Only America Cares About Newsfilter October 26, 2004 8:57 AM   Subscribe

Pointless Meta callout for YankeeNewsFilter
posted by dash_slot- to Bugs at 8:57 AM (45 comments total)

Snarky counter-callout for ObitFilter.
posted by dash_slot- at 9:01 AM on October 26, 2004


Shut up dash_slot. I appreciated the thread. Scroll down and shut yer trap.
posted by xmutex at 9:09 AM on October 26, 2004


I was agreeing with you, but what do you mean here ...

Snarky counter-callout for ObitFilter.

seems that they balance each other out, sort of.
posted by milovoo at 9:12 AM on October 26, 2004


I guess my question is, what's stopping a Brit from posting about banking changes in the UK? Fear that they won't get tons of comments?
posted by headspace at 9:13 AM on October 26, 2004


While I agree the post should have been labelled something like "...in the States...", I'm extremely thankful for the heads-up. Big time.
posted by Shane at 9:18 AM on October 26, 2004


If there significant enough changes to UK banking as to have a similar effect to Check 21, by all means post it. We'll say, good call, nice letting the peeps know what's going on, and we'll scroll down. Unlike you guys, who have to just ruin everything in the world with your MeTa callouts!
posted by xmutex at 9:21 AM on October 26, 2004


Shut up xmutex. I appreciated the callout. Scroll down and shut yer trap.
posted by timeistight at 9:23 AM on October 26, 2004


Heavens, it's so tense around here these days. Is it really all because of the election?
posted by orange swan at 10:20 AM on October 26, 2004


I hereby protest every MeFi post that does not relate to me personally and make my life richer. I am just that petulant.
posted by ChrisTN at 10:25 AM on October 26, 2004


I don't care about the post being US only. It does give some info on the way US banks like to profit from their customers.

And what US corps do today ...

Someone needs a hug. C'mere Dash, you fluffy little bunny.
posted by Blue Stone at 10:36 AM on October 26, 2004


Damn, MeFi needs a timeout and a nap and maybe some watered down fruit punch.

Mellow out, folks.
posted by fenriq at 10:46 AM on October 26, 2004


I'm not anti-newsfilter entirely (that much must be obvious). Some news is of huge importance and rightly gets posted here.

But US banking news? Where does it end? What does it say for the guidelines? It used to be that assumptions were made about Mefites at least being in some general sense aware of the current affairs of their society, wherever they were located. I had already seen this on the News - does that mean it wasn't either printed or broadcast in the US? Or does it mean it was - but Mefites now want to bring it up in addition to the regular news outlets?

Re: UK Banking news: you'd welcome that? Gimme a break. It's not to do with number of comments. It's to do with the best of the web. Bloomberg does a good service for financial news, as do CNN, Yahoo, and every other major website.
Re: xmutex's attitude - I'm convinced! O'Reillyisms like 'Shut up!' really clinched it for me. That really showed up my petulance, right there....

Blue Stone: I didn't know you cared! Watch out for the long furry ears tho' - they're ticklish...
posted by dash_slot- at 10:50 AM on October 26, 2004


dash_slot, Official Arbiter of Best of the Web.
posted by xmutex at 10:54 AM on October 26, 2004


substitute £Sterling for dollars and change the other relevant details. Would you want to see this on the Mefi front page?

Sure, I wouldn't mind or be suprised--if it was on a site run by an Englishman, hosted in England and populated largely by thousands of other Englishmen.

C'mon, Miguel. I mean, dash_slot. Put down that glass of whine.
posted by dhoyt at 10:58 AM on October 26, 2004


Maybe it's the word "Yankee" that smacks more of anti-Americanism than concern for the quality of the homepage.
posted by scarabic at 11:11 AM on October 26, 2004


dash_slot, Official Arbiter of Best of the Web.

Sorry, but that title is already owned by Seth ;)
posted by terrapin at 11:14 AM on October 26, 2004


scarabic: what do you suggest as an alternative neutral/affectionate and informal term for americans? When the nations largest city's sports team is called "New York Yankees", why is 'yankee' disparaging? Is it not equivalent to 'Brit'? It certainly isn't meant to piss anyone off.

dhoyt: where does the owner and eminence grise refer to his nationality and/or location in reference to the posting guidelines?
posted by dash_slot- at 11:30 AM on October 26, 2004


dash_slot, I honestly don't understand why a FPP about John Peel's death--which was reported in the newspapers and on the radio and on the television--is cool, but an FPP about an important and bizarre change in US banking law--which was reported in the newspapers and on the radio and on the television--is not.

I liked your FPP because I was interested in reading about John Peel and his career. I liked the other FPP because I thought people had interesting comments on it, and I'd be interested in changes to US/Canadian/Portuguese/Swedish/Beninian banking law if they were as bizarre and arbitrary as the Check 21 thing is.

