Feb 15 2008 10:49 pm
Posted by Grandson under Humor, Reality
Idiot Sighting
We had to have the garage door repaired. The Sears repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a "large" enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute and said that we had the largest one Sears made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, "Lady, you need a 1/4 horsepower." I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4. He said, "NO, it’s not." Four is larger than two.."
We haven’t used Sears repair since.
IDIOT SIGHTING
My daughter and I went through the McDonald’s take-out window and I gave the clerk a $5 bill. Our total was $4.25, so I also handed her a quarter. She said, "you gave me too much money." I said, "Yes I know, but this way you can just give me a dollar bill back." She sighed and went to get the manager who asked me to repeat my request. I did so, and he handed me back the quarter, and said “We’re sorry but they could not do that kind of thing." The clerk then proceeded to give me back $1 and 75 cents in change.
Do not confuse the clerks at McD’s.
IDIOT SIGHTING:
I live in a semi-rural area. We recently had a new neighbor call the local township administrative office to request the removal of the DEER CROSSING sign on our road. The reason: "Too many deer are being hit by cars out here. I don’t think this is a good place for them to be crossing anymore."
From Kingman , KS .
IDIOT SIGHTING IN FOOD SERVICE:
My daughter went to a local Taco Bell and ordered a taco. She asked the person behind the counter for "minimal lettuce." He said he was sorry, but they only had iceberg lettuce.
From Kansas City
IDIOT SIGHTING:
I was at the airport, checking in at the gate, when an airport employee asked, "Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge?" To which I replied, "If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?" He smiled knowingly and nodded, "That’s why we ask."
Happened in Birmingham , Ala.
IDIOT SIGHTING:
The stoplight on the corner buzzes when it’s safe to cross the street. I was crossing with an intellectually challenged coworker. She asked if I knew what the buzzer was for. I explained that it signals blind people when the light is red. Appalled, she responded, "What on earth are blind people doing driving?!"
She was a probation officer in Wichita , KS
IDIOT SIGHTING:
At a good-bye luncheon for an old and dear coworker: she was leaving the company due to "downsizing." Our manager commented cheerfully, "This is fun. We should do this more often." Not another word was spoken. We all just looked at each other with that deer-in-the-headlights stare.
This was a lunch at Texas Instruments.
IDIOT SIGHTING:
I work with an individual who plugged her power strip back into itself and for the sake of her life, couldn’t understand why her system would not turn on.
A deputy with the Dallas County Sheriffs office, no less.
IDIOT SIGHTING:
When my husband and I arrived at an automobile dealership to pick up our car, we were told the keys had been locked in it. We went to the service department and found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver’s side door. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. "Hey," I announced to the technician, "it’s open!" His reply, "I know. I already got that side."
This was at the Ford dealership in Canton , Mississippi
STAY ALERT!
They walk among us… and the scary part is that they VOTE
TV Spy on 17 Feb 2008 at 2:00 am #
lol but the airport one makes sense, they’re asking you because they want to emphasize and reinforce that they will hold you accountable for anything in your bag unless you tell them that your bag was unattended. The idea being that a possible drug smuggler would most likely say the bag was with them to alleviate any suspicions and hoping that it would go unnoticed or undetected, then in that manner once found out they can’t recant that they didn’t know how it got there because they admitted it was in their possession.
Whereas someone who apparently didn’t have an eye on it at all times could allege it may have been tampered with.
Sarah on 17 Feb 2008 at 6:28 pm #
@TV Spy - I definitely see what you’re saying, but still. I do think they need to reword the question.
And some of these other stories are really scary. I think the first one with the Sears repairman and the car repairman are the scariest. Mostly we PAY them to do those jobs…and they pull these kinds of stunts.
richard on 18 Feb 2008 at 1:00 pm #
Unfortunately a lot of these people finish up as “social workers”
john on 18 Feb 2008 at 3:31 pm #
tv spy…they didn’t ask if the bag had been unattended…they asked if anyone put something in it without the owner’s knowledge. If something is put in my bag without my knowledge, I DO NOT KNOW, since it is WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDGE.
gc on 18 Feb 2008 at 7:45 pm #
Future Republican presidential candidates.
G on 18 Feb 2008 at 8:28 pm #
Anyone else notice they all occurred in the southern united states….thats gotta be the funniest thing of all
BH on 18 Feb 2008 at 8:47 pm #
Excuse me, “G,” but idiocy is rampant regardless of location. Way to be objective. Grow up and lose the stereotype.
