Dumbest Online Comments
I recently read an article in FORTUNE magazine entitled “OMG!!! The End of Online Stupidity?”
The article was written a few years ago but it stated that “internet veterans have long complained about the steady erosion of civility — and worse, intelligence — in online discourse.” I couldn’t help but think that things haven’t gotten much better in the last few years.
It never ceases to amaze me how some people behave online (especially if it is anonymous)! For example, as I was reviewing survey responses to an online survey at BNIBusinessIndex.com, I read two comments that were almost hysterical in their stupidity.
The first response was in relation to the question “Where Do You Reside?”–a question which was accompanied by a list of answer options (including all the populated continents) from which the respondent was asked to select the continent they live in. In an optional “additional comments” section attached to this question, one respondent felt the need to empatically state, “I’m located in AMERICA not North America!!!” OK genius. For the record, America is in North America!
My other . . . ahem . . . “favorite” response was from a person who went on a passionate rant about how “the survey is clearly just a form of ‘pull marketing.'” He proceeded to ‘scream’ these instructions in all capital letters: “DO NOT USE MY E-MAIL FOR MARKETING PURPOSES!”
Fair enough, that’s a reasonable ‘request’ . . . the only thing that puts a hitch in the logic of including these instructions is this: not once in any area of the survey are respondents asked to include their e-mail address (the survey is completely anonymous unless a respondent voluntarily offers their name or other info in one of the optional “additional comments” sections). This respondent’s e-mail address was never once requested, nor was it recorded! How exactly could we, the survey sponsors, possibly spam people effectively without ever actually trying to collect an e-mail addresses from anyone???
Suffice it to say that people are funny (euphemism for something else I’m thinking . . . I’ll leave it up to your imagination what that may be). 😉
I know I’m not the only one who has seen some whoppers as far as senseless online comments go and I’d love to add some more examples to my list (What?–They make GREAT stories! ) . . . what are some of the dumbest online comments you’ve seen on the internet lately? Keep it clean though, please–my Mom reads my blog too and, trust me, according to her I’ll never be too old to get in trouble. 😉
I read a blog where someone was ranting about something (I can’t remember exactly what they were saying as it was mostly nonsense) but they signed off by saying how great it was for one to “tell the truth that you never tell no matter what”.
I spy a slight oxymoron 😉
Terence.
Survey question : Where do you live?
Answer: At Home
“I’m located in AMERICA not North America!!!” OK genius. For the record, America is in North America!”
Sorry Ivan, but what he/she say is: I live in America, this means: Argentina, Brazil, Cuba or another country in South, Central or North America…
In North America we also have Canada, Mexico and United States…
Your argument (America is in North America!) can also be: North America is in America.
America for people outside the USA means the 3 divisions of this new world (South, Central and North).
Thanks, best regards.
Eduardo.
Albert Einstein quote: “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the the universe.”
I run a large and active women’s health site with lots of visitors and members in the UK in addition to the ‘day job’. My favourite comments have to be those from women across the pond’ who tell me that the spelling is wrong and that I must correct it ….. I must admit to taking a vicarious delight in explaining that is a UK site and so the spelling is correct! Funnily enough I never hear back from them.