I really think the Parade of Wounded Sensibilities has to stop somewhere. Rather than a callout, dash_slot, why didn't you respond with ways in which the UK banking system does similar/different things and why you think it's good/bad?
posted by Sidhedevil at 11:34 AM on October 26, 2004


And, dash_slot, we have a team here called the "Redskins" but I wouldn't encourage you to call anyone that either.
posted by Sidhedevil at 11:35 AM on October 26, 2004


*drops pants, shits*
posted by quonsar at 11:41 AM on October 26, 2004


He spelt it "check", man. That's unambiguous.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 11:42 AM on October 26, 2004


It's so cute when the yankees pretend they're offended. The fact that you have a team called the redskins is probably reason enough to still call you yankees ;)
posted by The God Complex at 12:05 PM on October 26, 2004


cheque
posted by fullerine at 12:18 PM on October 26, 2004


Press Rat's post was fine. As long as people keep posting salon articles on the FPP then why not this?

And, I don't mind being called a "yank." I lived in Ipswich for 2 years, had a great time and was never offended by that term. What a bunch of over-sensitive little babies.
posted by Juicylicious at 12:23 PM on October 26, 2004


well, actually many US southerners would be (and regularly are) offended at being called Yankees.

But who the hell cares? It's only derogatory if you think it is.

And I liked the banking topic too. And I'd like one on English banking too if it seemed to affect people in the same way.
posted by Red58 at 12:39 PM on October 26, 2004


When the nations largest city's sports team is called "New York Yankees", why is 'yankee' disparaging?

Because the New York Yankees are evil.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 12:43 PM on October 26, 2004


*drops pants, shits*

YOU STOLE MY BIT!!!
posted by Krrrlson at 12:44 PM on October 26, 2004


*eats quonsar's shit, drops pants, sings ABBA tune, shits on Krrrlson*
posted by loquacious at 1:25 PM on October 26, 2004


Is it not equivalent to 'Brit'?

Not in the minds of half the country, who find it offensive.
posted by rushmc at 2:07 PM on October 26, 2004


But US banking news?

You seem to think this is equivalent to a post announcing interest rates have gone up an eighth of a percent or something. Do you honestly not grasp that this affects people's lives in a serious way, and that I'm clearly not alone in not having read about it anywhere else? This is the single most useful thing I've read on MeFi in a long time, and your callout seems prima facie evidence for knee-jerk anti-Yank bias (no, I don't mind that word). If there were similarly significant news concerning the UK, sure it should be posted. Listen to what people are saying rather than stubbornly digging in, OK?
posted by languagehat at 2:14 PM on October 26, 2004


Pointless Meta callout

well, you said so yourself. anyway:

1) it was a useful post for USians; this is the first place I saw the news and i much appreciate the warning.

2) non-USians see how our banking system works. cultural enrichment all around.

3) when i first saw the title i thought, what, baseball again? you probably should've used "yank".
posted by casarkos at 2:29 PM on October 26, 2004


Cockface.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 2:38 PM on October 26, 2004


languagehat: the edges of NewsFilter are blurred, and clearly are not where I thought they were, if it's acceptable to post this sort of news (well, it is to you: to dhoyt, only if the server is in England. Whatever - that just proves my point about the blurred edges.)

Besides, why rely on Mefi for news such as this? I agree that it's deemed okay to post that link - because it hasn't been deleted. That's the standard: if it's not crap enough, it's good enough.

Btw, when will you drop the condescending tone, ok?

casarkos: I called it pointless, as I was fairly certain it would be rejected. American Mefites are self-centred, and my objections won't amount to anything. Still was worth saying. Mefi is well on the way to being AmericaNewsFilter, and that has it's value, and it's place.

End of.
posted by dash_slot- at 2:48 PM on October 26, 2004


Cockface.

Seconded.
posted by Stynxno at 3:00 PM on October 26, 2004


dhoyt, only if the server is in England.

I think you know exactly what I was saying and are deliberately mangling my point.

Again, this time with elaboration:

Every minimally-informed MeFite knows this site is US-owned and -operated, and that most of us here are American. If I visited a community site operated and populated by Belgians and dared to ask, "God, why is it Belgium Belgium Belgium with you guys all the time?", I would be quickly—and deservedly—slapped down for my silly, self-created Cardosian alienation complex.

As a barometer, take a look at this MeTa thread, dash_slot. How many people do you see agreeing with you?
posted by dhoyt at 3:19 PM on October 26, 2004


scarabic: what do you suggest as an alternative neutral/affectionate and informal term for americans?

Uh... how about "Americans?"

American Mefites are self-centred

Finally we get to the point.

Still was worth saying.

After the response this callout got, if you still think so, then... well, okay.
posted by scarabic at 3:31 PM on October 26, 2004


dash_slot- I, for one, really appreciated the post. I honestly hadn't seen a single word about it, and I read the newspaper most days. I'm a college student with very little interest in financial news, I would rather gouge my eyes out than read bloomberg, and I am still affected by this new policy. Like LanguageHat said, this is probably the most useful thing I've seen on metafilter in months.

I wouldn't begrudge ANYONE from ANY country posting such information to the front page. Which is harder, you having to scroll down the page (effort: a couple of clicks) or me having to find another hundred bucks to cover bills because my rent check bounced (effort: at $9/hour, with taxes, at least 12 hours worth of work)? It seems awfully self-centered of you to call this out.

