"It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended ..."
The highest service that one can be to his fellow humans is to help them to become what they want to become.
There are many people who just plain like to be angry, so I see it as my sacred duty to piss them off.
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Heh! A valid way to look at it! -rc
Posted by
Gyll, Ann Arbor, MI on July 18, 2009:
I like your thinking and logic. You said, "It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended, since they clearly choose to take offense by assuming I'm talking about them when I say 'sicko moron' but not when I say 'thoughtful and intelligent'!"
I guess your readers could be broken down into several groups as they have already self identified themselves into the above categories. The "thoughtful and intelligent" group don't have to write in and complain because they "get it" already. The group I'm worried about is the "This Is True For Dummies" how will they "know" when to complain?
Posted by
Daren, Winchester, England on July 21, 2009:
"It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended, since they clearly choose to take offense by assuming I'm talking about them when I say 'sicko moron' but not when I say 'thoughtful and intelligent'."
I'm going to approach that thought from the other direction - next time I need to provide a reference when looking for a job I'm going to state that "Randy Cassingham says I'm 'thoughtful and intelligent'." Keep up the good work!
Posted by
Rob, S Australia on September 1, 2009:
I've been reading This Is True since '95/'96 but only became a Premium member a few years ago, yet I do not recall this story. I am having a lazy evening trawling the Archives and linked to this page from there.
I thought I knew what you meant for most of your taglines, however, in this instance I had to read this page to understand what you intended. I hope it's because we belong to different societies, but I think that would be incorrect. More probably, it would be because I tend to take remarks too literally. I too am of the persuasion that you called me 'thoughtful and intelligent'. This is because you don't know me personally and therefore wouldn't be aware of my 'sicko moron' personality (hehehe).
Anyway, thank you for explaining it for me, one of the "dummies" mentioned above.
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There definitely could be differences in interpretation based on culture. And sometimes I purposefully "challenge" readers with taglines that can be taken in any of several ways (though not in this case). And yeah: while you're obviously thoughtful and intelligent, that doesn't mean you're not a sicko moron! :-) -rc
Posted by
Stan, Scotland on January 10, 2012:
As I worked my way down the list of comments, I found myself becoming conscious of the (relative) frequency of remarks about not affording the premium edition. I wondered if they were being so effusive with the hope that they might be upgraded.
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I'd love to give it away to everyone, but then I'd go broke and TRUE would die. Back then, Premium was a whopping $15/year. I think anyone who can afford a computer and Internet access, and is not in the middle of a crisis (layoff, big medical bills, whatever) can afford it if they choose to. -rc
Posted by
Teresa, Shreveport on January 10, 2012:
OMG! I'm going to Amazon.com right now to see if I can find one of these. Too funny!
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Groovy, baby! -rc
Posted by
Keira, Sydney on January 25, 2012:
I always find it strange that any toy that has sexual innuendo makes people go up in arms yet I remember years ago cruising through a toy store and there was an action doll, that said things like (I don't remember them word for word but something lke this) "let's make mince meat of these guys" "who wants to kicked ass" "blow these puppies to hell" "make them wish they were dead" really bad 80's action movie lines you know. Back then I thought how funny but reading this article it's strange to me that no one complained about this doll yet the word horny induces prosecution.
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Yep. It's similar to how movie censors want to give films showing a loving caress of a naked breast an "R" rating, but taking a chainsaw to that same breast only results in PG-13. Which one is really more damaging to the psyche, and society? *sigh* Although that has supposedly changed in recent years. -rc
Rants and Raves over "Austin Powers" - Comments
Posted by Joe, Saskatoon SK on July 17, 2009:
"It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended ..."
The highest service that one can be to his fellow humans is to help them to become what they want to become.
There are many people who just plain like to be angry, so I see it as my sacred duty to piss them off.
---
Heh! A valid way to look at it! -rc
Posted by Gyll, Ann Arbor, MI on July 18, 2009:
I like your thinking and logic. You said, "It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended, since they clearly choose to take offense by assuming I'm talking about them when I say 'sicko moron' but not when I say 'thoughtful and intelligent'!"
I guess your readers could be broken down into several groups as they have already self identified themselves into the above categories. The "thoughtful and intelligent" group don't have to write in and complain because they "get it" already. The group I'm worried about is the "This Is True For Dummies" how will they "know" when to complain?
Posted by Daren, Winchester, England on July 21, 2009:
"It's amazing to me how many people want to be offended, since they clearly choose to take offense by assuming I'm talking about them when I say 'sicko moron' but not when I say 'thoughtful and intelligent'."
I'm going to approach that thought from the other direction - next time I need to provide a reference when looking for a job I'm going to state that "Randy Cassingham says I'm 'thoughtful and intelligent'." Keep up the good work!
Posted by Rob, S Australia on September 1, 2009:
I've been reading This Is True since '95/'96 but only became a Premium member a few years ago, yet I do not recall this story. I am having a lazy evening trawling the Archives and linked to this page from there.
I thought I knew what you meant for most of your taglines, however, in this instance I had to read this page to understand what you intended. I hope it's because we belong to different societies, but I think that would be incorrect. More probably, it would be because I tend to take remarks too literally. I too am of the persuasion that you called me 'thoughtful and intelligent'. This is because you don't know me personally and therefore wouldn't be aware of my 'sicko moron' personality (hehehe).
Anyway, thank you for explaining it for me, one of the "dummies" mentioned above.
---
There definitely could be differences in interpretation based on culture. And sometimes I purposefully "challenge" readers with taglines that can be taken in any of several ways (though not in this case). And yeah: while you're obviously thoughtful and intelligent, that doesn't mean you're not a sicko moron! :-) -rc
Posted by Stan, Scotland on January 10, 2012:
As I worked my way down the list of comments, I found myself becoming conscious of the (relative) frequency of remarks about not affording the premium edition. I wondered if they were being so effusive with the hope that they might be upgraded.
---
I'd love to give it away to everyone, but then I'd go broke and TRUE would die. Back then, Premium was a whopping $15/year. I think anyone who can afford a computer and Internet access, and is not in the middle of a crisis (layoff, big medical bills, whatever) can afford it if they choose to. -rc
Posted by Teresa, Shreveport on January 10, 2012:
OMG! I'm going to Amazon.com right now to see if I can find one of these. Too funny!
---
Groovy, baby! -rc
Posted by Keira, Sydney on January 25, 2012:
I always find it strange that any toy that has sexual innuendo makes people go up in arms yet I remember years ago cruising through a toy store and there was an action doll, that said things like (I don't remember them word for word but something lke this) "let's make mince meat of these guys" "who wants to kicked ass" "blow these puppies to hell" "make them wish they were dead" really bad 80's action movie lines you know. Back then I thought how funny but reading this article it's strange to me that no one complained about this doll yet the word horny induces prosecution.
---
Yep. It's similar to how movie censors want to give films showing a loving caress of a naked breast an "R" rating, but taking a chainsaw to that same breast only results in PG-13. Which one is really more damaging to the psyche, and society? *sigh* Although that has supposedly changed in recent years. -rc
Read the article that everyone's commenting on, or post a comment about it.