Someone starts to answer a question only to realize he dislikes the person who asked it April 5, 2004 2:15 PM   Subscribe

This may be the first ask.mefi thread where someone starts to answer a question only to realize he dislikes the person who asked it and therefore stops. Wacky.
posted by gwint to Etiquette/Policy at 2:15 PM (91 comments total)

Like sand through the hourglass...
posted by eddydamascene at 2:26 PM on April 5, 2004


uh oh... a MetaFeud has slipped past AskMe's Grudgematch Firewall... Time to upgrade...
posted by wendell at 2:27 PM on April 5, 2004


They both have agreed that they dislike each other.
posted by thomcatspike at 2:28 PM on April 5, 2004


jesus christ, I think half of you people are buzzling idiots, but I'll still listen to what you have to say if it isn't just insane y2karlisms, and I'll still help someone out with a technical issue. That said, that's not even a question in that thread.
posted by angry modem at 2:30 PM on April 5, 2004


eh, links isn't being nice and I missed the question in a jumble of text. * buzzes away
posted by angry modem at 2:31 PM on April 5, 2004


But it's so difficult to remember who you dislike on the internet, what with only a username to go by.
posted by Blue Stone at 2:41 PM on April 5, 2004


I would like to take this opportunity to make abundantly clear that I do not, and have never, practiced behaviour that can be in any way described by the word (used loosely) "buzzling."
posted by The God Complex at 2:50 PM on April 5, 2004


I think andrew cooke should be encouraged. Jonson is a tool.
posted by crunchland at 2:58 PM on April 5, 2004


Jonson is a tool.

*groan*
posted by The God Complex at 3:03 PM on April 5, 2004


he's a fun tool tho. I think that's hysterical--is andrew going to take it back or something?
posted by amberglow at 3:08 PM on April 5, 2004


Strange little bit of user interaction. Amusing, but I don't think it's a trend or something we'll see very often.

Also, most people keep those kinds of things internal, and just stop posting comments.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 3:11 PM on April 5, 2004


Actually, this predates it by a few months. Though it's slightly different. Still funny though.
posted by dobbs at 3:22 PM on April 5, 2004


That's.... actualy pretty funny.
posted by John Kenneth Fisher at 3:23 PM on April 5, 2004


Actually, this predates it by a few months. Though it's slightly different. Still funny though.

Ahh, t r a c y. Her endless rage knows no boundaries. Who hasn't crossed that raging cauldron of spite and rancor at one point in their stay here? A repeat offender, to be sure.

I, too, am genuinely amused by the histrionics.
posted by The God Complex at 3:27 PM on April 5, 2004


Personally, I find Jonson's user page an excellent bit of obsessive listing. And I think at least some of it's tongue in cheek. At least I hope some of it is...or was considering I just checked and he removed it. What was it about andrew cooke again? Something like “Displayed a flippant attitude toward the well-being of domestic animals. Disturbed me.” (paraphrase). I want to see Jonson's notes on people back up. Unless it really caused all that much disharmony on MeFi. And Jonson's response to andrew cooke after he declined to help further was classic and delightfully curt.
posted by Gnatcho at 3:34 PM on April 5, 2004


"You have heard that it has been said, 'You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those that curse you, do good to those that hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. I'm just sayin'." (Matthew 5:43-45)
posted by namespan at 4:45 PM on April 5, 2004


[runs off to jonson's web page to see if he's listed, hope against hope...]
posted by five fresh fish at 5:14 PM on April 5, 2004


What the hell? He's gone and removed his List!

Gonna hafta go kill his neighbour's dog now. Geez.
posted by five fresh fish at 5:18 PM on April 5, 2004


Oh man, he took down the list. *sniff*

Here's the best thread about it, for any of the 'noobs who might be interested. This one had me spraying stuff out my nostrils, and I was involved.

No, really! Not in the "overused online cliche" sense, either!
posted by yhbc at 5:38 PM on April 5, 2004


Considering the mutual dislike they share, they are certainly the model of civility in that thread.