I understand if you think mefi has a US bias (doi), but there are WAY better places to start with that particular problem.
posted by pikachulolita at 3:52 PM on October 26, 2004


"Still was worth saying.

After the response this callout got, if you still think so, then... well, okay."


Yh, it was worth it. I'd say I know more about the permissibility of certain newsfilter posts now - as maybe do others. Still more just never had a problem with it. I wasn't alone on it...but I was outnumbered. C'est la vie (",)
posted by dash_slot- at 4:47 PM on October 26, 2004


I, for one, really appreciated the post. I honestly hadn't seen a single word about it

I've known about Check 21 for at least a couple of months, because it shows up as an announcement regularly when I log in to my bank's Web site. If your bank didn't inform you about this important change, switch.
posted by kindall at 5:53 PM on October 26, 2004


First off, I'd like to thank those who felt this was useful & provided supporting comments. Just to speak up for myself on this one dash_slot, I look at it this way:

1) I don't have the time, what with demands of work & family, to spend the time to immerse myself in the arcana of all the riffs on ettiquette & Mefi posting protocols so that I can ensure anything I post has been "preapproved" as to acceptability. Given the kind of partisan bickering and drivel about the upcoming election here and repeated unavailing attempts to have people self-filter, it doesn't seem to me to me that too much in the way of overweaning concern on adherence to such standards of ettiquette/protocol are in evidence;

2) I schlep around here because I find the topics and links and some of the discussion of interest, often allowing me to enrich/broaden my persective on life & what's going on in ways not otherwise possible because there's a finite amount of time to do everything I need or would like to do & Mefi puts me on to things I might otherwise not run across

3) I view the information posted not as much news, per se, as a Public Service Announcement to the rest of the Mefi Community, many of whom similarly may not be able to stay plugged in 24/7 to everything that's happening everywhere at any moment

4) Legal or not, everybody I know (& probably ever met) at some time has gone to the grocery store on Thursday to get milk for the kids or food for the family before their Friday paycheck was deposited to cover the check they wrote. Most, if not all of these people would be horrified to be called criminal for such an act as they did so with no intent whatever of not ensuring the bill was paid.

5) It seems to me that not only fresh, original info not previously posted elsewhere and satifying to the most urbane & discriminating palate here should be the criteria for a post when so many might be unaware of and potentially negatively affected by lack of knowledge on this issue

6) I'm no Anglophobe, but just because you saw something two days ago on the BBC and could care less seems scant rationale for forgoing a PSA to the rest of the community that is effected. I must confess that I am unrepentant and not a whit chagrined or chastened.

7) No offense meant, but if you spend a significant amount of your time and energy worrying about this kind of thing (which seems to be the case) you might want to do some rethinking or get yourself laid. If this represents signicant issues for you, allow me to refer you to the FPP that follows three after mine.

Cherrio!
posted by Pressed Rat at 7:08 PM on October 26, 2004


I thought this was over, but:

No offense meant, but if you spend a significant amount of your time and energy worrying about this kind of thing (which seems to be the case) you might want to do some rethinking or get yourself laid.

Wow! Them's hi-falutin' arguments, there, feller. If you put it that way - I'll never have an opinion about etiquette or dubious posts ever again, 'cos I'll have gone out and got me some o' that sex! In the meantime, the consensus seems to be that the post was ok, newsy or not. Well done!

OK, it was good for me. You?
posted by dash_slot- at 8:55 PM on October 26, 2004


As usual, the test for a given individual of a newsflter post seems to be whether a) he/she was aware of the news item or not; and/or b) whether he/she found it interesting.

Since my two answers to those questions are "no", and "yes", respectively, I didn't immediately take exception to the post as I would have otherwise. After some consideration, though, given that many people in the thread said they knew about this and it's gotten lots of publicity, I think you're probably right: it was newsfilter and a bad post. Not really because it's USA-centric, but because it's well-known news (except to me).

I still think that if a Google news search for a story results in many, many hits, and especially hits for most or all the major news outlets, it doesn't belong on MeFi.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 9:30 PM on October 26, 2004


Now if you wanna talk about posts that truly, truly suck.

"Yeah, yeah Pepsi Blue, etc.
I thought this was kinda neat"

I love how this dingus knowingly (and completely without creativity) tap-dances all over a longstanding, well-defined, easily understandable taboo, and his genius rebuttal, detailing why this particular product announcement deserves an exception is:

"I thought this was kinda neat."

Well then. Stand back. Brilliant. Fucking brilliant.
posted by scarabic at 10:13 PM on October 26, 2004


I don't understand the argument that says "I didn't see it anywhere else...". Perhaps some people should just read the news a little more.

There are some arsehole responses here, too.
posted by nthdegx at 5:39 AM on October 27, 2004


More YankeeNewsFilter: at last night's Wilco show, Jeff Tweedy was ecstatic because he had just received the news that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot had gone gold that afternoon.
posted by COBRA! at 7:16 AM on October 27, 2004


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