006


Here's a lovely unoffensive, sarcasm-less Metafilter thread, free from any and all "trashy, classless, awful comments that add nothing".

Let hypocracy ring!

It may be a nit, but I would classify "That's because Muslims are fucking insane" as racist name-calling.

Really? So Muslim is a race? "Muslims are silly"... is that racist name-calling too? I just want to learn Mefi's standard, that's all.

So bshort, are you saying I should just accept my call-out and its consequences whether I agree with it or not... and do nothing? Yea, sure.
posted by Witty at 1:43 PM on January 12, 2006


So bshort, are you saying I should just accept my call-out and its consequences whether I agree with it or not... and do nothing? Yea, sure.

I'm saying that a normal person, one who's not driven to proudly show off his own feces, would consider whether he's being decent or not. In that thread, and in this one, you're being a dick. You're leaving big verbal turds all over the place, and when other people point out that maybe those turds are inappropriate, you counter by claiming that other users lob turds as well, therefore you should be able to do whatever you want.

Which is total bullshit.

Grow up and stop calling for the deaths of hundreds of other people, whether it's sarcastic or not.
posted by bshort at 1:52 PM on January 12, 2006


Let hypocracy ring!

To quote Winston Churchill, "It has been said that hypocracy is the worst form of gummint except all the others that have been tried."
posted by Armitage Shanks at 1:53 PM on January 12, 2006


NDcents hit it well.

I am also with the "leave all comments alone" (and FPPs too, for that matter) brigade, but from previous discussions, I *know* that we are definitely outnumbered.
posted by mrgrimm at 1:53 PM on January 12, 2006


Here's a lovely unoffensive, sarcasm-less Metafilter thread, free from any and all "trashy, classless, awful comments that add nothing".

How bout some examples? That's a long fucking thread, and I didn't want to read it the first time.
posted by mrgrimm at 1:55 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty is.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 1:56 PM on January 12, 2006


" Are we so fragile that we cannot bear to see offensive words and/or ideas posted posted within our beloved MeFi?"

Ok, so there's no standards, and no biases at work at all, right?

All right then, here you go: it'd be a good thing if there was a hurricane in the US once a week, so that there'll be less Americans around - you know, seen as the US is busy violating human rights elsewhere than where the hurricane strikes, and being all about the US anyway, it's all related, even if it really isn't.

How do you like that one?

Why, you think there should there be no snark about dead Americans? why is everyone here so sensitive about that? gosh, it's political correctness gone mad...
posted by funambulist at 1:56 PM on January 12, 2006



Really? So Muslim is a race? "Muslims are silly"... is that racist name-calling too? I just want to learn Mefi's standard, that's all.


Stop pretending that's all you said. Calling for the death of a group of people is a little different than calling them "silly". I would think even a person of your miniscule intellect would've picked up on that.
posted by wakko at 1:57 PM on January 12, 2006


...you counter by claiming that other users lob turds as well, therefore you should be able to do whatever you want.

No... other lobbed turds (as long as they're on the preferred side of Metafilter's opinion) are consistently ignored and allowed to remain. What I said was no more or less sarcastic or offensive than the hundreds of turds I read around here every week.

wakko called it out and wanted to make a big deal out of it... so here's my side of the big deal. I don't have to bow down to your supposed superiority just because you think I should.
posted by Witty at 1:59 PM on January 12, 2006


What I said was no more or less sarcastic or offensive than the hundreds of turds I read around here every week.

Obviously, it was, since it was deleted.
posted by wakko at 2:01 PM on January 12, 2006


In your pathetic opinion.
posted by Witty at 2:02 PM on January 12, 2006


At some point in a pissing contest, all anyone sees is two people pissing on each other....
posted by LooseFilter at 2:03 PM on January 12, 2006


I'd like to see wak and wit 69 it at the next NYC meetup. Maybe one of those Requim for a Dream drug party things.
posted by The Jesse Helms at 2:04 PM on January 12, 2006


They were shitty things to say. The fact that other people around here also say similarly shitty things about complementary subjects doesn't make that any better.

