Comments on 11834

Is there anything that could've saved EarBucket's post? A link to the full interview? Omitting/removing the "retarded" tag? Anything?

And deleting the second one as a "double post" is just disingenuous when the first one has already been deleted.
posted by rkent at 6:44 PM on May 7, 2006

Was there ever a point where linking to nothing more than a Reuters soundbite didn't suck?
posted by Wolfdog at 6:48 PM on May 7, 2006

Oh, I think there are quite a few Reuters soundbites that would be worthy of inspiring a post.
posted by blue_beetle at 6:56 PM on May 7, 2006

Oh, huh. That's not a vile slander. It's a boring slander.
posted by furiousthought at 7:05 PM on May 7, 2006

rkent, you gotta be fucking kidding me. You've been a member what now, two years?
posted by Saucy Intruder at 7:06 PM on May 7, 2006

Or, more precisely, just a boring post.
posted by furiousthought at 7:06 PM on May 7, 2006

No I don't think anything could have saved this. Shallow jabs at the president contribute zip to the wealth of content that is MeFi and invite divisive arguments that hurt the community overall. "Haha look something stupid Bush said" as a genre has gotten way out of control. I'm left of left and I get tired of seeing people reach to make a gaffe out of every little thing he says. If I were prez I'd probably treasure my leisure moments, too, to be absolutely truthful.
posted by scarabic at 7:14 PM on May 7, 2006

quoth mathowie: ~~nevermore~~ lol bush iz teh dum
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:15 PM on May 7, 2006

Saucy: Yes, "too vile a slander" was sarcastic.

The justification for deleting the first post was "lol bush is teh stupid," which I assume means something like "this is more of the same old Bush hatred." But really, it was just a direct quote. You can argue that it was taken out of context, but I think it pretty much stands on its own. And the fact that it got 50 posts in 4 hours seems to belie the idea that it was "boring." Besides, what ever happened to just not reading threads that bore you?

Look, I know I can go to Kos or Atrios to get my fill of this stuff, but the thing is, most of those comments really are the intellectual equivalent of "lol bush is teh stupid." At least people are clever here. Come on, "Fishing Accomplished"? Comedy gold.
posted by rkent at 7:17 PM on May 7, 2006

lol bush iz teh dum

Yeah OK, "dum" not "stupid."
posted by rkent at 7:18 PM on May 7, 2006

"It got comments so it must have been a good post."
posted by smackfu at 7:20 PM on May 7, 2006

Look, I know I can go to Kos or Atrios to get my fill of this stuff, but the thing is, most of those comments really are the intellectual equivalent of "lol bush is teh stupid."

and you want us to follow in their footsteps?

those posts sucked ... i don't want to read or discuss every asinine thing the president says ... there are 6 1/2 billion other people in the world and some of them actually put things up on this web thingy that could be called the best of the web, not the worst of the prez

got it?
posted by pyramid termite at 7:21 PM on May 7, 2006

"Fishing Accomplished" is comedy gold, though.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:23 PM on May 7, 2006

Metafilter: lol bush iz teh dum
posted by Effigy2000 at 7:30 PM on May 7, 2006 [1 favorite]

Look, I know I can go to Kos or Atrios to get my fill of this stuff, but the thing is, most of those comments really are the intellectual equivalent of "lol bush is teh stupid."

and you want us to follow in their footsteps?

May I draw your attention to the sentence that followed that one: "At least people are clever here." Sometimes clever snark is enough, you know? Not every post has to be so insightful it blows your mind.

i don't want to read or discuss every asinine thing the president says

Then don't read the posts that point out "every asinine thing the president says." At the moment there are at least a dozen posts on the front page that don't appear the slightest bit interesting to me; some even seem positively vapid (and horror of horrors, some of them only have a single link!). I'm just not gonna read them. I'm not asking that they be deleted; I wouldn't even be in favor of their deletion. Live and let live, you know?
posted by rkent at 7:36 PM on May 7, 2006

Ax grinding Bush-sucks-filter is not the best of the web and always deserves deletion. And the real comedy gold in that post was Matt's "lol bush iz teh dum."
posted by LarryC at 7:43 PM on May 7, 2006

And the real comedy gold in that post was Matt's "lol bush iz teh dum."

