This post sux. October 20, 2010 3:56 AM   Subscribe

I call shenanigans on this post about how hating muslims is logical. "American Thinker" is one of the loonier wingnut/Teabagger rags out there.

And even if it wasn't, it's SLOE anyways.
posted by bardic to MetaFilter-Related at 3:56 AM (62 comments total)

I agree.
posted by i_cola at 4:05 AM on October 20, 2010


If SLOE stands for Single Link something something, I'm going to punch you over the internet.

Also, I don't know what you mean by 'shenanigans' exactly, but, as the grammarian said to the donkey, that's one stupid goddamned article, all right.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 4:05 AM on October 20, 2010


So why is it still there?
posted by i_cola at 4:05 AM on October 20, 2010


C'mon. I know I'm being impatient but really.
posted by i_cola at 4:06 AM on October 20, 2010


*taps foot*
posted by i_cola at 4:06 AM on October 20, 2010


I flagged it. Waited awhile. And then had to say something. But you're right this is SLOE, and single link outrage filter, and single link bullshit etc etc. Should've been nuked from orbit with fire imho.
posted by IvoShandor at 4:07 AM on October 20, 2010


If SLOE stands for Single Link something something

Single Link Op Ed?

Single Link Outrageous Egregiousness?

It wasn't great, but surely flagging it would be enough?
posted by Infinite Jest at 4:08 AM on October 20, 2010


Yeah, I just emailed the mods about it too. Am willing to accept their verdict, but it strikes me that one of the reasons it's still there is probably the hour.
posted by bardophile at 4:09 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Single Link Obstreporous Egotist?
posted by idiomatika at 4:14 AM on October 20, 2010


I hate that post because it got me all afraid of muslim lightning sharks and now I can't sleep.
posted by aubilenon at 4:17 AM on October 20, 2010 [10 favorites]


How do you flag a post?
posted by Azaadistani at 4:21 AM on October 20, 2010


Mmm, sloe gin. Oh, no.
posted by Abiezer at 4:23 AM on October 20, 2010 [3 favorites]


How do you flag a post?

Look at the "posted by" line under the post proper, where it has the person who posted it, the time, and the date.

The little [+] [!] signs are how you favorite a post and flag a post. Click on the [+] to favorite it, and click on the [!] to flag it. When you flag it, you'll get a pulldown menu that pops up asking WHY you're flagging it; pick a reason and you're done.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:24 AM on October 20, 2010


How do you flag a post?

First you have to conquer it, then you can claim it for the crown.
posted by IvoShandor at 4:25 AM on October 20, 2010 [18 favorites]


We had to keep this post because we drove out the people that would make interesting and well researched posts that by mentioning reality might have a lefty bias.
posted by CautionToTheWind at 4:26 AM on October 20, 2010


Horrible, illogical argument in that article that makes me angry. I did flag it.
posted by empyrean at 4:27 AM on October 20, 2010


Or you can click the [@*#¶>\&¿¢£¥!!!] to really make it clear what you think.
posted by Abiezer at 4:29 AM on October 20, 2010


What's the point of this MeTa? The mods will either delete it or not delete it.
posted by John Cohen at 4:35 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


How do you post a comment?
posted by gman at 4:37 AM on October 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


Remember how babby is formed, gman? That's how.
posted by carsonb at 4:41 AM on October 20, 2010


Agreed.
posted by empath at 4:44 AM on October 20, 2010


Sorry, Fizz, but flagged as "Let's have SLO GRAR" with coffee. It's too early for me to be outraged at a single-link stupid assertion.
posted by MonkeyToes at 4:46 AM on October 20, 2010


I picture Goofy singing a song about his favorite magazine, 'American Thinker.' Then Mickey gets so annoyed that he grabs the magazine, rolls it up, and hits Goofy over the head. They start to wrestle until they knock over Donald's game of checkers and spill Minnie's lemonade. That's about the level of discourse for an Islamic lightning shark post.
posted by infinitefloatingbrains at 4:47 AM on October 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


