Let's talk about people. But, specifically, "other" people. You know the ones. You're out with friends at a restaurant, trying to enjoy a relaxing evening together, then you hear them. Loud. Obnoxious. Everything they say is so important they have to talk with their hands. "Other" people.
Then, without warning, they say something so profoundly silly, so incredibly stupid, it sticks with you for the rest of your life and becomes a blot on your brain.
These are those times.
Reddit user, u/Nothing_here1, wanted to hear the dumber part of dumb & dumber when they asked for:
What's the dumbest thing you've ever heard?
...And Do The Math.
I used to work in a grocery store and this elderly woman said, "Twenty-five cents a pound? I can get them 4 pounds for a dollar at Safeway."
It's All A Government Conspiracy!
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My friend thinks that hibernation is a hoax because she's seen pictures of bears in the snow.
The first picture she showed me was of a polar bear.
Mum, Asking The Real Questions Over Here
my mum once asked if they had wind in canada...
Canadian here, can confirm we have wind
Wait?! Tattoos Are Needles?!
When I did tattoos, I had a guy come into the shop that wanted "Mr. 113" on his wrist. Not really all that out of the ordinary. We get it drawn up, my co worker placed it and she starts to do the tattoo. As soon as she starts, the guy screams in pain and jumps up.
"What the hell is in that thing?! Is there a needle in there?! That hurts!"
.... what?! This guy was in his 30s or 40s. How do you not know how tattoos are done?! He said, "I don't know. Just thought it was some permanent ink or something."
The guy went outside for almost an hour to smoke and I guess hype himself up. He got the outline done at least, but couldn't take the pain anymore and didn't get it filled. Still can't believe he didn't know tattoos were done with a needle michonne_impossibleAt Least He Answered Instead Of Laughing
My brother used to be a park ranger.
One time a lady asked him how long it took for a deer to become a moose.
He said about 7 years.
Are THEY Getting Enough Oxygen?
Oxygen doesn't come from trees, it comes from the air!
Did He Have An Opinion On Who Did It Better, Though?
Someone was convinced that Queen stole the bass line to "Under Pressure" from Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby". He wasn't even saying it as a joke.
His thought process was, that "Ice Ice Baby" is older because he heard the song before he had heard "Under Pressure" for the first time.
Causation Does Equal Correlation
My lecturer tried to tell the class that smoking was healthy because "my dad is a heavy smoker, and he's survived every heart attack he's had"
Do You Hear Yourself?
A few things;
"Hey Miss, how many chicken nuggets come in a 50 piece?"
"Ma'am, on my order. Do my sausage-egg McMuffins come with egg?"
"This is ridiculous! Why would I need to show you my ID? I'm just ordering a beer!"
I'm sure I'm missing a few but those three specifically stand out in my mind.
The 32nd Flavor Is Alcohol
My aunt told my mom that my brothers and I were drunk off of our ice cream cake on my birthday.
She was convinced there was enough alcohol in ice cream cake to get drunk.
Even With Maps?
My brother once adamantly told me that he believed New Zealand was right above Canada... as in connected by land.
It took me twenty minutes and MULTIPLE maps to convince him otherwise.
Just Start Saying "Not Old Mexico."
As a white male who lives in New Mexico, I constantly get asked stupid questions when I travel.
Including: Do you speak Spanish? Oh so you don't live in the United States? How was customs?
But You Hear Us Now, Right?
Fifth grade. My friend from Australia [is] visiting in South Africa and while he is sitting in class with me people ask what language is spoken in Aus.
He and myself say English.
We were then marked as liars who are trying to decieve everyone.
What Is It With The Need For Maps?
When I was in eighth grade Spanish class, our teacher decided to do some kind of location-place-landmark activity. We were shown a picture of a landmark and it's name, and the aim was to say which country and city it was from, in English and then in Spanish. A picture of a castle comes up and underneath it said "Edinburgh Castle".
Pretty obvious one right? Well, when the teacher asks which country it's from one girl raises her hand and says "London". The class is laughing now but when the teacher corrects her and tells her it is in fact Scotland, she says what I think is the dumbest thing I have ever heard in my life.
"Huh? I didn't know the Queen lived in Scotland."
That's Not...No?
One of my best friends fully believed that stretch marks were caused by wearing tight clothes.
It Goes Cold, Then Hot, Then Warm, Right?
My coworker once asked me how to make the water running from the dish washing sink's faucet "warmer". I looked at it, and it was so hot it was steaming. I asked her if she meant she wanted it colder? No, I want it warmer, so it's warm and not hot!
I reached over and turned on the cold water, then walked away.