Mefites saying shitty things in response to some person or group's recent death may be a sort of tradition, but it's still shitty.
posted by cortex at 2:04 PM on January 12, 2006


Oh, Witty, your comments would had been so much more defensible if you hadn't tried to defend them yourself.
posted by deadfather at 2:08 PM on January 12, 2006


Darn... should I have called more people names and such?
posted by Witty at 2:12 PM on January 12, 2006


WITTY AIN'T FUNNY - SHOCK! HORROR! PROBE!

To me, the only grounds for deletion should be poor taste. Witty's comments certainly meet that criteria, but I completely disagree that his comments were racist.

Wishing for the deaths of a couple of hundred religiously deluded people (by which I mean fundementalists of any stripe, who wish to impose their viewpoint in a political and social sphere on those who don't willingly adopt it) is crass. But it ain't racist. I'd put money on there being plenty of rich, white western folk in that Hajj. And they're just as batshitinsane as the dusky robewearers of popular imagery.

I can not in all rationality cut more slack for the believers who want to stone me to death, than for the believers who will simply condemn me to their invented hell, and leave it at that.
posted by dash_slot- at 2:13 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty, you're not doing yourself any favours. Take the high road, dude.
posted by veedubya at 2:15 PM on January 12, 2006


No... other lobbed turds (as long as they're on the preferred side of Metafilter's opinion) are consistently ignored and allowed to remain.

...Which is a non-sequitur. We're not talking about whether other people are assholes, we're talking about you and your comments in that thread. How other people act plays no part in whether what you said was wrong.

What I said was no more or less sarcastic or offensive than the hundreds of turds I read around here every week.

Wrong wrong wrong. You may think you shit ice-cream cones, but there are an awful lot of people in this thread denouncing what you said. I don't see that many people standing up for you, and even fewer actually agreeing with you.
posted by bshort at 2:15 PM on January 12, 2006


NewsFlashFilter: Hundreds killed in Hajj stampede in what is known as the Stoning of the Devil ritual earlier today. Sadly, this type of tragedy at a Muslim hajj is quite common given the huge crowds.

Good riddance to those followers of one of the most primitive, retrograde, anti-human organisations still extant. And to hell with knee-jerk bullshit sentimentality. And to hell with the predictable responses this will generate. When I see bad, I call bad. Excuse the hell out of me.
posted by Witty at 2:20 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty, it's not nice to wish people dead. Does a 9 year old girl deserve to be shot just because she lives in a ghetto?

Get over it. And commence the 69.
posted by The Jesse Helms at 2:23 PM on January 12, 2006


"Good riddance to those followers of one of the most primitive, retrograde, anti-human organisations still extant. And to hell with knee-jerk bullshit sentimentality. And to hell with the predictable responses this will generate. When I see bad, I call bad. Excuse the hell out of me."

Much better. See? Wasn't that easy? You just need to word things properly.
posted by y6y6y6 at 2:26 PM on January 12, 2006


Stop pretending that's all you said. Calling for the death of a group of people is a little different than calling them "silly". I would think even a person of your miniscule intellect would've picked up on that.

This is so stupid, it shouldn't even be an issue. Witty should be allowed to say what he wants, and everyone else should be allowed to inform him of how they feel - censorship free. Administrative censorship should only come into play during extraordinary circumstances involving personal information, or out-right hate mongering.

Speaking of which, I remember a whole hell of lot of people wishing for Sharon's death in this thread before it got cleaned up.
posted by SweetJesus at 2:30 PM on January 12, 2006


How many dead Muslims does it take to screw in a light bulb?
posted by Witty at 2:32 PM on January 12, 2006


I don't see that many people standing up for you, and even fewer actually agreeing with you.

