A hypothetical question prompts answers of varying violence against hypothetical dogs. Chatfilter? Useful analysis? Something in between? [more inside]
posted by kalessin on Sep 17, 2008 - 88 comments

Matthew: For a long time, I have been sad at the loss of HypotheticalFilter. When AskMe was young, such questions would arise. But those days are gone now, as the site matured. It's simply not done, you'd say. It floods the page with nonsense. It makes the real questions get lost. Still, I thought, I want to know how to dispose of a body, or how long we'd survive without the sun. Who would win in a fight? A squirrel, or a squirrel's weight in ants? [more inside]
posted by John Kenneth Fisher on Apr 3, 2008 - 97 comments

um, i don't really know what to do about this. and i've got no general prob with the mods. but, as you can see, one of the mods has posted a question that has been asked before. [more inside]
posted by deejay jaydee on Dec 17, 2007 - 125 comments

Some people feel this question violates the guidelines. I disagree. [more inside]
posted by grumblebee on Dec 2, 2007 - 250 comments

This is a great question but it didn't include the obligatory "For the purposes of a work of fiction..." disclaimer to keep it from being deleted as hypothetical filter.
posted by allkindsoftime on Aug 10, 2007 - 31 comments

This is a great freakin question. I'd just like to use it to once more point out that we really should be able to reopen this discussion for a more full, rounded finalization.
posted by allkindsoftime on Jul 2, 2007 - 33 comments

In honour of the 1st, we're revisiting the "deliberately flameworthy hypothetical AskMe question thread" over at MetaChat. Feel free to join in with fake questions or answers.
posted by orange swan on Apr 1, 2007 - 20 comments

Regarding philosophical AskMe questions and answers to philosophical questions... [far too long for anyone to want to read]
posted by ontic on Feb 18, 2007 - 117 comments

Gross violation of AskMe etiquette.
posted by tkolar on Dec 17, 2006 - 65 comments

After much careful consideration, I don't think Lucy's question should have been deleted.
posted by Baby_Balrog on Dec 11, 2006 - 34 comments

Not really so hypothetical. I think the question should stand.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero on Oct 9, 2006 - 126 comments

Am I stupid? Re: My very first deleted post. Yes, I've read the FAQ and some of the related discussions, and yes, I realize that hypotheticals are generally a no-no, but I thought this particular question could not be framed in any manner that was not hypothetical, if you catch my drift. Please berate me appropriately.
posted by brina on Sep 19, 2006 - 58 comments

Boo, my Askme question was deleted. I'm disappointed, because I did mean the question seriously-- I was actually hoping to get some scientific information/insight into radioactive half-lives, heavy-metal contamination, global warming, etc. Was the tone too flippant? Could I have phrased it better?
posted by jokeefe on Aug 9, 2006 - 62 comments

Is this really what AskMe is for? There's some good conversation in there, to be sure, but it's treading a real fine line between "genuinely want to know an answer to my quesion" and "trying to start a conversation with my question".
posted by antifuse on Mar 21, 2006 - 13 comments

What would happen if someone on MeFi actually took up Smedleyman's disturbing offer to pay for plane fare out somewhere to put a gun to his head and pull the trigger?
posted by Meridian on Jan 15, 2006 - 74 comments

Why was the AxMe post "If you were going to relocate permanently from the present day to Rome circa 100 BC, and you could bring only one piece of luggage (standard carry-on dimensions) what would you pack?" deleted?
posted by bshort on Dec 22, 2005 - 46 comments

So I posted a question about parallel universes on askmetafilter yesterday (got a bunch of great comments within the first hour) and when I checked in this morning I can't find the question either on the page or in the archives. Where is it?
posted by Panfilo on Apr 7, 2005 - 52 comments

Already there are BookFilter for books; SportsFilter for sports; a 9622.net and 1142.net for chattiness and fun. Not to mention the increasingly vigorous #mefi chatroom and other offshoots I may be unaware of. There's been talk of a MovieFilter and a News and/or PoliticsFilter. The admirable FreeFilter project makes it easy to set up other special-interest, breakaway micro-MetaFilters.
Is it possible that all this syphoning-off will one day syphon off the core of MetaFilter itself? Or are all these spin-offs mere adjuncts? For what it's worth, I'm plainly on the side of eclecticism and inclusiveness.
posted by MiguelCardoso on Mar 23, 2003 - 28 comments

So, can any grievance be brought to MetaTalk? [More inside.]
posted by MiguelCardoso on Mar 13, 2003 - 67 comments