Well we've all had so much fun with the LOLCRAYZEE co-hate, surely this one should be TWICE as much fun because it's LOLCRAYZEE-R!
posted by briank at 5:17 AM on October 20, 2010


Right. Steve Jobs getting caught (maybe) with ninja stars in his luggage, being reported by major news outlets, isn't post-worthy, but some random bozo posting an Islamophobic rant on his blog and displaying an ignorance of statistics is. Got it.
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:19 AM on October 20, 2010


Steve Jobs getting caught (maybe) with ninja stars in his luggage, being reported by major news outlets, isn't post-worthy,

Your post was deleted over a month ago. Let it go.
posted by OmieWise at 5:21 AM on October 20, 2010 [12 favorites]


You're overthinking it.
posted by nomadicink at 5:31 AM on October 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


I agree that post doesn't belong on the front page of metafilter.
posted by alms at 5:34 AM on October 20, 2010


Eh, I thought the commentators did a pretty good job in showing the very obvious flaws in the author's 'logic'.. that itself might be valuable to those who may stumble upon it. But then I've always been a believer in the idea that on MeFi the discussion is more important than the links, and I know that's not a completely shared value, site-wide.
posted by modernnomad at 5:48 AM on October 20, 2010


The mods arnt up yet, so give them time
posted by wheelieman at 5:51 AM on October 20, 2010


But then I've always been a believer in the idea that on MeFi the discussion is more important than the links, and I know that's not a completely shared value, site-wide.

I think discussion can save a mediocre post. But that post is complete shit.
posted by empath at 5:58 AM on October 20, 2010


The thing is, muslim sharks that shoot lightning bolts are actually perfectly alright when they're just going about their daily business alone.

The problem is when they turn to face Mecca at prayer time. *BAM* - the concentrated power of hundreds of thousands of lightning bolts converge through all the oceans!

Think the Titanic was sunk by an iceberg? Wrong. Sailed into the path of shark prayer lightning. The Lusitania? Shark lightning - caused the US to join WW1. Pearl Harbor? They had no idea what the hell it was, so they blamed the Japanese! Atlantis? You get the idea...
posted by UbuRoivas at 5:58 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


More like American STINKER amirite?
I'll let my self out
posted by Scoo at 5:59 AM on October 20, 2010


I kept waiting for the "an Imam, a hammerhead, and a writhing orb of sentient ball lightning go into a bar" joke, but it never materialized and I'm too dumb to do it myself.
posted by Rat Spatula at 6:04 AM on October 20, 2010


THANK YOU mathowie!
posted by bardophile at 6:05 AM on October 20, 2010


What's the point of this MeTa?

Public flagellation.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:07 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Guys, guys, at least it's not LONG. So what if it's fighty?

What that thread taught me is that if you want a post deleted, start a big fight in the comments. Probably not the best lesson to learn...
posted by Eideteker at 6:07 AM on October 20, 2010


What's the point of this MeTa?

Public flagellation.


Yeah, there wasn't enough of that already going on in the thread.
posted by John Cohen at 6:09 AM on October 20, 2010


But then I've always been a believer in the idea that on MeFi the discussion is more important than the links, and I know that's not a completely shared value, site-wide.

I'd say it depends on the quality of the linked material. If the link is sufficiently good, or sufficiently bad, then it's more important than the discussion. But for stuff in the middle of the U-shaped "link quality vs. importance" graph, then yeah, the discussion is really the thing that makes a post good or not.
posted by FishBike at 6:13 AM on October 20, 2010


The problem with utilitarianism is that mainstream Western culture treats it like it's the only valid ethical system ever and dingbats like this author abuse it to justify anything and everything. There are plenty of valid criticisms of utilitarianism as a one-size-fits-all ethical system, from "the ends justify the means" thinking to majority rule. Not to mention the crystal ball hand waving that goes into assuming that you can possibly know which choices create greater utility.