And that's a surprise? I carry a minority opinion around here on almost everything. So what you're pointing out to me is nothing new and doesn't prove anything to me.

We're not talking about whether other people are assholes, we're talking about you and your comments in that thread. How other people act plays no part in whether what you said was wrong.

See, I don't agree that what I said was "wrong". I was just following a trend I see played out on Metafilter all the time. The difference is, when I play everyone pretends to be all bent out of shape. I don't buy it.

But I will bow out, as veedubya suggests, and allow the pile-on to take its course.
posted by Witty at 2:34 PM on January 12, 2006


And that's a surprise? I carry a minority opinion around here on almost everything. So what you're pointing out to me is nothing new and doesn't prove anything to me.

Poor little Witty. You're such a free-thinking rebel.
posted by bshort at 2:36 PM on January 12, 2006


I'd put money on there being plenty of rich, white western folk in that Hajj. And they're just as batshitinsane as the dusky robewearers of popular imagery.

I can not in all rationality cut more slack for the believers who want to stone me to death, than for the believers who will simply condemn me to their invented hell, and leave it at that.
posted by dash_slot- at 5:13 PM EST on January 12


See, this is where it becomes a problem of lack of information. The vast majority of people who go to Hajj and 'stone those devils' live in multicultural countries. Heck, Saudi Arabia is full of westerners. None of them get 'stoned to death'. I've done the Hajj myself, multiple times, and I'm physically meek and intellectually viciously liberal, far more than the average American.

How about thinking of people as, well, people?
posted by Firas at 2:37 PM on January 12, 2006


y6y6y6 is right, you know, Witty.
posted by Kwantsar at 2:37 PM on January 12, 2006


The Jesse Helms- It's not 69, it's ass-to-ass. At least if you want a "Requiem for a Dream" drug party.
posted by exlotuseater at 2:44 PM on January 12, 2006


And who doesn't? Humunah!
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:47 PM on January 12, 2006


reluctantly returns, but...

Kwantsar, I have to ask... are you serious? You're saying it would have been better if I had just said, "See ya.. you primitive, retrograde, anti-humans"... than the sarcastic comment about having similar rituals every week? I hope you're just messing with me.

The word games y'all play are ridiculous.
posted by Witty at 2:47 PM on January 12, 2006


Declaring you're done posting in a thread and then immediately returning!

I can't remember whether this marks the start or end of a complete meltdown.

Anyway, I happen to agree with witty. Fuck those crazy religious types. And, while we're at it, I wish a Holocaust would heppen every few weeks or so.

I joke! Jeez, can't you guys take a joke!

That's it, I'm out of here!
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:53 PM on January 12, 2006


This word you keep using, "sarcastic" ... I don't think it means what you think it means.
posted by deadfather at 2:53 PM on January 12, 2006


I'm back!
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:53 PM on January 12, 2006


"I can not in all rationality cut more slack for the believers who want to stone me to death, than for the believers who will simply condemn me to their invented hell, and leave it at that."

But how do you know those who died in the stampede would stone you to death, or support stoning to death?

Just because it's a religious event, doesn't mean it's only the bloodthirsty fundamentalists who go. It's for every Muslim. It's a tradition. There's also Muslims who go there yet aren't even practicing mosque-attending religious people, go figure.

The problem here is crowd control at a massive event and irresponsible behaviour of people in the crowd - the problem of Islam fundamentalism, the problem of barbaric laws and barbaric regimes, the problem of religion extremism in general or even religion itself if that's your pet hate, are all other matters with which these deaths have nothing to do - and it's not like Islam is one body and every single Muslim is responsible for what is done in the name of Islam here and there so "good riddance". That'd be the logic of terrorists.

On preview, what Firas said...

(And now let's have more of the "boo why can't I take the piss out of dead muslims, it's political correctness gone mad!" whining. Bloody hell. What a grip on reality there.)
posted by funambulist at 2:54 PM on January 12, 2006


Heck, Saudi Arabia is full of westerners. None of them get 'stoned to death'.