HappyPanda on 19 Feb 2008 at 12:46 am #
The money change at Mc Donals happened to me as well… she just couldn’t figure out why I would give that extra change, so she just started giving change untill I said “thank you”
And BH, it was also in a southern state. Sorry…
Nicole on 19 Feb 2008 at 9:00 am #
Actually I did notice that they were all from southern states, but as someone else said idiocy is everywhere, here is my story from Albany — New York
My partner is wheat sensitive, and looks for products made with rice flour, potato flour and the like. One day we wanted a quick breakfast, so we went into a local bagel store. My partner, hoping for a miracle asked the young woman behind the counter if they had any wheat free bagels. The girl thought for a moment and and replied “Well, we have whole wheat, and honey wheat bagels, but all the rest are made with regular flour”
Rather than embarrass the girl, she decided on a cup of yogurt while I had a bagel made with ‘regular flour’
OUTVOICED on 20 Feb 2008 at 7:58 am #
This happened more than once… I run a booth at a local flea market.. and I sell hand made and costume jewelry. occasionally i sell things like cz rings set in a fake gold setting for about $3-5. it never fails that some one will come up and ask “are these real?”
now what kind of idiot would i be to have 20 or more diamond rings set in 14 k gold. in a open tray on a table out side at a flea market and why in the world would i be selling them for so little . wouldn’t i do better to take them to a pawn shop for that price… i would at least get a little less riped off.. lol. and yes the price is visible and they still ask how much they are and if they are real..
i have taken to replying..” well it all depends on your perspective.. and go on about Einstines theory of relativity…..THAT REALLY CONFUSES THEM …OF COURSE THESE ARE THE SAME PEOPLE WHO CAN NEVER PUT A THING BACK WHERE THE FOUND IT ..AND SOMETIMES CHUCK STUFF RANDOMLY BACK ON THE TABLE IF THEY THINK MY PRICE IS TO HIGH.. MOMMA NEVER TAUGHT THEM A LICK OF MANNERS..
ONCE AGAIN THIS IS FROM THE SOUTH..AND I AM NOT…
BEGINNING TO SEE A TREND HERE….??????????
gond on 20 Feb 2008 at 8:10 am #
yeah, but a lot of younger people don’t have a clue how things like bread are made: they just buy it off the shelf and don’t care where it comes from. part of our disposable culture, i guess. not saying that it was an intelligent response… just that she was probably naive instead of stupid. some of the ones listed were just plain old dumb! and i live in the deep south and agree that the south has an unwarranted rep for stupidity.
gond
fat dumb southerner on 20 Feb 2008 at 10:31 am #
-outvoiced-
i’m no “Einstine”, but hell, if I were going to drop the E-bomb on the south…i’d spell the guys name right, eh? also as far as locations above, got one MS, one AL, and one Tx. 3 Kansas, which we don’t claim. hey, if you hate it down here so bad, take your costume jewelry, put it back in your carpetbag, and go back to Albany.
damn, i’m gonna go close my head in my craftsman garage door, and wait for the repairman…might fix my damned headache.
Georgia Girl on 20 Feb 2008 at 10:48 pm #
I’m with you fat dumb southerner. It is getting to be extremely annoying with people bad-mouthing the South like the north is this anointed place of intelligence. If the South is so bad, why do we keep getting these know-it-all Northerners wanting to live here? Granted, some of those stories occurred in the South but many occurred in places such as fast food restaurants where the employees aren’t necessarily the best and the brightest. What is with the North’s hatred for the South?
Western Girl on 21 Feb 2008 at 9:51 pm #
Lighten up, folks! None of the comments said the South was hated or stupid - just funny. I’m from the Western US, and we have plenty of stupid people out here, too.
Nicole on 22 Feb 2008 at 2:22 pm #
fat dumb southerner —
I don’t have to go back to Albany, I am still here. You have me confused with OUTVOICED. If you reread my comment you will see that I was defending the south by agreeing that there are stupid people all over and that the south does not have any more stupid people than anywhere else
Malaka on 29 Feb 2008 at 11:30 am #
There are stupid people everywhere, but I am willing to bet the family farm that the south has a statistically higher concentration of stupidity per capita than anywhere else in the country. It might be a stereotype, but stereotypes exist because of observable trends. The problem is not the stereotype, but the assumption and pre-judgment that if you are from the south you are stupid. The correct assumption is: If you are from the south, it is more likely that you are stupid.
All you have to do is watch Jerry Springer…
priscilla on 29 Feb 2008 at 7:08 pm #
when i worked at dairy queen, i got a lot of people coming through the drive-thru and informing me that their orders were “to go”. really now?
and i live in pennsylvania.
the south does not have a monopoly on stupidity.
bill e rubin on 29 Feb 2008 at 8:26 pm #
clinton voters for sure
Keith on 29 Feb 2008 at 8:43 pm #
Perhaps the fast food employees are smarter in the north because they all have degrees. With the employment prospects available here the employers can be much more selective. So who is the dumber?
Rich on 29 Feb 2008 at 8:46 pm #
Haha..well first, let me say that it is no coincidence that all these occurred in the south. They are what give America a bad name. Now with that being said, stereotypes are there for a reason. Why do you think people think the South as the habitat for stupid?
leah on 29 Feb 2008 at 9:06 pm #
Just cuz these things happen sometimes doesn’t mean we can stereotype everyone in that setting.
Bun on 29 Feb 2008 at 9:58 pm #
So, someone copies some old quotes that have circulated around the internet for years, but that no one can verify, which at some point were ascribed to a handful of people working in different corners of a huge region, and your snap conclusion is that all of the residents of that region are stupid? Well, I’m from Alabama, and even I can see that that’s some idiotic logic.