A shame the list is down now, I'd love to see it.
posted by mragreeable at 5:45 PM on April 5, 2004


"The list is no more!!"


chicken.

me, I've had the pleasure of being blacklisted by other users (not by jonson as far as I know) but I wouldn't really hold a grudge for that. if we decide that we're taking part to the AskMeFi thing, we'd better leave our little feuds in the blue out of AskMeFi entirely. otherwise it'll became a "I'll help you out only if I think you don't suck" kind of thing -- not very useful in a place where we don't really like each other much.
me, the very little I know about stuff, I've tried to share it on AskMeFi -- even with users I don't necessarily agree with all the time (or like). not because doing otherwise would be petty (one is free to act like one wants) but because it would defeat the AskMeFi idea. ie, a community of users trying to answer each other's questions.
having to hide the thread poster's name in order to get the best possible advice (ie advice from the widest base of users possible) would just suck so bad
posted by matteo at 5:49 PM on April 5, 2004


Actually, this predates it by a few months. Though it's slightly different. Still funny though.

I wonder if that's what put t r a c y off AskMe altogether?

Ahh, t r a c y. Her endless rage knows no boundaries. Who hasn't crossed that raging cauldron of spite and rancor at one point in their stay here?

I've never managed to piss off tracy. But don't think I'm not damn glad of it, too.
posted by Shane at 5:55 PM on April 5, 2004


(Um, I'd better add a smiley face :-) to that last comment fast before I do incur The Wrath of the Wee Canadian One ;-)
posted by Shane at 5:57 PM on April 5, 2004


not very useful in a place where we don't really like each other much.

I like you, matteo... and I don't care who knows it!
posted by Hildago at 5:58 PM on April 5, 2004


*hugs Hildago*
posted by matteo at 6:29 PM on April 5, 2004


shane, she posted in there a few days ago if I'm not mistaken. She's definitely posted since.
posted by dobbs at 7:18 PM on April 5, 2004


Yeah, I was just joking Shane. She's always been extremely nice to me. Clearly you misunderstood me because of your delicate gay sensibilities ;)
posted by The God Complex at 7:19 PM on April 5, 2004


oooh. i've not had a meta thread of my own for years (i see that still no-one bothers to email the person in question - expect a nasty remark in ask-mefi five years hence, gwint). how heart-warming. i'd defend myself to the death, but i have a bus to catch (and am in much too good a mood, having had a very nice meal, better wine and, irony of ironies, discussion about how cool (stray, not my neighbour's) dogs are).
posted by andrew cooke at 8:02 PM on April 5, 2004


(and am in much too good a mood, having had a very nice meal, better wine and, irony of ironies, discussion about how cool (stray, not my neighbour's) dogs are...

How cool dogs are? My God, you had dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant, didn't you Andrew?!

;-) kidding. We'll forget that ancient comment you made already, especially now that jonson's cool list (which asserted my flaming homosexuality) is gone. Where is WolfDaddy anyway? Haven't flirted with him in ages.
posted by Shane at 8:20 PM on April 5, 2004


yeah, where did Wolfie go?
posted by amberglow at 8:22 PM on April 5, 2004


Apparently he's left the building. I find this somewhat disturbing.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 8:40 PM on April 5, 2004


Alright, fine, the damn list is back. I archived it off when I felt like it was old/outdated and not worth the effort to maintain, but if anyone even misses the thing, might as well put it back up.

Andrew, thanks for your help in that thread, genuinely. I wish you wouldn't poison dogs, even if you're only joking about it - I've got a couple dogs, and it's a sad thought.
posted by jonson at 8:44 PM on April 5, 2004


Damn. And here I had several cartons of smokes saved up for him.

* pours a 40 on the curb, just 'cause I heard that was what you do *
posted by yhbc at 8:45 PM on April 5, 2004


Woops. The 40 was for wolfdaddy, not jonson, obviously.