Well, given that he's used variations on that phrase for deletion reasons dozens of times before, I'm going to have to disagree with you there.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:46 PM on May 7, 2006

Then don't read the posts that point out "every asinine thing the president says."

but there are not posts for "every asinine thing the president says" ... if you think really, really hard, you might even figure out why
posted by pyramid termite at 7:47 PM on May 7, 2006

rkent writes "But really, it was just a direct quote."

rkent it wasn't a direct quote from the President. Translated and potentially paraphrased without a quoted question. I think that still remains closer to hearsay on the basis of that article.

I award ericb 5 points for the fishin' accomplished line. I take away 20 for the post though.
posted by peacay at 7:50 PM on May 7, 2006

How is it a 'double post' if one of the posts is deleted (and thus never seen)?

That's BS.
posted by delmoi at 7:56 PM on May 7, 2006

Jesus, rkent, what did you hope to accomplish with this moronic callout? The reason for the deletion was clear; simplistic newsfilter anti-Bush posts are lame. There's no arguing that - hell, you don't even try. Do you really want more of that kind of bullshit on the front page?

Fuckin hell, you people would make posts to Metatalk about the size and smell of your daily shits if you thought you could get away with it.
posted by mediareport at 7:57 PM on May 7, 2006

"It got comments so it must have been a good post."

Well... sort of. If there were lots, and only a few were "this sucks and should be deleted" (because there are always a few), and some were really funny... I mean, what's your standard? If lots of people read the thread and want to talk about it, then I feel like it's on the right track even if it's controversial or impolite or whatever.

I don't really have a hard on for these particular posts, it's just that this link has been bouncing around the 'net and I would expect, all else equal, that the discussion of it here would be funnier and/or more insightful than the discussion elsewhere. And I honestly thought the first thread was bearing that out before it got deleted.

but there are not posts for "every asinine thing the president says" ... if you think really, really hard, you might even figure out why

Alright look P.T., I've never insulted your intelligence, and you could extend me the same courtesy, even if you disagree with me. I mean we're both old Kalamazoo guys, let's be friends, eh?
posted by rkent at 7:58 PM on May 7, 2006

"Fishin' accomplished" is funny, "Fishing accomplished" misses the mark.
posted by delmoi at 7:59 PM on May 7, 2006

And deleting the second one as a "double post" is just disingenuous when the first one has already been deleted.

The explanation is that I deleted the second one, because I saw the lame morning one. I didn't know jessamyn deleted the first one already when I posted that reason.

Though the Bush quote was pretty crazy, the story and link and discussion were all pretty pointless and go onto the same junk heap as the rest of the "lol bush is the stupidz" posts we've had hundreds of times before.
posted by mathowie at 8:03 PM on May 7, 2006

"lol bush is the stupidz" posts we've had hundreds of times before

Not to mention, the hundreds more that could have been. Besides make Colbert's writers work for once instead of just ripping us off. ;-P
posted by mischief at 8:14 PM on May 7, 2006

rkent : a word of advice ... choose your battles. Is the deletion of some one-link reuters newsfilter article about some stupid quote from the President really worth fighting for?
posted by crunchland at 8:22 PM on May 7, 2006

i am a jelly donut.
posted by quonsar at 8:27 PM on May 7, 2006

Berliner!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 8:32 PM on May 7, 2006

Here's a couple of direct quotes:

"But really, it was just a direct quote. You can argue that it was taken out of context, but I think it pretty much stands on its own. And the fact that it got 50 posts in 4 hours seems to belie the idea that it was 'boring.' Besides, what ever happened to just not reading threads that bore you?"

and

"...it's just that this link has been bouncing around the 'net and I would expect, all else equal, that the discussion of it here would be funnier and/or more insightful than the discussion elsewhere."

Unfuckingbelievable. How is it possible that someone who's been a member for two years would think this could possibly have been a decent post? How is it possible that someone who's been a member for two years would think that "the discussion of it here would be funnier and/or more insightful than the discussion elsewhere" could make something worth posting?

I don't get it. I really don't. Pyramid termite insulted rkent's intelligence because rkent deserve it. He's an idiot. He's been a member for two years and he thinks that a single-link to a quote of Bush in a wire service article is a good MetaFilter post.