Matt on 29 Feb 2008 at 10:04 pm #
Well, you know, there’s a funny collection of anecdotes here and all..
The Shane on 29 Feb 2008 at 10:11 pm #
That was extremely ironic, FDS.
Adam Seale on 01 Mar 2008 at 1:20 am #
To all those northerners who relegate stupidity to the south:
I’d like to take this moment to remind you of such wonderful children of yours as one Ann Coulter. : ]
Another Georgia Girl on 01 Mar 2008 at 2:01 am #
Nicole:
Fat Dumb Southerner actually did address the comment to Outvoiced…
And there certainly are idiots all over the country- and all over the world. I’ve encountered tooooooo many of them.
Master_Taco on 01 Mar 2008 at 3:13 am #
Nicole, he’s a stupid Southerner, of COURSE he got you confused with OUTVOICED. I’m surprised he was able to turn is computer (probably running Windows 95) on. Heh. (He DOES however know how to spell, it appears, which is a plus!)
Toni on 01 Mar 2008 at 6:48 am #
I am a Midwesterner who’s been living in the south for 18 years, married a southern man and raised two southern children. I work in a professional career with southern professionals. And I’m here to tell you–THEY ARE STUPID DOWN HERE! And I wonder about myself, because I stay here!
Banzai Bill on 01 Mar 2008 at 8:00 am #
richard on 18 Feb 2008 at 1:00 pm WROTE:
Unfortunately a lot of these people finish up as “social workers”
…
funny, I was thinking that unfortunately a lot of these people finish up as misinformed dopes writing comments on blogs…like you!
haha on 01 Mar 2008 at 8:07 am #
Don’t worry, he’s just a fat dumb southerner.
Jonathan H. on 01 Mar 2008 at 8:11 am #
_I_ had thought the Americans in the north were smarter because they were closer to Canada and there was some sort of intellectual leakage happening. Then I remembered that there are an AWFUL lot of Canadians in Florida for half of the year… So if the contention that the south is a little slower holds true, it can’t be caused through foreign interaction with the populace.
Cross-border beer sales, maybe? Anyone in the south have ready access to Moosehead?
And can anyone please explain California?
robb on 01 Mar 2008 at 9:23 am #
how old are we now? really.
you all are stupid for fighting about whos stupider.
this is when we grow up,
No one on 01 Mar 2008 at 10:11 am #
im from texas. i have done my share of stupid things.. but not like this… but i have an excuse, i was a teenager at the time… but as far as the south being dumb… well its not just the south… its all over america… do you know how many kids are now growing up learning actually very little in school. for most people school is useless from about 3rd grade up… i learned to speak… outside of school… as you can tell was never really tought correct spelling.. wasnt because i payed attention. it was because my teachers never cared about spelling. we read, write, turn in.. and depending on how could our story or answer was, we got graded… i have never been graded on how well my spelling was. ALLOT of the people going into their thirties-senior citizens have no clue how much kids DONT learn in school. most of what i know i learned outside of school. and because of this allot of people miss out on basic commen sence learning. hence the deer crossing sign, not seeing why you give a $5 bill and a quarter when it only cost 4.25. personally… as soon as im able to im going to move out of america… i find it STUPID as hell when ever most of the new generation cares more about what drugged up celebrety is getting arrested for undecent exposure rather then know whats going on in the country and outside the country that really effects the world. i personally thing allot of this country is a descrace, why… J’Lo has a child “news” 200 men die in iraq bombing “meh.. change the channel, nothing interesting” and allot of other things. you know more people study english in japan then people who actually speak the language in the US? point is… its not just the south thats stupid… its all of america. we have all had one of those moments where we ask a stupid question, then it hits us “shit… that was domb”. and we have all gone through that moment where we say something… then fight for what we said because we believe its right… even though later we find out that we are completely wrong. AMERICA IS STUPID! take the president for example ^^. if any other country thought we were smart before him.. they dont now.
No one on 01 Mar 2008 at 10:14 am #
sorry for the typo’s…. i re-read and saw allot lol
No one on 01 Mar 2008 at 10:15 am #
sorry for the typo’s.. re-read and saw alot lol. oh, and sorry if this is a double post.
Craig on 01 Mar 2008 at 10:23 am #
I loved the anecdotes. They were all good for a quick morning laugh. Now, being originally from MI, you see some real nitwits up north. Georgia Girl, I think the reason folks pick on southern folks is that the dumb ones seem to hog the spotlight while the intelligent ones sit back and shake their heads. I live in Florida, where we see a good mix of stupidity from both southern and northern folks. Blame Jeff Foxworthy for the expansion of the stereotype.
Wallace on 01 Mar 2008 at 10:41 am #
for the taco one i think you’re an idiot for saying “minimal lettuce” thats just stupid
LK on 01 Mar 2008 at 2:40 pm #
hey BH- G wasn’t stereotyping. If you had bothered to read it, every single one of them WAS from a southern state. Maybe you’re offended because you fit the stereotype that YOU implied. Way to go.
P.S. gc is awesome.