Hi, jonson! Thanks for bringing back The List!
posted by yhbc at 8:46 PM on April 5, 2004


Hey commish, thanks for the kind words - the list missed you just as much as you missed it.
posted by jonson at 9:00 PM on April 5, 2004


Apparently he's left the building. I find this somewhat disturbing.

As do I. He is the only person on this site that I can irrefutably prove has laughed at one of my jokes. To lose him is to lose myself. This is a most distressing turn of events.
posted by The God Complex at 9:03 PM on April 5, 2004


X'D
posted by drpartypoopercrankypantsesquire at 9:07 PM on April 5, 2004


still not on jonson's list, dammit.

What am I gonna have to do?
posted by namespan at 9:50 PM on April 5, 2004


i actually have a dog that barks too much, and one of my neighbors poisoned it. so yeah, i would slit someones throat for that.
posted by bob sarabia at 9:51 PM on April 5, 2004


uhhh.... could. 'could' slit someones throat....yeah
posted by bob sarabia at 9:52 PM on April 5, 2004


Start your own list, let the grudge network grow.
posted by weston at 9:52 PM on April 5, 2004


Bastard. I'm not on The List, either.

I want to work "screwed the pooch" into the post while simultaneously threatening to kill the neighbour's dog again, but I just can't do it.
posted by five fresh fish at 9:57 PM on April 5, 2004


oh i'll cut your throat too, dont worry.
posted by bob sarabia at 10:02 PM on April 5, 2004


jonson, thanks for putting the list back. And I realize now I confused your comment about andrew cooke with the one about delmoi.

Ah well, they're both about disliking dogs.
posted by Gnatcho at 10:04 PM on April 5, 2004


oh i'll cut your throat too, dont worry.

welcome bob - you may be new here, but you make me laugh out loud like a seasoned pro.

And yeah, Gnatcho, but delmoi's comment is just a little disturbing, while andrew's was much more "yeah, you heard me," almost like he was proud of the dog poisoning. Just made me kind of sad, thought about my own little pugs and someone doing them harm.
posted by jonson at 10:17 PM on April 5, 2004


does anyone else want one while i'm getting out? i dont want to have to make more than one trip.

it doesn't have to be a throat slitting either. maybe just a threatening gesture....

please?
posted by bob sarabia at 10:23 PM on April 5, 2004


Damnit! I've never got an email from posting here (except that one time) and I'm not on the list... I'm going to adopt an outlandish character and do it, until I'm dragged over and over into metatalk.



Or not.
posted by drezdn at 10:58 PM on April 5, 2004


Take that compliment with a grain of salt, chi waaaaa waaaa. Jonson has little or no discernible sense of humour. He's a blight upon community standards!
posted by The God Complex at 11:31 PM on April 5, 2004


I add my thanks for bringing back the list. I didn't realize how much I missed it till it was gone. "Still seems touchy about it if you bring it up" could be the motto of half the membership. In fact, this very thread... Naah, we're all happy campers now. Bon appetit, andrew cooke! (Mmm... stray dog...)
posted by languagehat at 12:01 AM on April 6, 2004


Mmm... stray dog...
Actually, stray dogs tend to be a bit tough. Better to find one that has been lovingly fed and looked after well, then marinate it thoroughly.
posted by dg at 12:53 AM on April 6, 2004


There are too many comments about eating dogs here. Cats, however, are fair game.
posted by orange swan at 5:50 AM on April 6, 2004


*feels slighted that he didn't make The List, notices that MidasMulligan didn't either, feels slightly better*
posted by BitterOldPunk at 5:56 AM on April 6, 2004


can i just point out that i have never poisoned a dog (or any other animal, as far as i know). we moved. my comments were about a very specific situation - one that no-one judging me here experienced. the person who took over the place was also shocked at my attitude when he moved in yet, a few months later, he completely understood (the neighbour has now moved - presumably someone else is suffering instead).

if you own a dog that's consistently noisy and agressive then you're a jerk. it's your responsibility to control the animal - if you don't you're likely making life miserable for someone else. constant agression from anything is tedious and, when you are powerless to change it, ultimately deeply frustrating. i have nothing against dogs or dog owners in general, but irresponsible dog owners with consistently agressive, noisy animals get no respect from me. and those that defend them are either ignorant or equally culpable.