Maybe so. But if I was - in all other respects - the same person, excepting my religion & nationality be Muslim/Saudi, and lived there (or similarly, /Indonesian/Iranian/Pakistani/ & Muslim) I could be put to death (maybe stoning, maybe beheading, maybe hanging).

It is barbaric. And taking the piss out of it is the least we should do.
posted by dash_slot- at 3:00 PM on January 12, 2006


And taking the piss out of it (the religion, not the sad accidental deaths of believers) is the least we should do.
posted by dash_slot- at 3:01 PM on January 12, 2006


But I will bow out, as veedubya suggests, and allow the pile-on to take its course.
posted by Witty at 5:34 PM EST on January 12 [!]


Boy, does that promise ever sound familiar.
posted by Rothko at 3:01 PM on January 12, 2006


Since the Witty quotes in 48211 have been removed I can only comment on this. If those was his worse jibes then I despair for Metafilter. It really has to get beyond the clique mentality of ganging up on someone who posts something that is regarded as too risque for pre-teens.
posted by movilla at 3:03 PM on January 12, 2006


Just because it's a religious event, doesn't mean it's only the bloodthirsty fundamentalists who go.

Exactly. Witty would to well to remember that Catholics are cannibalistic blood-drinking vampires, because he seems to think "the stoning of satan" is something more than religious symbolism. But then I couldn't give a flying fuck what Witty does, really. His comments shouldn't have been deleted, though, they'll always be useful to bring up in the future.
posted by Jimbob at 3:07 PM on January 12, 2006


As a sidenote, the thing I find most detachadly amusing about 'Muslim pile-ons' is the conflation of Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Many Iranians find it an insult to be compared to Arabs. Many Sunnis (ie. Arabs) despise the religious beliefs of Shias (ie. Iranis).

It's an interesting irony for two groups with so much racism and bigotry between them to be lumped together and branded with differently aimed bigotry.
posted by Firas at 3:09 PM on January 12, 2006


"taking the piss out of it (the religion, not the sad accidental deaths of believers)"

Was there a difference in the comment that sparked this thread, and those who followed suit? Didn't notice.

And just to belabour the point again, while we're at it, I wish a Katrina would happen every few weeks or so. But hey, I'm only taking the piss out of the US foreign policy, not of the sad accidental deaths of Americans, of course... I could actually talk about that policy on its own, in all the billion occasions there are for that, and it's not like I'd be expressing an original position anyway, but I prefer to make it all so much more daringly provocative and risque by bringing it up with a "good riddance" when talking of any Americans dying in unrelated tragedies. Cos I'm not one of you politically correct sheep, you see, I'm above it all... ah fuck it. have fun.
posted by funambulist at 3:15 PM on January 12, 2006


Everything is fair game for humour. But if you're not very good at teh humour, and your joke falls flat on its face, you get what you deserve.

So, yeah, I'm defending Witty (although I can't read whatever he said, of course), but I'm in agreement with the thread poster, too.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 3:18 PM on January 12, 2006


Firas: Agreed. Americans do the same thing with Asians, or as troglodytes like Witty might call them, "Chinee."

The fact that he's a bigot is sad. The fact that he gets off on this type of attention is worse. Thankfully, IRL, these people get demonized and fired. On Mefi, they're defended. Witty indeed.
posted by bardic at 3:21 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty has explicitly stated (in the past) he has no concern for people in different "classes" then him, for example, recreational drug users. Muslims as well, if these posts are any indication. These people's lives and deaths mean nothing to him. Witty is a defective human being, a degenerate in the truest sense of the word.
posted by delmoi at 3:43 PM on January 12, 2006


Radical opinion, hippies complain.
posted by Joeforking at 3:50 PM on January 12, 2006


I just find it remarkable how many people imagine themselves to be sacrifices on the altar of PCness. It's the kind of thought cliche you wouldn't expect to find in anybody but highschool students. "They hate me because I'm not PC!" Really, there should be a law, similar to Godwin, that dictates a set of consequences for adopting the PC Jesus stance.
posted by nixerman at 3:54 PM on January 12, 2006


It's not 69, it's ass-to-ass. At least if you want a "Requiem for a Dream" drug party.