LK on 01 Mar 2008 at 2:48 pm #
Yes, There is stupidity EVERYWHERE. ugh. However, it’s jsut a coincidence that they’re all in the south. And Only the people from the south are here implying the stereotypes that Northerners think southerners are stupid. Well, that seems prtty foolish doesn’t it?
if you don’t want to be stereotyped, don’t stereotype yourselves. And then PROVE you fit those stereotypes.
A+ to everyone.
Can't we all just get along?? on 01 Mar 2008 at 5:23 pm #
I think it is hilarious that people are getting so bent out of shape. Granted, the comments about the South were in poor taste, but is it really worth getting so upset about? Who ever said the North hates the South or thinks it is an “anointed place of intelligence?” Seriously, I think we can all agree that there are stupid people everywhere. Truth be told, usually they can’t help that any more than you can help that you are from the South, North, East, West etc…so maybe we should give the stupid people a break too!
Thompson on 02 Mar 2008 at 7:24 am #
Don’t you guys get it? If you are from ANYWHERE in the US you are fat and stupid.
Kbell on 02 Mar 2008 at 11:44 am #
G don’t think that all people from the south are stupid. Rich and Malaka, you better shut your mouth about how people from the south are stupid because if you sat that, then you are stupid, too.
Kbell on 02 Mar 2008 at 11:45 am #
sorry about the sat, I meant to say “say”
Kansas on 02 Mar 2008 at 11:54 am #
I’m from Kansas, very close to the OK border and I must agree, there are MANY, MANY stupid people here. I have travelled all over the US, and I still believe that the most rude and stupid people I have met are in Wichita Kansas. I have never seen so many rude and stupid people in one place at one time.
“The South” may not claim Kansas, but we have a lot more southern traits than northern traits here in Kansas…at least in my neck of the woods.
lortis on 02 Mar 2008 at 12:10 pm #
They may have happened in the south but who is to say that they weren’t done by transplanted northeners?
OH! How Immaturity Grows on 02 Mar 2008 at 12:13 pm #
I am 17 and live in Oklahoma. I deal with idiots on a daily basis, but I have come to find that most of it is not stupidity, but more a naiveness due to either a lack of decent education or just the fact that new generations (including my own) are becoming less and less interested in real issues, and more interested in petty, materialistic things such as which celebrity is pregnant, and which one’s back in rehab.
Now, on another hand, I see the adults who are worse. I can actually link them to a form of stupidity around here. This seems to come from the fact that the majority are not only lazy, but drug addicted alcoholics, but that they seem to put all of their faith in God instead of doing for themselves.
I have my faults as well, being 17 and a Senior in high school. But I can admit my mistakes (mistake #1 being even posting this) but I can learn by them, which is, unfortunately, more than I can say for a lot of people.
The main thing is that I was born and raised in California, I’ve lived in Oklahoma since I was 12, Traveled to Colorado, Tennessee, Indiana, Washington, Washington DC, New York and plenty of other places. I can honestly say that there are idiots everywhere, and that every idiot seems to think their better than everyone else, and that everyone else is the idiot.
Oh! How Immaturity Grows.
Loraine on 02 Mar 2008 at 3:01 pm #
I didn’t even notice that most of these are from the south, but it doesn’t change my perspective on the area now that it has been pointed out to me. Why is everyone getting so offended? All of the arguments from southerners saying how jerkish us northerners are haven’t actually been said, or even been hinted at. I will agree that there are plenty of idiots around, but not necessarily in one general area.
Everyone just needs to cool their jets. Seriously.
karl roenfanz ( rosey ) on 02 Mar 2008 at 6:08 pm #
i went to a marc’s big boy bought $8,?? of food, paid with a $10. 00, waitress gave me $14.75 change _ green bay, wisc. went to a yard sale. bought $3.75 worth, paid with a $5.00, the 20 yo couldn’t figure how to use the same calculator to give me change _ evansville, ind.
rustin myers on 02 Mar 2008 at 6:18 pm #
I have two true stories for you.
I was looking at Canadian diamonds for my Canadian wife. I notice that the Canadian diamonds were more expensive than the all the others. I asked the sales person why and she told me that it was because they took so long to form.
I was going over some applications when I notice that when one was asked what number should be called in the case of an emergency they had put 911.
Thanks,
I enjoyed your sight
JESUS EFFING CHRIST on 02 Mar 2008 at 6:38 pm #
Holy sh!t..
the first two were from establishments and none of you even know if they were from southern states, first off..
secondly, i live in Florida and we’ve got old people,
it’s just a coincidence that SOME. OF. THEM. are idiotic and senile.
most of them are kind, wise, people with more knowledge than the average 12-year-old posting comments having nothing to do with the freaking article.
just because most of those are from southern states doesn’t mean that other states have idiocy happening too.
for instance..
in California::
Customer: “Are you Hispanic?”
Sales Clerk: “No.”
Customer: “Middle Eastern?”
SC: “No.”
Customer: “Egyptian?”
SC: “No.”
Customer: “What are you?”
SC: “Chinese.”