What's scary is that rkent isn't that extraordinary. Every week or so there's a MetaTalk post just like this one.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:36 PM on May 7, 2006

Look, I know I can go to Kos or Atrios to get my fill of this stuff, ...
Ding, ding, ding, ding! Now all you need to do is make the connection between "somewhere else is the proper place for the dregs of the web" and "MeFi is not the place for those dregs". Would you like some thinking music?
posted by dg at 8:40 PM on May 7, 2006

rkent : a word of advice ... choose your battles.

Fine. Point conceded.
posted by rkent at 8:58 PM on May 7, 2006

I mean, what's your standard? If lots of people read the thread and want to talk about it, then I feel like it's on the right track even if it's controversial or impolite or whatever.

I think the usual standard is 'best of the web'

Many comments do not indicate a good post, this was not 'controversial' or 'impolite'. Jesus, there's probably a substantial majority of metafilter members that would love to pull the trigger, when they put the bastard against the wall. Did you think the post was deleted because it was excessively daring?

Lots of people want to talk about it? Well, uh, that's nice. Unfortunately this kind of post is only ever going to inspire chat rather than discussion. What exactly would you have us discuss? Where are the issues here?
Look, people say that they want to discuss it here rather than on DKos, because the standard of discussion is higher. That is not a simple one-way street, if all of our FPPs looked like fark.com or DKos stuff, then within a month the smart people would leave and the standard of discussion would be exactly the same as it is over there. If we don't weed out these tiresome rah-rah-rah self congratulatory circlejerk threads, then Metafilter will suck. And we don't want that, do we?

On preview: I think Quonsar said it best.
posted by atrazine at 8:59 PM on May 7, 2006

I am a cream cheese.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 9:13 PM on May 7, 2006

Muh muh muh muh muh.
posted by boo_radley at 9:19 PM on May 7, 2006

I am a cream cheese.

I could really go for a crab rangoon right about now.
posted by delmoi at 9:26 PM on May 7, 2006

... self congratulatory circlejerk threads ...

He shoots! He scores! Give that man a cookie!
posted by mischief at 10:08 PM on May 7, 2006

The direct quote in German is at the end of the page. It comes right after the question of the worst moment in his presidency. I think it is more of a light note to end the interview than a serious answer. Notice the 'lacht' (laughing) at the end of the sentence.
posted by sebas at 11:20 PM on May 7, 2006

posted by mediareport Fuckin hell, you people would make posts to Metatalk about the size and smell of your daily shits if you thought you could get away with it.

Instead, we have weekly posts about the size and stink of contributions from ParisParamus and Dios.
posted by fandango_matt at 2:07 AM on May 8, 2006

He turned me into a Perch !
posted by sgt.serenity at 2:53 AM on May 8, 2006

I got better though.
posted by sgt.serenity at 2:54 AM on May 8, 2006

"Not every post has to be so insightful it blows your mind."

For fuck's sake man. On the contrary, every post ought to be so insightful it blows your mind. The fact that we rarely attain that standard is no excuse for not trying.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 3:07 AM on May 8, 2006

Metafilter has jumped the Perch.

(not as good as fishing accomplished but it's a decent try)
posted by sgt.serenity at 3:24 AM on May 8, 2006

i think we should imperch the president
posted by pyramid termite at 4:21 AM on May 8, 2006

could we perch ants have a serious discussion on the topic?
posted by quonsar at 4:28 AM on May 8, 2006

could we perch ants have a serious discussion on the topic?

I'm a frayed knot.
posted by fixedgear at 4:34 AM on May 8, 2006

YOU KEDS GET OFF MY LAWN!
posted by pyramid termite at 4:40 AM on May 8, 2006

"At least people are clever here." Sometimes clever snark is enough, you know?

No, it's really not.
posted by Witty at 5:14 AM on May 8, 2006

Don't tell quonsar.
posted by fleacircus at 5:31 AM on May 8, 2006

Any post about Bush (or whatever the current administration is) will get a bunch of comments. That's just the way it is, it is not an indication of their merit.