We are the same age and she's a native English speaker.
A Math Lesson To Remember
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A girls in math class didnt understand fractions. We got down to this because the teacher was explaining smething else pretty simple that she didnt understand. So broke it down and figured out she didnt get fractions. Well, thats a little odd but with a minute of explanation she should get it.
Nope. Teacher asked "what is larger, 1/2 or 1/3?" The girl said 3 is more than 2 so 1/3 is larger.
Teacher drew two circles on the board, divided one in two and the other in three parts. "Which is bigger?" Girl gave the same answer.
Teacher erazed both circles, grabbed two pieces of paper, ripped one in half, one in thirds. Held up a piece of both "Which one is larger?" Girl pointed out the 1/3 piece.
"Forget that there are more piece" and he binned the rest, holding up the initial two pieces again. "Just look at the size. Which one is larger?" Girl pointed out the smaller one again.
Defeated, teacher lowered his arms and walked back to his desk. "Please take no offense in this... but are you familiar with the words and concepts of "smaller and larger"?" He asked, as this class turned more sesamestreety by the second.
The girl said she did. Teacher pointed outside. "See those trees? Which is larger, right or left?" "Left", girl said and she was right. The left tree was about 5 metres taller. "Then which piece of paper is larger?" Holding them up again. Girl pointed out the smaller piece and the teacher walked out of the classroom.
*checks math notes
Me: "What weighs more; a pound of bricks or a pound of feathers?"
Coworker: "Bricks!"
It took me about 15 minutes to explain the answer to him, which included me drawing it out on paper and using a kitchen scale with different items for examples.
I drank so much that night.
What's the dumbest thing you've ever heard someone say? Share it with us!
The excuses people use to dismiss behavior range from mundane and meaningless to the sort of leaps normally reserved for kangaroos and Olympians. It's sometimes amazing that these excuses work - but they do.
Some of them work so well that they're just sort of "accepted." That, obviously, kind of sucks and is something we should avoid - so let's talk about 'em.
Can't swerve around what you don't see, ya know?
Reddit user TMTtasmachine asked:
What's the biggest excuse used for a-hole behavior that shouldn't be accepted as much as it is?
... and away we go.
Jerk Privileges
" 'That's just how they are.' "
"One of the biggest enablers for tantrum throwing, bullying, etc. is that they get treated with kid gloves to avoid dealing with them." - alexrt87
"Oh my God you hit the nail on the head. Whenever someone says 'that's just the way they are' I say:"
" 'Yes, that's the point! Glad you noticed too! Now is it okey-doke for them to be jerks they have special jerk privileges? Or maybe they are just people and should treat everyone else as such?' " - notatrumpchump
"It depends on how it's said."
"People are the way that they are, and you shouldn't be surprised when they continue to be that way."
"This, obviously, doesn't excuse it - but people also shouldn't be surprised when a bad person continues to make bad decisions. Neither should we waste space in our minds being bothered by it." - unlawfulfoxy
Harassment Isn't Humor
season 2 lol GIF by ShamelessGiphy" 'It's just a joke, bro.' Harassing people isn't humor." - loading__99
"Schrödinger's Douchebag"
"A guy who says/does offensive things and decides whether he was joking based on the reaction of people around him." - Eatsleeptren
"Dude, legit had someone come up to me and start shouting in my face, calling me Madison, pretending I was cheating on him. Literally the most crowded location outside a theater, everyone staring at us, looking at me like I was some horrible cheater while I was out with my then fiancé."
"I started hyperventilating, my fiancé nearly decked the dude, and then someone shouts 'CUT' like this is some big 'YOU'RE ON CANDID CAMERA' moment and everything's supposed to be okay."
"I burst into tears."
"It was the most humiliating moment of my life, and thank god my then fiancé, now husband is not the type to overreact or jump to conclusions, or be abusive. Imagine how bad that could have been for someone with an angry or abusive partner."
"Prank videos are a plague on the internet and there is a REASON so many of them are fake, or involve actors." - Darkovika
Stay Sober, Then!
Drunk Drinking Beer GIFGiphy" 'I was drunk / high / etc.' "
"Then don't drink?! Stay sober if you can't NOT be an a**hole!" - BasedBenjamin
"Alternately, I hear a lot of 'I'm a happy drunk!' "
"Yeah, according to your drunk a$s. That doesn't mean you're not an ahole. Not remembering is not an excuse either." - PepeBabinski
"I was that guy. I swore I was a 'happy drunk' - and I was. It was everyone ELSE who was miserable while I was happy."
"I was also loud, obnoxious, and I wouldn't remember sh*t the next day."