-customer puts on offended face-
Customer: “I don’t appreciate you treating me like I’m dumb.”
SC: “Excuse me? I’m being honest.”
Customer: “NO CHINESE PERSON WOULD EVER HAVE EYES AS BIG AS YOURS!!!”
SC: *mouth wide open*
In Chicago::
Customer: “I just locked my key in my car in front of the shop.”
Car Dealer: (I pick up some stuff) “Not a problem, I’ll pop it open for $5.00.”
Customer: “What are you going to do with that stuff?”
C.D: “Open your car.”
Customer: “It’s a brand new Mercedes. I just drove it here from the dealer–you can’t touch it!”
C.D: “Then how do I open it?”
Customer: “That’s your problem.”
C.D: “Actually it’s not; I didn’t lock the key in your car.”
Customer: “You have to open it.”
C.D: “Watch me not open it.”
Customer: “OK then, but if you make any scratch or mark at all then you will have to pay Mercedes to repaint the whole car. That will cost thousands.”
C.D: “So If I’m successful I get $5.00, but if I make the smallest error it will cost me thousands of dollars?”
Customer: “Yes.”
C.D: “Your car might just be there forever.”
do you see?
other stupidity happens in other places.
maybe if you stop b!tching about it..
no..
no ‘maybe if’
just stop.
just fu*king stop and get on with your life.
I’ve posted this and i’m not coming back to hear your whiny little complaints about how wrong and/or southern my opinion and I happen to be..
Get The Fu*k over it.
It’s the internet, not the freaking white house.
calm the hell down.
you’re all wrong [me included]
so shut the hell up and stop being troll-bait.
Lance on 02 Mar 2008 at 7:04 pm #
Perhaps some of you leaving comments about how all of these stories are from the south need to learn how to read a map. Kansas is not in the “south”, literally or figuratively. It is located in the geographical center of the United States. In fact, it doesn’t really bear any resemblance (culturally or otherwise) to what is considered the “south”. Not that it would matter if it did.
None on 02 Mar 2008 at 7:10 pm #
Kansas is not in the south. It is in the midwest.
10 Seconds of Fun « Zalandria on 02 Mar 2008 at 8:13 pm #
[…] check this out: Idiot Sightings. Posted in Computers, […]
graham on 02 Mar 2008 at 8:27 pm #
This is too funny. I live in Louisiana. All I can say is that we have a good mix of intelligence and stupidity here. The fact of the matter is, every one does dumb things. At some time in your life it just happens. The really dumb ones eliminate themselves from the gene pool. Unfortunately, for the rest, the laws of man protect or encourage their stupidity. This happens, and the rest of us sit back and watch the dumbing down of America as a whole. Judging by the way things in politics and our country are. and have been going for quite some time, there’s just not enough of the smart ones to outnumber the vote. But what do I know? I’m from Louisiana right?
Here’s to what will likely be the shortest lived empire in the history of man, and free health care for illegals. Yay for shitting on our own citizens!
Cheers!
Randy on 02 Mar 2008 at 8:40 pm #
The comments here are far more amusing than the actual article. Not only do you all seem to believe that these incidents happened in the South, you all seems to believe they actually happened!
This is the Internet, folks! Don’t believe anything you see without independent corroboration!
Including this post!
Bosco on 02 Mar 2008 at 9:06 pm #
gc, meanwhile you are a current asshole.
Generic Anonymity on 02 Mar 2008 at 9:37 pm #
Not to try and point the finger here, but while a lot of the anecdotes do refer to southern states, a good portion of them are not attributed to any state at all.
I think it’s just a little sad how we can all sit here accusing one another of either being arrogant or stupid without knowing anything about anyone else. Of course, that’s a big part of why it happens - anonymity makes you brash.
Aside from that, I thought the stories were funny. It is scary, though.
- Maggie, 21, from Pennsylvania
Michael on 02 Mar 2008 at 9:59 pm #
I was a passenger in a car one day, driving along looking for a business where my car mates and I had scheduled an appointment. Having doubled back along the same stretch of road several times due to a somewhat confusing number system, I suggested that on the next pass the other passenger look for the business on the left side of the street while I looked on the right side. The driver, somewhat indignantly asked, “Well where am I going to look?
Not from the south, still not so bright,
The dumb walk among us and they are everywhere.
Open English - Learn Smart on 03 Mar 2008 at 8:13 am #
LOL the last one is the best. I’ve had plenty of things like this happen to me, I just need to start writing them down.
RateMyLeftArm.com on 03 Mar 2008 at 12:40 pm #
Man, its like you are surrounded by idiots. Like you have been transported to a strange planet of stupidity.
Doyle Ethredge on 03 Mar 2008 at 7:25 pm #
I like to mess with sales clerks. I purchased a gallon of milk.I ask the young clerk if this was milk from a real cow. She gave me a blank look and with a shrug said she had no idea where
milk came from.
axks on 03 Mar 2008 at 9:57 pm #
i’m pretty sure the question the airport attendant asked was rhetorical.
they were basically asking you to check your shit so nothing gets slipped in.
people respond to question more often than statements, because questions are personal, and as social creature we know it’s impolite to shrug off a question. but vague statements to a crowd like “please, check your baggage” rarely coerce people to do so, and can be easily ignored.
if you wanna make someone do something, its more effective to ask them PERSONALLY.
basic english comprehension and psychology.