on the more general point of etiquette - if i object to something i generally say what i think and then walk away and forget it. i don't think i've posted anything similar to my comment in that thread elsewhere, i'm somewhat surprised at myself for doing so, and i think it was probably a mistake. i should have told jonson he was an asshole at the time. apologies for the unhealthy procrastination.
posted by andrew cooke at 6:26 AM on April 6, 2004


[andrew cooke is good]
posted by SpaceCadet at 6:39 AM on April 6, 2004


*takes swig of a 40, spits the godawful shite out, pours the rest on the curb 'cuz it sucks*
posted by Shane at 7:09 AM on April 6, 2004


Here's a missing amended listing:

Has stood up for jonson, despite jonson being prick to y2karl.

such an ingrate...
posted by y2karl at 7:12 AM on April 6, 2004


Fair enough, y2k. Consider it amended.
posted by jonson at 7:28 AM on April 6, 2004


i should have told jonson he was an asshole at the time

I do apologize, for quoting you verbatim without any editorializing on my part, and then linking to the source of your quotes so they wouldn't be taken out of context. Man, that really is fucked up. Shame, shame on jonson!
posted by jonson at 7:31 AM on April 6, 2004


I dunno... you still seem touchy about, frankly. However, you are more than free to withold any help should I post a question in ask.meta that has to do with trying to get people fired for their comments here.
posted by jonson at 8:24 AM on April 6, 2004


*sitting wide-eyed at the feet of his elders, learning from example*
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 9:06 AM on April 6, 2004


Okay, XQ, let's stop bickering, it's teaching the kids a bad lesson.
posted by jonson at 9:10 AM on April 6, 2004


NOT IN FRONT OF THE KIDS!!!!!!!!!
posted by matteo at 9:44 AM on April 6, 2004


For what it's worth, I'd gladly take any noisy or aggressive dog out into the back forty and put a bullet through its head.

It's not that I don't like dogs (though I don't), it's that it's the most efficacious solution to a troubling problem. Owners that don't care enough to train their dogs to be polite are owners who (a) won't solve the problem and (b) don't deserve to own a dog.

Perhaps ironically, I also hold the same opinion about a good many noisy or violent people...
posted by five fresh fish at 9:44 AM on April 6, 2004


So, you're so offended by noisy, aggressive or violent people and dogs that you'd like to kill them!

I guess I better be careful at our upcoming meetup; I can get a little noisy after a couple of drinks.
posted by timeistight at 9:55 AM on April 6, 2004


I wouldn't worry too much--that's just his public list
posted by amberglow at 10:07 AM on April 6, 2004


Dogs fucking bark. It's what they do.

It's kinda, ya know, common Goddam sense. Ask a kid, a little tiny damn kid who can't spell his name, "What do doggies do?"

"Doggies bark!"

Fucking get over it. Don't blame the dog.

Shoot the damned owner, who is probably neglecting the animal anyway.

The only thing worse and more idiotic than people who constantly bitch about dogs barking is dog owners who yell at their dogs for barking at the mailman or someone perceived as an intruder or threat. If they didn't like justified barking, why the hell did they get a dog in the first place? Fucksakes. Just buy a fish, and then be surprised and pissed off when it swims all day long.

Fuckin' hell. All I'm sayin'...
posted by Shane at 10:24 AM on April 6, 2004


Dogs fucking bark. It's what they do.
...
Fucking get over it. Don't blame the dog.
...
Fuckin' hell. All I'm sayin'...



Jesus Christ, fuckin' David Mamet's a MeFi user and nobody told me.
posted by matteo at 11:52 AM on April 6, 2004


Dogs do bark. No problem there. Dogs that bark incessantly: that's a problem.