"Quitting drinking has been one of my best choices of my life." - TTungsteNN
"Help"
new girl coach GIFGiphy" 'I'm just trying to help you' " - Miserable-Air1234
"Every time I've heard this, they're manipulating me while helping only themselves." - mykittenfarts
"My Mom to a T. Everything she does is better than anyone else's and she always gets pissed that people don't praise her for 'helping.' "
"She's now a certified (by herself) psychic and I have come to the conclusion that she's not a covert narcissist but an obvious one. I really wish I was joking." - Silent_Discussion657
Parenting Problems
Leave Me Alone Run GIF by TLC EuropeGiphy"Any variation of 'I'm a Mother/parent.' "
"Had some lady cut me in line at a coffee shop and she hit me with 'I'm a single Mom of 3!' as her excuse."
"Ok? And? I was still here first." - maid-for-hire
"I'm a single mom and I f*cking haaaate when other single moms/parents pull that sh*t to get special treatment."
"Last week, I was having a rough morning, my kid was being difficult, and I was running late. I was rude to a cashier over a minor inconvenience."
"Not only did I apologize for my shitty behavior, I wrote corporate to let them know how professional and patient she was while I acted like a f*cking toddler."
"Was being a parent part of the reason I was frustrated? Absolutely. Was it an excuse for that behavior? HELL no."
"I acted like a b*tch, and I called myself out, and I apologized. I still feel bad about that - I rarely let things get to me to the point I snap at others." - ClusterfckyShtshow
"Wow. I'm a Mom as well and tired but it doesn't give anyone a right to use it as some sort of ploy to get away with stuff."
"Like, mice become Moms about 12 times a year. You're not special 🤣" - SpoonLoops
Believing Your Boss
The Office Monday GIF by 20th Century Fox Home EntertainmentGiphy"I had a boss say some really racist sh*t around me one day and the next day, out of nowhere, he says:"
" 'Don't believe half the things that come out of my mouth!' "
"It was not really an excuse, more like trying to cover for himself after the fact, but still stuck with me." - sirlongbottom441
"Report them to HR. Seriously." - kokichi--ouma
"Looking past the racist stuff for a bit, that's not a very encouraging thing to hear from a boss…" - WonderfulBlackberry9
Bad Day Again
Bad Day Reaction GIF by Schitt's CreekGiphy" 'I'm having a bad day/week' "
"Okay, so you decide everybody that you interact with deserves the same fate? Get out of here, dude." - myordinaryexistence
"We all got stress, don't take it out on me. I get some people have stress bad enough for it to be passable every once and a while (family member passing, etc) but general, stress should not lead to you being a jerk to me." - willsimpforfree
"Damn, I'm definitely guilty of this. Usually I remember to apologize after but at this point I've learned to just avoid the situation in the first place by minimizing my interaction with people if I'm in a shitty mood." - nozzzrul
"Reminds me of when that White boy went on a murder rampage and killed a bunch of Asian women & that a-hole sheriff gave a press conference telling the media that the 'poor boy had a bad day.' "
"My idea of a bad day involves going home after a rough day at work and just staying in the house."
"Apparently, I should change my ethnicity from Asian to White and go on a murder rampage, see if my @ss gets a sympathetic sheriff to say on my behalf that I had 'a bad day.' " - kingkazul400
It's Not An Excuse
Season 2 Reaction GIF by FriendsGiphy"This won't go down well, but using depression as an excuse. As someone who suffers from it, it's still not ok to treat others like sh*t" - Rainbowwallstickers
"Could not agree enough. My partner has a 'friend' who treats everyone like sh*t all the time, has no consideration for others and openly mocks people in public."
"She gets so much grace from those around her under the guise of her 'mental health.' It's so infuriating watching an adult woman never have to take responsibility for her actions." - 34boor
"I get there are some things you can't control, but you are still responsible for keeping that sh*t in check and if you're aware of your mental illness, you should be aware of how you approach people and situations."
"I'll admit I used to be guilty of using my mental illness to be an @ss, but now I'm trying to better myself" - VeeSquibbles
Florida Gonna Florida
Looney Tunes Florida GIFGiphy"People are letting Florida off the hook way too damn much. And I live in Florida."
"Just because it's hilarious doesn't mean it isn't still completely f*cked up." - AlphaWhiskeyOscar
"The phrase 'Florida Man' is almost always followed some heinous way a Floridian is being an a$$hole." - PepeBabinski
"I'm also originally from Florida, and that state has serious problems. We need to pay attention to it." - [Reddit]
Moment of honesty ... as a Floridian ... yeaaaah, I'm gonna have to agree with that last one.