Kaya Koyu Walker on 04 Mar 2008 at 2:18 am #
If it’s any consolation to you lot, in the UK it’s the Northerners that are the butt of most jokes regarding lack of intelligence.
Hey, just lighten up and smile !
(BTW I’m English, but live in Turkey)
uptight eastern ass on 04 Mar 2008 at 8:16 am #
Why the north’s cynical prejudice toward southerner’s educations? Two words: Red States. And yes, I know that not all southerners are stupid, but like Jeff Foxworthy once said “It ain’t the most intelligent sounding accent… not something you’d want to hear [from] your brain surgeon”
The Swede on 04 Mar 2008 at 4:00 pm #
Hey, relax okay.
This whole “discussion” about the south being dumber then the rest of USA is ridiculous. Speaking as someone from the other side of “the pond” (a.k.a. the Atlantic ocean), you are all stupid.
Okey, I admit, you are not all stupid. But the fact remains that you at least claim to be a democracy and the people you vote to office are all idiots. Well, at least the past elections.
What was my point again?
Mikel on 04 Mar 2008 at 7:59 pm #
Fighting on the internet is like competing in the Special Olympics; even if you win, you’re still retarded.
Jimi2 on 05 Mar 2008 at 12:29 am #
I have a little comment for No One from Texas. I think that your errant spelling in your first post is forced and faked. There is no way that you use words like rather and cannot spell disgrace. Your first misspelled word (good spelled “could”) was a third of the way into your post. Now that I think about it you did not really start misspelling words until you mentioned that you could not spell. Furthermore, this reply box has some form of spell check, so I highly doubt that you could miss all of that red on your screen. I also question the time you have been out of state-run schools. I personally have learned a great deal in school, mostly since the third grade. Also your comment on Bush, not that I am a huge fan, but he has graduated from about three more colleges than you have (community college does not count here, sorry). It is people like you who give Americans a bad name. We are supposed to stand by our leaders. Unity is key to survival. It is the bundle of arrows metaphor all over again. If you automatically assume that someone is an idiot solely because he has different ideas than you, I would label you as an uninformed idiot.
I also have a comment for Mikel on his little metaphor with the Special Olympics. Unless you yourself happen to be a “retarded” person, you have no right to talk like that. And please do not go on saying, “Well, I know a ‘retarded’ person.” If you are that shallow and think that the one “retarded” person you know can account for all of the “retarded” people in the world; that is truly “retarded.” People like you do not help with the world’s opinions of Americans.
Oh, I am from the South as well.
Jimi2 on 05 Mar 2008 at 12:45 am #
One more thing. For all of you up there that seem to thing that Kansas is in the South, check this URL: http://afisd.com/images/us_map.gif . We Southerners can only claim three of those stories (four if you have decided that Texas Instruments counts as a Southern Company). Also, I have a nice little anecdote about some Indiana State Senators and Representatives. The Representatives actually passed a bill (#246 if you care to check it out) that proposed changing the value of pi to 3.2.
Dan on 05 Mar 2008 at 11:41 am #
I just saw the Taco Bell one and had to add my own Taco Bell story. I was in the drive through once and I asked for Lite Lettuce on whatever I was ordering and was told that they only had one kind of lettuce.
Scrat on 05 Mar 2008 at 8:11 pm #
Way back in the late 90’s, I was in the company cafeteria down in Dallas. I got to speaking to the guy in front of me who had seen me before and having found out I was a Brit transplant, was interested in why I came over etc.
A few minutes pass whilst the queue trickles down and I’m the next one to be served by the latino girl who’d obviously overhead some of the conversation.
‘So, you’re from England then?’ she asked me.
‘Yes, I am, ‘ I replied.
‘One thing I’ve always wondered about – what language do they speak over there?’
After I picked up my jaw off the floor, I spluttered ‘er, English. Why?’
‘Strange,’ she replied. ‘I always thought you spoke Spanish there…’
dudeas on 08 Mar 2008 at 1:01 am #
Just cause im dying from laughter reading the arguments, im gonna add more to the list of southern stupidiy so this thread can stay alive.
Prime example of southern stupidity:
Goto http://www.google.com and type “miserable failure” and click I’m feeling lucky.
Also can try: “Who is a failure?”
I’m feeling lucky button = automatically go to the most related link to your text.
dudeas out.
