Friday OT: Deep thoughts

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Farnsworth

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Apr 11, 2006
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Here are a few...some more amusing, some more serious:

1. Why is it totally acceptable in society for US citizens to rag on Canadians or make fun of their stereotypes. You see it all over in conversation, pop culture, movies, shows ect. I should add, it personally does not offend me. However, if we have that attitude towards any other country its considered racist. The only conclusion I came to is that its because Canadians are very similar to Americans and for the most part they take it in stride and give the US crap right back in our faces. Just curious why the seemingly double standard.

Not serious post obviously, but made me think of two videos:

Because they have beady little eyes and use dirty language!



And it made me think of this for some reason

 

Cyclonepride

Thought Police
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Apr 11, 2006
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I think our differences make us human, and I see many of the cultural/language/custom differences between countries and regions as endearing (for the most part, obviously not the more crass parts). It doesn't have to be a bad thing as long as pointing out those differences is done in a way that is not demeaning. We definitely take ourselves too seriously much of the time.
 

Farnsworth

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From the Vault of Vonnegut: I was a victim of a series of accidents, as are we all.
If a kid asks where rain comes from, I think a cute thing to tell him is “God is crying.” And if he asks why God is crying, another cute thing to tell him is “Probably because of something you did.”

I remember when people tried telling me when it thundered, it was people in heaven bowling.
 

urb1

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Did you ever think the remote control was invented by some guy who got tired of telling his wife to get up and change the channel?
 

Doc

This is it Morty
Aug 6, 2006
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I'm a huge fan of Joan Didion, and my favorite line from her is "the ability to think freely depends on one's mastery of the language."

I'm jealous of people that are great at using words. Any dude can say "please sit on my face", but it takes an artist to say "oooh that ***** good, won't you sit it on my taste buds."
 
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Prone2Clone

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Oct 20, 2006
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What if Iowa State lucked out and had immense success in basketball or football very early in its athletic existence and sustained it through today. Would we all be insufferable ********?
 
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NickTheGreat

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Some people see things that are and ask, "Why?"
Some people dream of things that never were and ask, "Why not?"
Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that.

--George Carlin
 

RunninMan

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Nov 18, 2013
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I'll add my 2 most common deep thoughts:

1) One of my favorite quotes is from Hamlet: "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." It essentially means that every situation is not inherently good or bad, but becomes one or the other when it is decided which it should be. I tend to be an optimist almost to a fault (which make Cyclone losses especially painful), but I see so many people every day who seem to go out of their way to be pessimistic. I have to be careful when I say that because I know there are very real mental disorders/imbalances that legitimately make it hard to be happy, but I truly believe that one of the biggest epidemics in today's society is negative attitudes.

2) I've always been fascinated by humans' (and other animals' for that matter) ability to follow static tendencies in such a dynamic world. Think about it; you probably get up every morning and follow the same routine almost to the minute, you take the same route to work, sit at the same desk, take the same route home, wash, rinse, repeat. You would think that dynamic tendencies would be the norm since that is largely the way the rest of the world works. However, when someone sits in your unassigned-assigned seat in class or you're forced to change your morning routine it stands out because it is not the norm. In comparison, two trees that look exactly the same would stand out in a forest because they would be surrounded by the normal randomness of the rest of the forest. Creed Bratton said it best at the end of The Office when he said, "It all seems so very arbitrary. I took a job here because they were hiring. I took a desk at the back because it was empty. But, no matter how you get there or where you end up, humans have this miraculous gift to make that place home."
 

mj4cy

Asst. Regional Manager
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Mar 28, 2006
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What if instead of clapping to show appreciation, its was just normal/customary for everyone to start smacking their knee after a performance/speech ect ?
 

cyclones500

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basslakebeacon.com
Some people see things that are and ask, "Why?"
Some people dream of things that never were and ask, "Why not?"
Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that.

--George Carlin

In the Carlin realm, I like this one, too:
“Scratch any cynic and you'll find a disappointed idealist.”

I feel like that sometimes.
 
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madguy30

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Nov 15, 2011
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I realize this thread turned into mainly funny responses which I enjoy, but this is one of my favorite quotes which I find very true, and relate to a lot of these postings.

“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.”
― Heraclitus

As a fisherman who enjoys it almost more for the wading/hike I approve...I feel like I've read it at some point but that's besides the point.
 

MeanDean

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I once wondered... If you had a room with really good mirrors on the walls, ceiling and floors - and then you turned off the light - would the room stay light forever as the glow just keeps bouncing from mirror to mirror?
 
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CloneFan65

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Apr 11, 2006
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Eh, I'm not sure. I think the truly good-natured stuff, sure. But I think that we have sort of an innate sense of superiority and ethnocentrism in the US. It's why a ton of foreign countries don't like us - we're overall pretty condescending and superior. I think many, many US citizens who visit other countries or interact are not - but they're going to remember the ones who are.

Here's Greg Giraldo telling Canadians what's what.

 
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