Ya know, Jennifer Connelly got off easy in that movie. I've seen porn stars do much worse for much less money. It's not like she lost a fucking arm or something.
posted by puke & cry at 3:56 PM on January 12, 2006


She did, plus she was already a whore.

Nixerman, goodwin's law dosn't really dictate consequences.
posted by delmoi at 4:00 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty is really MCPC 900 FT Jesus doing a comeback tour.
posted by Rothko at 4:05 PM on January 12, 2006


Also, I keep seeing this whole "witty is 111" thing but I don't ever see anything to back it up. Anyone?
posted by puke & cry at 4:08 PM on January 12, 2006


This site is teeming with 20-somethings who honestly believe the actions of our government in Iraq and elsewhere are morally comparable to the actions of the 9/11 hijackers. I'm hardly surprised to see a lynch mob when someone makes an offensive remark in the other direction.

But that aside, Witty's remark is typical — not of MeFites, certainly, but of most Americans. The most common reaction among Americans to this stampede will be, "That could never happen here. Those people are nuts." And they'll hear that it was a Muslim gathering, and they'll say, "See? There you go."

You can grab your torches and pitchforks, you can condemn Witty as racist filth, and you can pat yourselves on the back for not tolerating his offensive opinions — but it's not like he's out in left field.
posted by cribcage at 4:26 PM on January 12, 2006


No - that would be right field.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:29 PM on January 12, 2006


"That could never happen here. Those people are nuts."

You left off "What's for supper?"
posted by mischief at 4:31 PM on January 12, 2006


MetaFilter user "Witty" in Poor Taste SHOCKAH!
posted by klangklangston at 4:53 PM on January 12, 2006


What gets to me is when people start whining (like a little girl) about "the preferred side of Metafilter's opinion", as if MeFi was a person who was out to get them, instead of being a community of people (and some trollbots) who post whatever the fuck they want. Metafilter doesn't have an opinion. It has thousands of them. A lot of those opinions don't coincide with your own? Tough shit.
Seriously, grow up a little and stop your bawling about how Metafilter is out to get you. It's not. A bunch of people just took it upon themselves to point out your imbecility.
And please, please use the "Check Spelling" link.
posted by signal at 5:04 PM on January 12, 2006


you know, his comment wasn't funny and it wasn't sarcastic, either. He may not literally wish for the death of muslims, but he wasn't making the comment to say "this is bad, we need all the muslims we can get," which is what he would have had to have been saying for it to have been sarcasm.

still, though. what happened to accountability? I say we should have left the comment up, let witty take whatever was coming to him in the thread. sure, it would have derailed the thread, but it already did that. deleting it when it was too little too late anyway. let the record stand is my feeling. it's not a cardinal sin to have said what he said, but it is kind of an dickwad thing to say. so let it stay, so people can look at it and say, "see that? that's why witty is a dickwad."
posted by shmegegge at 5:06 PM on January 12, 2006


Urg. I thought Witty's comments that sparked all this were kind of an asshole thing to say, but I don't agree at all with deleting them. (I personally won't pretend to be moved to tears by the story in question, but I don't really have much use for communal long-long-long-distance grieving...) If nothing else, it sweeps under the rug the "self-policing" that happens around here. Suppose someone new comes along today, and thinks of saying, "ah, fuck the Muslims, the sooner they kill themselves off the better," well, that's one less thing they can look at and decide that posting that isn't such a good idea.
posted by furiousthought at 5:08 PM on January 12, 2006