Offer a better solution. Assume the owner doesn't give a rat's ass, otherwise there wouldn't be a problem in the first place.
posted by five fresh fish at 11:53 AM on April 6, 2004


Jesus Christ, fuckin' David Mamet's a MeFi user and nobody told me.

Laugh-out-loud funny. It just occurred to me - isn't it remarkable that with all the people who constantly pepper their speech with "fuck," David Mamet has managed to make his name synonymous with it? I mean, come on, that's an achievement, no matter how you slice it.

Okay, back to the bickering.
posted by soyjoy at 12:01 PM on April 6, 2004


Dogs do bark. No problem there. Dogs that bark incessantly: that's a problem.

Amen and all that shit. I love dogs, I own a great big one named Homer. He is a 140 lb black mutt that's the sweetest animal on the planet, dumb as a rock, but sweet.

My neighbors have dogs that bark all night long, every night. Talking to them does nothing, they can't hear it in their house. She's deaf, he's hard of hearing, of course they can't hear the nonstop barking.

Every night I'm awakened by dogs barking; one of these nights my mind will crack from sleep deprivation and I'm going to hurt someone, probably the owners, but possibly the animals. That is if my husband doesn't get to them first. Last night the chorus started at 1AM and went until 6. Of course, I had to be up at 6:20, grr.
posted by SuzySmith at 1:48 PM on April 6, 2004


you should probably try poison, it seems like the best option.
posted by jonson at 3:01 PM on April 6, 2004


$4.85 and up ;-)
posted by Shane at 4:17 PM on April 6, 2004


You limp-dicked motherfucking cocksuckers need to fucking drink more whiskey before you fucking go to sleep each goddam night. Saves bullets, I reckon.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 5:11 PM on April 6, 2004


Woof!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:48 PM on April 6, 2004


No, no, no. Chicken goes ppi-yak-ppi-yak. You're confused.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 5:51 PM on April 6, 2004


I must consult my See n Say.
posted by john at 6:18 PM on April 6, 2004


shane, she posted in there a few days ago if I'm not mistaken. She's definitely posted since.

no, i didn't. what turned me off askme were the endless and idiotic cat questions. how often should i change my cat's litterbox i mean for god's sake. i prefer to hate metafilter for the political arguments not it's sheer stupidity, so i pretend that askme doesn't exist. which is hard since shane is always im-ing me the questions he thinks are funny; with me always responding "there is no askme". thinks he hasn't pissed me off...? haha, silly man. i just love him too much to rag on him is all.

dobbs if we ever end up at the same mefi meet up (toronto summer with a visiting god complex maybe?) remind me to tell you who (non mefites) read those 2 threads that day. it's funnier than you realize, heh.

Her endless rage knows no boundaries

fear me...! *giggles then skips out of the room in her fluffy hello kitty slippers*
posted by t r a c y at 7:34 PM on April 6, 2004


Why don't you like the cat questions? Because you don't have a cat? How is that different than other questions that don't pertain to your life?

I'm honestly puzzled. How about babies? There are baby care questions on AskMe, too. Do those annoy you and make you spurn AskMe? Because you don't have a baby? Or do you?

All the damn questions about Canada are certainly getting annoying, though.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 7:40 PM on April 6, 2004


dobbs if we ever end up at the same mefi meet up (toronto summer with a visiting god complex maybe?)

Reading metafilter, I've often noticed that god complexes seem to visit any number of members on a daily basis, as can be noticed by their adamant, I'm-right-you're-wrong debating styles ;)

As for me, well, yeah, if I'm not too afraid of the people that are going to be there!
posted by The God Complex at 7:48 PM on April 6, 2004


Metafilter: fear me...! *giggles then skips out of the room in her fluffy hello kitty slippers*

: >
posted by amberglow at 7:57 PM on April 6, 2004


Because you don't have a cat?

Mmm, tracy's all about cats. Just all about 'em.