A silly quote from Bush is not news, and is most certainly not "Best of the web." Those posts deserved the death they got.
posted by Rhomboid at 6:07 AM on May 8, 2006

But really, it was just a direct quote.

And this is supposed to be a brief for the defense? I have no words. I'll just point to EB's excellent response.

Berliner!

That link led me to this one, which delighted me by throughly demolishing that stupid legend that Kennedy said "I am a jelly doughnut." Wikipedia shoots! It scores!
posted by languagehat at 6:10 AM on May 8, 2006

I can't tell you how devastated I am to learn the truth about that jelly donut line. Damn you, wikipedia, and damn you, L-hat. My world is a little less whimsical this morning. Faugh.
posted by CunningLinguist at 6:38 AM on May 8, 2006

damn you, L-hat. My world is a little less whimsical this morning.

My work here is done!

*walks away whistling jauntily*
posted by languagehat at 6:40 AM on May 8, 2006

i am a jelly donut

I am a cup of coffe. Feel free to dunk.
posted by jonmc at 6:52 AM on May 8, 2006

Google Video links, instead, are not loltehsuck and really make this site more interesting (same for Flash games about dancing chipmunks).

clearly, pointing out the lameness of the man who sent thousands of Americans to slaughter (killing tens of thousands of brown-skinned non-Americans in the process, but we all know that the only dead MeFi cares about are American dead) is not good for business (ie, new accounts)

as a business decision, it totally makes sense -- money talks, and people obviously spend five dollars to get askmefi advice, not to read political links that, shit, could make them uncomfortable and all. Truth, as we all know, equals axe-grinding around here
posted by matteo at 8:33 AM on May 8, 2006

An axe-grinder who's right is still an axe-grinder.
posted by matthewr at 8:38 AM on May 8, 2006

"That link led me to this one, which delighted me by throughly demolishing that stupid legend that Kennedy said 'I am a jelly doughnut.'"

My cream cheese comment was intended to be an example. It's not a perfect example ("I am a Philadelphian"). I think I came up with a really good English example years ago, but I can't remember what it was. Anyway, putting aside the correctness or incorrectness of the grammar, Berliners were not in the least confused by his statement...just like no one would think I'm cream cheese (or a steak sandwich) if I said "I'm a Philadelphian".

This urban legend is closely related to the "Nova was a poorly selling automobile in Latin America" in that the teller is proving the adage that a little knowledge is dangerous. In both cases, a superficial familiarity with the language is required, but not enough familiarity to recognize that the UL is false, even stupid. This is a common characteristic of a certain kind of urban folklore—it's a little piece of supposed "secret knowledge" that flatters the teller. This is the case with the glass UL, as well.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:44 AM on May 8, 2006

This is a common characteristic of a certain kind of urban folklore—it's a little piece of supposed "secret knowledge" that flatters the teller.

or simply harmless amusement. switch to decaf, dude.

Truth, as we all know, equals axe-grinding around here

eh. it's one thing to tell the truth, another to bludgeon everyone with it, especially here where most of the audience agrees. But like anything else, repetition gets boring after awhile.
posted by jonmc at 8:49 AM on May 8, 2006

Change the record, matteo, your song is getting boring.

Seriously, how a member can craft such awesome FPPs on MeFi and yet incessantly spout horse shit here in MeTa astounds me.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:03 AM on May 8, 2006

So have we really reached the point where posting a direct quote from the President is considered too vile a slander to let stand (twice)?

When George Bush doesn't sue us, you'll be thankful. Twice.
posted by StrasbourgSecaucus at 9:04 AM on May 8, 2006

Breaking news: according to the White House version of the interview it was a large mouth bass.
posted by gubo at 9:12 AM on May 8, 2006

My cream cheese comment was intended to be an example. It's not a perfect example ("I am a Philadelphian"). I think I came up with a really good English example years ago, but I can't remember what it was.