Jessy-cow on 08 Mar 2008 at 1:11 pm #
I am a north Californian, not sac-o-tomato north, mountains and trees north, but I think my idiots are just a little smarter than the average bear. Almost every time I buy something at any store, I set my dollar bills down and they just take it Dx they don’t even give me the time to get my change out to confuse them!
but honestly, I live right next to idiots, it’s amazing the things I’ll see happen every other day…
Jeff on 12 Mar 2008 at 12:50 pm #
If only humans had a natural predator…
ttownbeast on 13 Mar 2008 at 12:28 am #
I wont say the south is stupider but sometimes I wonder if northerners aren’t outsourcing stupid from that region. mind you not all the southern states are unintellegent I know a few texans who find the idea of being considered “southern” embarrassing afterall they were annexed by the US yet california is so far west that it is considered “western” by californians, but westerners cringe when they consider the thought…tell you what I’ll take texas as a western state if southerners take california. better yet let canada take wisconsin too them freaks like to talk like canucks, and give florida to cuba screw em.
northerner on 13 Mar 2008 at 11:58 pm #
Southerners,
Me think you doth protest too much.
southerner on 14 Mar 2008 at 4:24 pm #
It’s methinks, you idiot. One word…with an S at the end. Don’t try sounding witty if you’re only half-way there.
LOL@Seattle on 16 Mar 2008 at 1:56 am #
Alright, I had an idiot moment my self that I am not shy to admit because it makes me laugh. I was with a friend in seattle and the street sign started buzzing and for the life of him he couldn’t figure out why it was buzzing so I turned to him and in a serious voice (because indeed I was serious) I said. So that the deaf people know when to cross. -_-
Horse_hockey on 16 Mar 2008 at 6:49 am #
Whenever I hear a dumb comment/answer I always ask, ‘You’re a Republican, right?’ 90% of the time the answer is ‘yes.’
facetime on 16 Mar 2008 at 10:53 pm #
a story of mine:
i was visiting new york, and upon hearing that i was from texas, a group of girls giggled and asked “don’t everyone go to school by horse?” to which i responded “is everyone in new york an asshole?”
(to be clear, texas isn’t all ranches and cows, it’s got cities too. )
people are stupid and ignorant sometimes, but i would take someone who is unfamiliar with power supply over someone who would write off a large region of the US as stupid.
this whole argument is inane, but here are my thoughts:
rich…. [Regarding the South] “They are what give America a bad name.”
ah, very well said.
and… touche, mikel. touche.
boogeyman on 17 Mar 2008 at 8:07 am #
Ya’ll cool down!!!!!!!!
saltis on 19 Mar 2008 at 12:01 pm #
A good deal of these anecdotes bear a strong resemblance to the classic “urban legend” template. I would tend to regard the stories posted here with a healthful dose of skepticism. See Jan Harold Brunvand’s series of expository books on the subject.
Rika on 19 Mar 2008 at 9:58 pm #
No WONDER the presidents in office are such idiots! People like these are voting!
Scary thought.
James Smith on 22 Mar 2008 at 5:38 pm #
At the airport when I am asked, “Has your luggage been left with anyone not known to you?” I always reply “Not until now.”
Kylie on 22 Mar 2008 at 11:11 pm #
Scrat, your story reminds me of an experience I had while visiting a friend in Germantown, Maryland. I had quickly ducked into a burger place (I forget the name; there’s just so many burger places in the States!) to buy a drink. The girl at the counter asked how I was doing and I replied that I was feeling great, that I was visiting a friend who had recently moved there and that I was really looking forward to travelling around the US and seeing some sights. Hearing my accent, she asked what country I was from. I told her I was from Australia. ‘Oh wow,’ she said while handing me my drink, ‘What language do you guys speak over there?’ I just stared at her, paid for my drink and said ‘thank you’ in English…..just like the whole conversation we had just had.
Paul on 25 Mar 2008 at 9:38 am #
Hey,
Just stumbling thru and stopped to actually read all the comments. I just want to make reference to a recent episode of trading spouses. On this show the wife from minnesota swapped out with the wife from Tennessee. The southern family was more down to earth, and way less uptight than the northern family was. The wife from the north was an uptight B***** and not only did she end up having the whole “adopted” family hating her, but her own family when she got home put her in her place as well.
I am from Maine, about as far north as you get, spent alot of time in the military, and stupid is not regional, it is rampant, but not regional. Have a good day all.
mel adamaitis on 29 Mar 2008 at 8:39 am #
You’ll find similar stuff on notalwaysright.com
both sites are just as funny
cleftnote on 29 Mar 2008 at 10:34 am #
Yosers
Those of you judging others by profiling areas in our great USofA need to get a grip. There are rampant ignorants all over this world. Check it out, we don’t strap a bomb on us to go tell your southern neighbors to die but in some other worlds that is holy, yeah holy bull shit. We are all on the same team and that is freedom, you get it. If you don’t like get the fu?k out. Taking space as for Bush he’s an idiot. Sorry man.
J Dizzle on 03 Apr 2008 at 12:53 am #
All of you who are arguing back and forth on a comment wall really need to get a life. the point of commenting is to reflect on the article and nothing else. And all of you who are hating on George Bush also need to get a life. It is like you think that being president is an easy job. If you want to hate on someone you should hate on the governor of Michigan Ms. Jennifer Granholm. She is almost single handedly responsible for the steady decline of the economy in Michigan. In my eyes she is a big enough idiot to be able to call the north idiots as well. Oh and one more thing, there may be a lot of idiots in the south, but I am sure that there is just as many idiots in the north, and some of them are even bigger idiots than the ones posted in this posting.