Which reminds me, I need to ask AskMe how I can help my own Boots and Buffy get along better. It really annoys Buffy when Boots swats her every time Buffy tries to pee. Humiliating, isn't it? ;-)
posted by Shane at 8:28 PM on April 6, 2004


Because you don't have a cat?

hi Ethereal Bligh it's very nice to meet you... my name is t r a c y, i own katgyrl.com and have never known life without a cat in the house. currently i am owned by 3 furry felines; zasu, finn, and bonk. i would run into a burning house to save a cat i didn't even know. in my spare time i work with a group of volunteers who find homes for abandoned and stray cats (and dogs). so, it's not so much the subject matter, yah...? but let's publicly leave it at that ok, since i've previously vowed to not be mean about askme, heh :-]

shane, prepare to die. linking my sappy tygrrr site, where is your sense of self preservation...?
posted by t r a c y at 8:33 PM on April 6, 2004


This is all very confusing. If I go to AskMe and post the question "Why exactly does t r a c y hate cat questions," will t r a c y come in there and answer it?
posted by soyjoy at 10:00 PM on April 6, 2004


Metafilter's List of Wrongs:

(1) Andrew Cooke does not, in fact, hate dogs
(2) t r a c y (tracy* )? does not, in fact, dislike cats or live in a cat vacuum
(3) jonson's list was not, in fact, a bad thing, but a sort of community talisman
(4) ...
posted by weston at 10:59 PM on April 6, 2004


A cat vacuum? I thought cats cleaned themselves?
posted by dg at 11:16 PM on April 6, 2004


Aristotle famously said that "nature abhors a cat vacuum"; so maybe t r a c y couldn't live in one, even if she wanted to†.

† However, Aristotle was full of it. He also had manifestly absurd ideas about the inferiority of female cats. In fact, in 1663, Blaise Pascal proved that Aristole was wrong and that nature likes cat vacuums just fine.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 12:29 AM on April 7, 2004


soyjoy: check this out

It's a language - or, more precisely, a dialect - that has earned its own name: Mamet-speak.
The chief characteristics are repetitions, pauses, unfinished sentences, staccato delivery, and more than a dash of profanity.
Leaving out the profanity (at least in the course of an interview) and adding a high degree of articulateness, there's a good deal of Mamet-speak in Guastaferro's fast-paced conversation. He notes the similarity several times when he catches himself interrupting his own thought.
For instance, launching into a discussion of Mamet's language, Guastaferro breaks into his own monologue, saying: "I do find, and this is funny, let me tell you this, I, first of all, when I catch myself talking like that I'm saying, 'Oh, my God, that's a Mametism,' because I'm inserting in the middle of my own sentences, and I think that's why the fit is good, and I think that's why he likes me. I can't label it, but the guy picks me often, and it's maybe because of that."
Even so, Guastaferro admits that Mamet-speak is "extremely difficult to memorize" - more so, in fact, than Shakespeare. "I've done [Shakespeare], but for me I almost find Shakespeare a little easier because at least he does like to complete sentences and he does have a definite iambic pentameter rhythm to it," he explains.

posted by matteo at 3:36 AM on April 7, 2004


I like to think that Mamet's dialog is hyperreal—he takes the oft-overlooked stutters and stammers and meanderings that litter everyday speech and uses them in a quasi-poetic meter to create stylized dialog that is paradoxically naturalistic yet highly artificial. This is, in its modest fashion, reminiscent of Joyce&mdashstructured verisimilitude, a Platonic realism.

This style is well-suited for Mamet's pet themes: duplicity, the impossible inevitability (or is that the inevitable impossibility?) of trust, the compelling falseness of language.

It's also just really neato.
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 4:05 AM on April 7, 2004




Thanks, matteo.

"I do find, and this is funny, let me tell you this, I, first of all, when I catch myself telling somebody that if we were in a bar right now they'd be missing a few teeth, I'm saying, 'Oh, my God, that's a Darkism.'"
posted by soyjoy at 10:07 AM on April 7, 2004


where did Wolfie go?

wolfdaddy is in the process of moving from one state to another, and will be back online and posting to mefi in a week or so. yay...! :-)
posted by t r a c y at 6:30 PM on April 8, 2004


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