The English equivalent I heard (maybe from a post of yours? dunno) was New Yorker. There is a magazine titled New Yorker, but if someone told you "I am a New Yorker", you would never think they were telling you they're a magazine.
posted by agropyron at 9:21 AM on May 8, 2006

Between the Berliner thing here and finding out that Yma Sumac's real name wasn't Amy Camus after all, I'm really annoyed at metafilter this week. And it's only Monday.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 9:22 AM on May 8, 2006

There's no Sergio Valente either, dude.
posted by jonmc at 9:23 AM on May 8, 2006

Next you'll be telling me there isn't a secret club somewhere that my Members Only jacket gets me into.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 9:37 AM on May 8, 2006

An axe-grinder who's right is still an axe-grinder.

That deserves an explanation, methinks, or at least a triangulation in terms of "best of the web."
posted by bardic at 9:48 AM on May 8, 2006

There is about fourteen different kinds of ugly wrongness in matteo's comment.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 9:54 AM on May 8, 2006

Yeah, he's slipping.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:56 AM on May 8, 2006

Meh, I have always maintained the number of comments is a very poor indicator of how good a post is.

Last time I looked my lamest FPP had the most comments.

What makes a poor post?
Bush, fat, and the decalawed cat
Don't forget boobies.
posted by edgeways at 10:03 AM on May 8, 2006

bardic: Well, I meant that axe-grinding is no less bad when the axe-grinder's political views happen to be shared by a majority of other users.
posted by matthewr at 10:03 AM on May 8, 2006

But "popular" =/ "right," nor does "unpopular" = "wrong." I'm not trying to insult your intelligence, just want to make that clear for myself and the rest.

FWIW, I enjoyed the first Fishin Accomplished post. It was political, but as an American, it's a perfect example of the kind of idiotic thing Bush says or does that isn't covered by major media outlets. I appreciate how mefi sometimes de-filters the major filters, if that makes any sense. Not going to lose sleep over it though.
posted by bardic at 10:18 AM on May 8, 2006

"...Yma Sumac's real name wasn't Amy Camus after all"

Please be aware Ms. Sumac might be quite upset that her name is being tossed about in the past tense.
posted by SteveInMaine at 10:19 AM on May 8, 2006

posted by gubo Breaking news: according to the White House version of the interview it was a large mouth bass.

And he caught it with Weapons of Bass Destruction.
posted by fandango_matt at 10:22 AM on May 8, 2006

Seriously, how a member can craft such awesome FPPs on MeFi and yet incessantly spout horse shit here in MeTa astounds me.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:03 AM CST on May 8

This point has been made before. He knows what a good post is because he makes them. Yet he defends crappy political posts that he would never make himself. He tries to couch his defense in ipse dixit terms of importance and terrorism and other cant. It doesn't make any sense. It's almost as if he wants those posts to exist so that he has a place for his redundant shrillness but he is unwilling to make them himself because he knows they aren't good posts. I can't don't get it.

Also, I'm noticing a trend among those who defended the post. Not surprising.

Finally, Ich bin ein Metafilter.
posted by dios at 10:27 AM on May 8, 2006

the real story about that quote was that after he caught it, he kept trying to get it to sing and dance like the one he keeps on the oval office wall.
posted by amberglow at 10:29 AM on May 8, 2006

ipse dixit

this sounds like a cartoon character.
posted by jonmc at 10:34 AM on May 8, 2006

bardic: Yes, I agree. I thought that if I said left-leaning political views are merely "popular", rather than "right", some might would misinterpret that as, "popular but oh-so-wrong. Go Bush!!1!". Separating the political debate from the comment about axe-grinding seemed a good idea.
posted by matthewr at 10:35 AM on May 8, 2006

Ipse Dixit is the bastard daughter of Tixe Ylno. She is a good girl and has devoted her life to fighting evil.
posted by mischief at 10:48 AM on May 8, 2006

God, every time Matteo comments in MeTa it makes me want to donate to the RNC.
posted by klangklangston at 11:02 AM on May 8, 2006

The real story will be the White House spin:

"Due to translation issues, the question was misquoted. The actual question was, 'Are you closer to catching Osama bin Laden or the Anthrax Killer?' The president's translation came through as, 'Have you caught any terrorists?' And, as we know, the German word for 'terrorist' closely resembles the Urdu word for 'fish', and the president responded accordingly.