.
posted by interrobang at 5:09 PM on January 12, 2006


the only thing less funny than Witty's genocidal comments is his syntax
posted by matteo at 5:14 PM on January 12, 2006


A couple of Who concerts in Cincinnati every week might be a good thing.
posted by Otis at 5:15 PM on January 12, 2006


I missed the better part of this thread, and I'm happy.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 5:52 PM on January 12, 2006


This thread had no better part.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:56 PM on January 12, 2006


I'd just like to let you know that I and the rest of Metafilter think you're ten pounds of shit in a five pound bag.

Please stop speaking for me. I have no opinion about Witty either way, to be perfectly honest. I'm not part of this pile-on.
posted by iconomy at 7:17 PM on January 12, 2006


She did, plus she was already a whore.

She didn't, but Jared Leto's character did.
posted by exlotuseater at 7:17 PM on January 12, 2006


*exposes genitalia*
posted by quonsar at 8:01 PM on January 12, 2006


Also, I keep seeing this whole "witty is 111" thing but I don't ever see anything to back it up.

I hear ya, bro. Likewise, I keep seeing this whole "It's his real name" thing but I don't ever see anything to back it up.
posted by soyjoy at 8:38 PM on January 12, 2006


Well, we didn't seem to have any problems with making fun of six million dead Jews, gleefully supported by number one himself so what's the big deal?
posted by Krrrlson at 8:56 PM on January 12, 2006


I'd like to see a link to someone being triumphalist about the deaths of some group of people who are on Witty's good guys list that was greeted with nudge-nudge acceptance by the masses before I'll accept his moral relativism garbage.
posted by Space Coyote at 9:25 PM on January 12, 2006


Krrrlson, I don't get it. Wakko expressed his feelings about a comment he found offensive, just as you did for a post you objected to. That means the system works, no?
Is your beef the subject matter, or the fact that not as many shared your point of view?
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:33 PM on January 12, 2006


Alvy: Unfortunately, lightning doesn't strike Klan rallies often enough.
posted by bardic at 9:59 PM on January 12, 2006


(err, SC I meant)
posted by bardic at 10:01 PM on January 12, 2006


Witty: But I will bow out, as veedubya suggests, and allow the pile-on to take its course.

Rothko: Boy, does that promise ever sound familiar.

Hi pot, I'm kettle. You're...

Oh, never mind. Come to think of it, I'm not sure Rothko's ever bowed out of a thread.
posted by spiderwire at 10:09 PM on January 12, 2006


I have nothing to contribute to this circle jerk/pile on.

**Bows, Leaves.**
posted by Balisong at 10:13 PM on January 12, 2006


No, leave me out of this one, spiderwire.

What do you call 100 Pots on the bottom of the ocean?
posted by Kettle at 10:16 PM on January 12, 2006


Crab pots.
posted by Pot at 10:18 PM on January 12, 2006


...a good start.

On Preview: And now I bid you a fondue farewell.
posted by Kettle at 10:20 PM on January 12, 2006


How many dead Muslims does it take to screw in a light bulb?

Fuck you too, mathowie!
posted by I Love Tacos at 10:36 PM on January 12, 2006


*masturbates furiously*
posted by quonsar at 11:47 PM on January 12, 2006


Reading...

"Or I can see Uncle Hank pulling a nephew aside and saying, 'Don't tell your mom about this, but I scored you some government-grade pot and a teenage runaway who will blow you for a sandwich.' Uncle Hank's the coolest!

...in the link in exlotuseater's comment made this worth my time. Thanks, exlotuseater!
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 12:50 AM on January 13, 2006


Wow. Wasn't expecting that one.

Kettle, do you just lurk on threads waiting for someone to say something like that?
posted by spiderwire at 12:55 AM on January 13, 2006


No. But Pot does.
posted by Kettle at 1:09 AM on January 13, 2006


"I'd like to see a link to someone being triumphalist about the deaths of some group of people who are on Witty's good guys list that was greeted with nudge-nudge acceptance by the masses before I'll accept his moral relativism garbage."