Will on 22 Apr 2008 at 9:40 am #
I think everyone here could use a bit of perspective. All this debate about the North vs. the South just sickens me. You hear me? Sickens me! I should know, too. Let me tell you a little story. Now, this is a story all about how my life got flipped-turned upside down, and I’d like to take a minute, just sit right there, I’ll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air.
In west Philadelphia, born and raised, on the playground was where I spent most of my days. Chillin’ out, maxin’, relaxin’ all cool, and all shootin some b-ball outside of the school, when a couple of guys who were up to no good started makin’ trouble in my neighborhood. I got in one little fight and my mom got scared. She said, “You’re movin’ with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air”.
I whistled for a cab, and when it came near, the license plate said fresh and it had dice in the mirror. If anything I could say that this cab was rare, but I thought “Nah, forget it. Yo homes, to Bel Air!”.
I pulled up to the house about 7 or 8, and I yelled to the cabbie “Yo homes, smell ya later”. I looked at my kingdom, I was finally there, to sit on my throne as the Prince of Bel Air.
Smokezz on 29 Apr 2008 at 9:47 am #
This thread shows tons of stupidity
Mike Paahana on 06 May 2008 at 2:34 pm #
my grama warn me about my gf an i neva listen to her
Northerner on 14 May 2008 at 9:17 am #
http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/4622/ia3yp.jpg
mik on 31 May 2008 at 8:33 pm #
the fact is: half of the people are below average and half are above average. The above average people get better jobs, more money, computers and internet, which allows them to make fun of the below average people.
kind of like evolution and natural selection.
tropical mist on 05 Jun 2008 at 9:02 am #
boogeyman, it’s “y’all” not “ya’ll” - I’m from Texas and we say that a lot… and besides, general English rules are that you put the apostrophe where the missing letters are. There is nothing missing in the word all, so you would not put the apostrophe in between the A and the L. The phrase is you all, shortened to y’all… the O U is missing so you put it there… and you people are saying “southerners” are stupid…
for god’s sake there are stupid people EVERYWHERE!! everywhere. you can not run from them, you can not hide… every corner you turn, there is an idiot standing there. We, as humans, are all idiots. Which is why I’m taking time out of my day to post this stupid shit, and not bothering to capitalize half of the shit I should… but I DO know what should be capitalized and what shouldn’t. Just because I don’t choose to do it all the time doesn’t make me a dumbass. hahaha
Titch on 09 Jun 2008 at 9:55 am #
Oh my god you American’s make yourselves look bad to the rest of the world. I am from Australia and I have to tell you that I am appalled at how much you all bitch about whos more stupid. So try this on for size from everything I have read on this page you have reinforced my belief that Americans are arrogant, self absorbed and ignorant people, with a few exceptions I’ll admit. Tell me can any of you point to Australia on a map. HINT its in the southern Hemisphere. A credit to those though who acknowledge that stupid people are every where, this is a fact. But most of the time it’s just a blonde moment gone wrong, it happens and does not mean someone is necessarily stupid. So America how about you all stop stereotyping each other, yes there are stupid people get over it, move on, just enjoy the hilariousness of these posts and maybe rather instead give your own examples of these moments even if they are your own. Maybe then other countries would not feel so embarrassed by you when you can admit you’ve made a mistake and laugh at yourself for once. Think about it.
forthgb on 11 Jun 2008 at 1:35 pm #
I worked in one of Baltimore’s most prominent office supply companies. One of my co-workers boasted of her high intelligence and school grades. This self-claimed genius quit high school to get married and pregnant. That’s a good story right there but it gets better. she seriously and angrily took me to task for feeding my kids plain unbuttered popcorn for breakfast on occasion. “You should feed them something better, like cornflakes, they put vitamins in ‘em.” I patiently explained to her that processing took nutrition out so of course vitamins had to be added but she was adamant.
If any of you wants to see stupid in its most appalling form, i.e. educated well-fed hippies/yupppies who should know better, come to Eugene Oregon. There’s a reason they call it Northwest of Normal. Filberts aren’t the only nut Oregon grows.
forthgb on 25 Jun 2008 at 4:26 pm #
Oh, Titch, btw, you made me recall another stereotype. The ignorant foreigner who knows nothing about America and is so jealous of our accomplishments, confidence, and abilities that they can’t think of any better response than snobbery and sour grapes. We’ve rescued, liberated and fed darn near every country n the world, including Down Under. It just goes to show that no good deed goes unpunished. Take jailbirds and “mad dogs and Englishmen” and we have you.
michael on 02 Jul 2008 at 5:29 pm #
the cause of the southern stupid stereotype is the past if any of you guys ever opened a book in 1800 the north was in full development and the south was mostly agricultural meaning the most educated people at the time was the northern people but today your leader is an idiot which is proof that both southern and northern people are both as dumb. by the way im only 16
DUH! on 04 Jul 2008 at 4:42 pm #
Looks like a few of the idiots should be included here in the “comments” section.
Mostly from the North I might add.