The fault clearly lies with the Germans, who have a long history of using government-sponsored terror to oppose freedom, and we hope the Germans will ensure freedom and democracy are preserved by apologizing for their egregious obfuscation of the truth."
posted by fandango_matt at 11:04 AM on May 8, 2006

Ypsi Dixit is a lady who blogs about my hometown.
posted by Roger Dodger at 11:10 AM on May 8, 2006

the real story about that quote was that after he caught it, he kept trying to get it to sing and dance like the one he keeps on the oval office wall.

Hah! Amberglow rules this thread.
posted by LarryC at 11:22 AM on May 8, 2006

as a business decision, it totally makes sense

Yes, yes, we get it, the heads of DuPont, Monsanto, and Boeing killed mathowie and replaced him with CapitalistPigBot.
posted by darukaru at 11:35 AM on May 8, 2006

Also, I'm noticing a trend among those who defended the post. Not surprising.

the vast majority of this country and the planet dislikes bush. what's your point?
posted by StrasbourgSecaucus at 11:47 AM on May 8, 2006

"what's your point?"

What's your point? I hate those posts and I hate Bush. In fact, I like the story. I think it's funny and tragic and I'm sure to repeat that quote to other people in the future. And yet...I still hate those posts.

It's a deep mystery.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 12:01 PM on May 8, 2006

Ich bin ein Metafilter.
Personally, I've never been to Metafilt, but I hear it's lovely this time of year.

Now, what have we learned?
"Fishin' Accomplished" is funny.
"Weapons of Bass Destruction" is funnier.
Metafilter has jumped the ~~Perch~~Bass.
Fourteen different kinds of ugly wrongness are not enough.
Amy Camus is not Ipse Dixit.
Dead Kennedys are not jelly-filled.
"I am Danish" is not the same as "I am a Danish".
"I am a New Yorker" is not the same as "I am a pretentious magazine".
EBligh has a deep mystery.
LHat is without whimsy but not without whistling.
Don't forget boobies.
This point has been made before.
And somebody should start marketing a "Big Mouth Bush" on a wall plaque...
posted by wendell at 12:53 PM on May 8, 2006

posted by wendell somebody should start marketing a "Big Mouth Bush" on a wall plaque...

Something like this, perhaps?

<img src="http://www.fandango.net/polaroid/bushfish.gif"
posted by fandango_matt at 1:24 PM on May 8, 2006

posted by wendell somebody should start marketing a "Big Mouth Bush" on a wall plaque...

Something like this, perhaps?

posted by fandango_matt at 1:24 PM on May 8, 2006

I would like to add to the above list that you should all wear your seatbelts.

OP: The list above the unsettling picture.
posted by haqspan at 1:29 PM on May 8, 2006

Why is Bush saying "goose goose goose ..."?
posted by mr_crash_davis at 1:56 PM on May 8, 2006

Wait, it's "goatse goatse goatse". Never mind.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 2:10 PM on May 8, 2006

Definitely "horsey."
posted by crunchland at 2:18 PM on May 8, 2006

Seriously, these posts are terrible.
posted by trey at 2:50 PM on May 8, 2006

Thank's Trey, that post is bullshit too.
posted by klangklangston at 3:35 PM on May 8, 2006

He cast a wide net to catch Osama, and all he got was a lousy Bass.

and not even Lance Bass
posted by Megafly at 4:03 PM on May 8, 2006

he threw Lance over to Rove--Karl likes em boyish
posted by amberglow at 6:06 PM on May 8, 2006

A girl got a pet goatse. She liked to go running with her pet goatse. She played with her goatse in her house. She played with her goatse in her yard. But the goatse did some things that made the girl's dad mad. The goatse ate things. He ate cans and he ate canes. He ate pans and he ate panes. He even ate capes and caps. One day her dad said, "that goatse must go. He ate too many things." The girl said, "dad if you let the goatse stay with us, I will see that he stops eating all those things." Her dad said he will try it. So the goatse stayed and the girl made him stop eating cans and capes and caps and capes. But one day a car robber came to the girls house. He saw a big red car near the house and said, "I will steal that car." He ran to the car and started to open the door. The girl and the goatse were playing in the back yard. They did not see the car robber...
The Pet Goatse

posted by y2karl at 7:50 PM on May 8, 2006

May 7, 2006 6:43 PM Subscribe

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