Utilitarianism has its uses, but it could stand to be taken down a notch or two.
posted by Skwirl at 6:14 AM on October 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


Just a heads up: MeFites WhiteWhale and Ahab are posting on the front page right now. If Ishmael and Queequeg show up, I'm predicting trouble.
posted by pracowity at 6:17 AM on October 20, 2010 [4 favorites]


The problem with utilitarianism

You may be right, but that article had absolutely nothing to do with utilitarianism. It was a racist moron with an education incorrectly thinking that he was thinking. Just to be clear there.
posted by Salvor Hardin at 6:49 AM on October 20, 2010


What I mean is, I wouldn't go so far as to say the author was abusing utilitarianism, since he tripped over his own shoelaces long before he reached the sphere of thought required to invoke utilitarianism.
posted by Salvor Hardin at 6:53 AM on October 20, 2010


I agree that posts don't belong on the front page of metafilter.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:03 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


The mods arnt up yet, so give them time

vacapinta is travelling for his birthday, so yeah that post was up longer than a post of that terribleness would normally be. Sorry about that.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:06 AM on October 20, 2010


I don't understand why anybody would waste time worrying about Islamic lightning sharks when The Rent is Too Damn High.
posted by steambadger at 7:08 AM on October 20, 2010


Seriously, it was the middle of the night. I mean, what jessamyn said and it sucks it was up all night but we sleep.
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:13 AM on October 20, 2010


but we sleep.

And you call yourselves dedicated.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:14 AM on October 20, 2010


Our union refuses mathowie's attempts to corece us into wearing nighttime pagers. He says they're Fitbits but we know he's lying. They issue little shocks when something gets flagged more than 20 times.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:23 AM on October 20, 2010 [11 favorites]


If you had those I could pretty easily see cortex going all Terminal Man and flaming people in Ask just to get the thrill of feeling a hundred simultaneous flags coursing through his neurons.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:31 AM on October 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


The problem with utilitarianism is that mainstream Western culture treats it like it's the only valid ethical system ever and dingbats like this author abuse it to justify anything and everything.

Where in the article does he invoke utilitarianism, and would you have an anti-utilitarian rebuttal?
posted by John Cohen at 7:33 AM on October 20, 2010


Where in the article does he invoke utilitarianism

Uhh...the very first sentence? "From a utilitarian perspective, it's simple."
posted by jedicus at 7:36 AM on October 20, 2010


Beyond which, it was a shitty post and if this thread is going to be about discussing the link anyway we really don't need it. Any problem with closing this up?
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:40 AM on October 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Uhh...the very first sentence? "From a utilitarian perspective, it's simple."

He uses the word "utilitarian." I'm not saying any actual utilitarian analysis.
posted by John Cohen at 7:42 AM on October 20, 2010


Seriously, it was the middle of the night. I mean, what jessamyn said and it sucks it was up all night but we sleep.

Do mods dream of electric deletions?!
posted by nomadicink at 7:42 AM on October 20, 2010


*not seeing any utilitarian analysis
posted by John Cohen at 7:42 AM on October 20, 2010


When it's 7:30am on the US East Coast, it's 4:30am on the US West Coast. Just wanted to remind you East Coasters of that. And also that 1/4 of the US population lives in the Pacific time zone.
posted by dw at 7:43 AM on October 20, 2010


When it's 7:30am on the US East Coast, it's 4:30am on the US West Coast.

Where's that?
posted by nomadicink at 7:44 AM on October 20, 2010


Please can we please close this up?
posted by bardophile at 7:46 AM on October 20, 2010


He uses the word "utilitarian." I'm not seeing any actual utilitarian analysis.

Ah, I see what you mean, and no, there isn't any. That's part of the reason it was such a crap op-ed and thus not a very good post.
posted by jedicus at 7:47 AM on October 20, 2010


Haters are gonna tater.
posted by nomadicink at 7:47 AM on October 20, 2010


I believe the preferred phrasing is "taters gonna tate".
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:48 AM on October 20, 2010 [6 favorites]


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