I thought that some Texas A&M students getting killed while building a gigantic pile of wood to be pretty damn funny.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 1:09 AM on January 13, 2006


"But that aside, Witty's remark is typical — not of MeFites, certainly, but of most Americans. The most common reaction among Americans to this stampede will be, "That could never happen here. Those people are nuts." And they'll hear that it was a Muslim gathering, and they'll say, "See? There you go."

Ah then I take it all back with deepest apologies and bow the almighty common reaction of most Americans! I'll walk around the black stone of American popular sentiment and throw stones at all the pc liberal sissies. I'll kneel down in the direction of the Atlantic and pray five times a day to our Muslim-stampede-celebrating overlords. Salaam.
posted by funambulist at 1:13 AM on January 13, 2006


Oh, never mind. Come to think of it, I'm not sure Rothko's ever bowed out of a thread.

FWIW, I have never flamed out, huffing loudly that I'm leaving and never coming back, and then show up five comments later. I leave that to Witty and other certain characters here.
posted by Rothko at 6:45 AM on January 13, 2006


Whaaaa... whaaaaa!!!
posted by Witty at 8:30 AM on January 13, 2006


Image hosted by Photobucket.com
posted by Otis at 9:02 AM on January 13, 2006


Able to take veedubya's advice and stop making an ass of himself?

Witty isn't.
posted by soyjoy at 9:26 AM on January 13, 2006


Whaaaa... whaaaaa!!!!
posted by Witty at 9:49 AM on January 13, 2006


As messed up as Islam is, I think we can still agree the Bush administration and Christians are far *more* messed up.


Uh, no, sorry, we can't. The Catholic church may be whacko on birth control, celibacy, evolution (and science in general), and female priests, but they seem to have a lot fewer stonings than Islam of late. When your religion makes christianity look good on gender equality issues you're not going to win many Phearlez awards.

Which any muslims are free to not give a shit about - I would be amazed if any did - but don't ask me to agree with ranking them near the top of the religion hit list.
posted by phearlez at 10:20 AM on January 13, 2006


You know who I miss? Mossy. Sure, one might call him a one-trick pony, but he was always calm and explanatory about his views, and quick to admit to not knowing something, as far as I can remember. We need more of those.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 11:15 AM on January 13, 2006


Yeah, reading that thread, I think Mossy is great. Davy also quite nicely illustrates how deeply Protestantism is buried in American thought.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:02 PM on January 13, 2006


Ethereal Bligh, as a matter of curiousity, care to expound? You mean the 'scripturalism' (not sure if this is an actual word) in Protestanism rather than reliance on interpretation by religious authority?
posted by Firas at 8:12 PM on January 13, 2006


Yeah, but I would say it a bit differently. Davy doesn't seem to be able to quite get his head around there being all this huge body of text and study that has equal weight to the main text. Mossy doesn't appeal to authority in the usual sense—I read what he wrote as asserting that it is unthinkable to claim to determine the will of Allah outside the context of all these other works, study, and tradition. Judaism is similar, and, less so, the Catholic church and let's not even bring up the Eastern faiths. It's this "scripturalism" which is the exception, not the rule. I think the Protestant mindset sees all this as a mindless adherence to authority and doctrine where the Bible alone is sufficient—that is, it interprets these other faiths in its own terms and doesn't quite realize that these other faiths have a qualitatively different relationship with regard to its believers and its text.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:28 PM on January 13, 2006


Is your beef the subject matter, or the fact that not as many shared your point of view?

I would think the answer is obvious.
posted by Krrrlson at 8:28 PM on January 13, 2006


« Older "New comments" should be a link from category...   |   Reasons given for deletion in MeFi Newer »

You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments