Police Officers Break Down How Stupid Calls Became Serious In An Instant

911 is not a joke people! Calling in the police is something you must be sure about. Once those in blue are involved, the game changes. However, it can be surprising how small incidents can turn into mayhem and tragedy. Life can flip in an instant, so just be competent as a person.
Redditor u/TurdNugget6952 wanted law enforcement to speak up about the consequences when dialing 911 without purpose by asking.... Police of reddit, what dumb call turned serious very quickly?
The Hulk Vehicle....
When I graduated high school, I got hired by my pd as a community service officer (CSO). We handled minor calls, transported prisoners and served arrest warrants.
One day I was dispatched to go investigate a hulk vehicle. A hulk vehicle for those who don't know is a vehicle that has been abandoned on someones property and the property owner, who doesn't have the title, wants it gone. Law enforcement can come out and issue what is known as a hulk vehicle permit which allows the property owner to have the vehicle towed. So I get on scene of this large, wooded property (i'm guessing a couple hundred acres). The property owner is a management company and they want to build houses on the property and they discovered several hulk vehicles during their site visit.
So I go about walking through the woods and investigating the vehicles as I came to them. They had been abandoned for at least 20 years so it wasn't much of an issue. I finally reach the last vehicle which was pretty far into the wood and as I'm checking it I realized there was an active meth lab operation next to me. I couldn't see anyone around and I backed out the same way I came in fearing booby traps. Got back to my car and called for immediate back up. Officers surrounded the scene and SWAT got called out to clear the woods. The found 4 suspects hiding, all were armed and they discovered a pipe bomb booby trap less than 50 feet from the car I was inspecting. Had I gone out a different way or approached the lab I would have been killed.
Fortunately I listened to my gut and didn't touch anything and went out the same way I came in. techguru69
Tased Out...
Not a cop, but the son of one. Lots of stories i could tell, but one has always stood out in particular. Police were called one night due to noise complaint at someones house. When police arrive, it's discovered that there is meth and the person in the house (we'll call him Jerry) is on it like no tomorrow.
More cops eventually show up and none of them can keep Jerry down. They try using a taser, but it's ineffective on it's own. As taser is getting a new battery, eight cops tackle Jerry all at once and are still struggling to keep him down. Dude with taser then shoves taser against Jerry's testicles and says "Put your hands behind your back or your testicles are getting electrocuted." Jerry then magically complies with police officers. Destroyerpete95
Back to the 80s....
Not me, but my dad who was a cop and is still a firefighter had one that I still laugh at. He was working a shift on the police department back in the early to mid 80s and got a call late one night for smoke showing from a residence. His assistant chief shows up first, I should preface by saying he was a fat and lazy fool and didn't properly check and radioed dispatch that there wasn't smoke showing and to disregard the fire department.
My dad shows up and his AC tells him that it was a false alarm and my said he was going to check anyway. He said he smelled smoke as he got out of his cruiser and said he was going to check for himself.
He opens the backyard fence and down the small hill to the back. As he walked to the back of the house he saw smoke pouring out of the soffits and saw flames in the back windows. He radios dispatch to have the fire department remain in route, and that smoke and flames visible and then asks for mutual aid from a neighboring department.
Fire department shows up and was able to knock down the fire before it got too out of hand besides some serious smoke damage, but the house was eventually refinished and still stands to this day. fightinscot
SMH....
Drunk driving turned into man slaughter when he drove onto a side walk with OUTDOOR DINING. Wolf-man-420
He didn't make it.
Not a cop, I'm a nurse but I was a vet tech at this time. I went to our main clinic for a meeting which was next to a liquor store. Watched a guy get out of his car, staggering all over the place, we just thought he was just another drunk getting more juice. Then he collapsed on the ground. My coworkers ran over to him and immediately started CPR. Turned out he had been sober for a year but had felt bad all day, he decided he had enough of feeling bad and was going to get a drink. Turned out he felt bad because he had had a heart attack and was in heart failure. He didn't make it. babyrn1
Frozen in Spot.
Not an officer, but witness to a accident which turned into a drug and gun bust.
Back when I was 18 I got into a bit of a blackjack habit at the local casino (Canada so only need to be 18). I walked out of there one night around 2:00 am, and was having a smoke outside my truck when I see this semi-old man walk across the street to the parking lot. He wasn't on the crosswalk, but like 20 meters or so from intersection. A vehicle came straight through the intersection (not speeding, driving perfectly normal) and this guy just froze like a deer in headlights. I imagine he was thinking that the car would swerve and avoid him. It was late at night so no one else was on the road, but with all the snow on the ground you simply cant break and steer the vehicle. It just locks up, and slides while turning sideways.
The car hit the man, but relatively minor impact for a car hitting you. The side of the car hit the guy and the snow kind of helped soften the impact to the ground. I immediately called 911, the driver got out and started helping the man. After I run over, he says he needs to go call someone and goes to his car. No biggie, the man is shaken but no major injuries and I thought the driver was just really shook up from hitting someone. Police and ambulance get there a couple minutes later, tend to the man and the driver and I both give statements to different officers. I painted the guy in a good light, said he wasn't speeding and tried to break but the snow and ice made him slide. I'm waiting to be told that I'm good to go when an officer finds a fucking gun in a snow covered planter.
The idiot driver took it out of his car, went and dropped it in a planter on the sidewalk and walked back over to his car on the road. Smart idea, but there's only one set of tracks that go from his car to this planter and then back, and an obvious hole in the fresh snow that's been piling up. He's arrested and they search the car. So yeah, he gets put in cuffs and into the cruiser. They search the car and I found out later they also convicted him for drug possession.
Little did the cops know I also had a quarter ounce of weed in my truck. Syrinx16
arrest them all....
Not a police officer, but have a story:
Once my dad was dating this woman who had a teenage son. The kid did not like my dad at all.
One day, dad and his girlfriend got into a fight and my dad slept in the garage. He woke up to her son and two of his friends holding baseball bats around him. The kids beat up my dad and ran off.
My dad called the police to report the incident, but when the cops realized who my dad was, they arrested my dad on the spot for not paying child support to my mom.
TL;DR, my dad called the cops on his girlfriend's son, ended up getting arrested. shaingel_sle
From the ELEVENTH floor.
Not a cop but I guarantee the ones involved remember this one. They were originally there to arrest a guy selling drugs on campus. They passed me in the stairwell (on their way up) while I was going to borrow some notes from a classmate. A few minutes go by and I'm back in the stairwell and get passed by the same cops (on their way down and moving quick). Turns out they handcuffed the guy, sat him down, did God only knows what, while homeboy Superman out the window head first. From the ELEVENTH floor. So that was an interesting day. He lived and he's somehow not a vegetable. LilJamiLouWho
Don't be unruly at McDs!
Not a cop... but as a McDs worker, we called 911 on a group of teens who came in drunk and unruly. We called because one of them was a little more drunk and tipsy and sat down, put his head down and passed out. His friends thought is was hilarious. Cops showed up with a smirk at first figuring it was just retarded teens. When they poured a little cold water on mr passed out and he did not flinch, they stopped smiling. When they looked at his medic alert bracelet they got REAL serious. Paramedics came and worked in the kid. He survived but nearly died. He was diabetic, and suffering alcohol poisoning, his blood sugar was WAY off. Cops said he would have died if we dod not call them. Seeing the cops go from smirks to serious like that was scary. Gouranga56
Sad Times.
Not me but my dad. Also wasn't a police officer at the time, but a constable. He was going to a guys house to serve him a summons, as is usual and routine. He got there and went up to the house and the guy answered. As he was talking to him and serving him the summons, the guy pulled out a gun. My dad pulled out his and told him to drop the gun. Instead, the guy then turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger, blowing his own brains out. My dad was a cop before this though so it wasn't the first time seeing something like this. nilgoc
Turkey Butt....
Deputy friend of mine ended up getting hospitalized after responding to a call of a home intruder.
There wasn't a home intruder, but there was a very large, aggressive turkey that bit him in the butt hard enough he needed stitches. slice_of_pi
Sheriff Deputy here.
Sheriff Deputy here.
During patrol I started noticing at one house that their packages being delivered at their front door weren't being taken inside. A lot of these packages were groceries. I also noticed their mail wasn't being brought in. Usually the postal service mentions something when they see this but I brought it upon myself to do a welfare check.
I arrived at the door and knocked. No answer. I knocked a few more times, no answer. I started thinking maybe the person that lives there maybe gone for a while. I decided to take one peek through the front window and I saw an elderly woman laying on the ground.
I announced to dispatch what I saw and I'm entering the house immediately. Luckily I didn't have to kick the front door down and instead discovered the back door was unlocked.
I entered the house and the lady was alive but due to her older age, she wasn't able to stand back up on her own strength after falling and has been laying on the ground for 2 days. I got paramedics to arrive and take her to a nearby hospital. I found her phone book with personal numbers in her kitchen and called her adult children and notified them of what happened. They were very relieved and drove to the hospital to help care for her. FrankTheTank369
Damn January.
Police here,
Got a call of some lady refused to get out of the bathroom. It's around 2AM and the cleaning crew of a restaurant let her inside, but she didn't want to leave. It's raining and cold outside, I think it was January. We get there and another set of officers from a nearby precinct respond because it's boring when it's cold and raining.
The lady comes out dressed in simple pajamas, no shoes or socks, holding an infant wrapped in a baby blanket. No jacket. No coat. No warm anything. Just button-down pajamas and her tiny infant. All of us are like/holdup. They aren't dressed for this weather at all. The mom looks pretty normal, as in she's not a transient. We learn later she's a brain surgeon and lives in a very swank condo. Turns out she walked 6-8 blocks down the street in the rain dressed like this.
Then the mother displays behavior attributed to mental health disorders. Starts screaming "They" are trying to kill her, gets incredibly manic. Hunches down and her eyes go wild. But, she's holding that baby tight. We know she needs to go to a psych hospital, but we have to get the baby away first. We plead we want to help her, just let us hold the baby. She won't of course, because in her mind we're all trying to kill her.
At one point she whispers (kind of spooky), "Give me a gun and I'll do it myself." We swarm her. Two for the baby and two on her and she's screaming bloody murder. It was unnerving to say the least.
My partner and I took the call (report). We get a hold of dad and take the baby back to him. He didn't realize she had left. He's a doctor too. He mentioned she didn't want to take her psych meds anymore and hadn't taken them in about a week.
Lesson learned: If you need psych meds, please TAKE your meds! Don't ever think you're all better without them.
We took the mother to a psych hospital for a 72-hour eval. Hope she got back on her feet, but we don't know. No_Im_Random_Coffee
Saturday Crazy....
Deputy here,
It was a Saturday night and I had a call for an erratic vehicle (unable to stay in lane, speeding, etc.) Everyone assumed it was a routine dwi because it was Saturday night and started looking.
Well she passed me on a main road so I turned around and conducted a traffic stop. She stopped her car in a terrible place so I approached on the passenger side. She was very angry and disrespectful and she wouldn't turn to look at me, just looked forward. I could smell alcohol, wasn't sure if it was coming from her or the vehicle. I asked for her license and registration to run her information. I decided I was going to talk to her more on the driver side to see if I could find signs of impairment.
When I walked over to her side I saw the entire left side of her face was bruised and blood was coming out of her mouth, also a bruise on her neck in the shape of a hand and fingers. I had her step out to ask about it.
She informed me her boyfriend got drunk and thought she was cheating on him and decided to hold her down by the neck and punch her approx 10 times. She had major swelling and the blood was a cut from her cheek against her teeth.
It took 25 min to convince her to give me his information. She told me he lives in a neighboring state and the incident occurred there. I called the neighboring state police and informed them.
Found out the guy had 3 felony warrants and they have been looking for him. SpikeFury47
He wasn't quick enough one time.
It was dumb and routine BEFORE we got there....
It was a local, well-known, drunken criminal (jack of all trades) who was playing with fireworks.
Not an uncommon thing.
However, he was in his living room. And they were very powerful and illegal. He was entertaining himself by lighting the wick and putting it out.
He wasn't quick enough one time. The mortar went through his roof. Blasted the storm door off the hinges into the front yard. His torso lacerated. Intestines needed to be pushed back in and sewn up.
About a year later (almost to the day) he got in a fight with his girlfriend on the interstate highway. At some point they pulled over, he got out, doors were locked, so he climbed on the hood. She started driving and he fell off. Wasn't even in very bad shape. He was shirtless, of course, and I saw the surgery scars from the year prior. UFC_blackbelt
I got the opposite response here.....
I got the opposite response here. Got a call that a woman was giving birth so me and a rookie head on over to the address. Rookie was super excited to get to help with this since he hadn't gotten the opportunity yet. So we pull up and his face drops. It's a 50 year old meth-ed up woman rolling and screaming in her grass saying that she's giving birth to a dog. Anyways, I tell my partner to heck on outta here and go help the woman deliver that dog. That call went from serious to pretty dumb very quickly. Fokouttahere
Where's My Sword?
Dude broke into house, pretty standard burglary. Dude takes the home owner's katana and is playing with it as the guy returns home. The guy doesn't leave or call the police and proceeds to fight the guy who has his sword in a brawl. No one died but the burglar got a number done to him so he wasn't very good at sword skills ig. OriginSport
North Carolina Tales....
There was this house she and her partner had to visit frequently for domestic disputes between a grown son and his wheelchair-bound father. It was never that bad, mostly just yelling and the neighbors would call the police to check on them. No charges were ever pressed, so they'd usually just check in and be on their way.
They got another one of those calls one day thinking it'd be the same as usual, this time the son is waiting outside for them. The partner is still questioning the son, and thinking the old man wasn't gonna be a threat she goes inside to deal with him on her own. She announced herself and approached him to talk, he doesn't say anything but suddenly grabs for her gun. She pinned the gun and his hands to her side and tried punching him, pepper-spraying, anything she could think of to get him to let go. Eventually her partner heard her screaming and ran in to disarm him, and he was taken away. He later admitted he was gonna shoot her and then his son, and she was pretty shaken up after that. AllyMarie93
Slow Talk....
I had a call on 911 from this guy who was very meandering and then it got really real.
"Hi, so like...I'm calling because there's this caaarrrr... I think it's a Taurus? Ford Taurus, I guess? Anyway, it's got one headlight on...I guess the other one's burnt out. And it's just...it's just running, with that one headlight on. Annnnnd it's in this parking lot for a commuuuunity center, y'know, but it's...it's...I think it's closed? So I guess it's like, what's this car, doing in this parking lot, right? Just one car in the parking lot...and it's on, and like, one headlight....oh yeah, and there'stwoguysinsideslumpedoverandthey'renotmoving"
WHAT!
Turned out they were overdosing pretty hard. lazarus870
Public Issues....
Paramedic here.
The police and I were called to a public intoxication. No idea why medics were called but anyway...
The guy was hammered and had been stranded by his drinking buddies because he didn't want to get into the car (good for him). He was on the phone when I got there and he handed it to me and said "I can't talk to her", so I took the phone from him and hung it up and handed it back. Turns out he wanted me to talk to her for him (whoops)...
He went ballistic and threw a punch at me, and as he was punching the cop put a boot in his back (great reaction time, still don't know how he did it).
The guy ended up smashing his face on the road and suffered a concussion plus some other stuff. This was years ago and I still remember because I felt so guilty at the time. MapleDanish
Don't you love a good myth?
Us too.
Let's put some of NSFW ones to the test.
RedditorWizzlyG33wanted to hear about what lies need to be exposed when it comes to sex, death and all things over the top in life. They asked:
"If MythBusters had a NSFW episode, what would you want to see on it?"
Oh Jamie
"A five second segment where Jamie points at a diagram and says, in complete deadpan, 'This is where the clitoris is.'"
TheFeelsGoodMan
"If they did such an episode, I could see this being in it for sure."
Chubby_Bub
BUSTED!
"I want them to purchase every pill they see on the internet that would make their penis bigger and see what happens."
tkepongo
"I think we can call that one BUSTED already. In what version of any world can you imagine there is a simple pill to make your junk more impressive and every dude you know doesn't already have a case of 10000 pills stashed under the bed?"
_Alternate_Throwaway
Don't Sit
"Can you actually get an STD from a toilet seat?"
BloodyChapel
"This is an interesting thing actually. It was a myth deliberately perpetuated to make people less ashamed of asking for STD tests."
leonielion
"Fun fact: There are multiple STDs that can be dormant (like inactive) for years. Like several years."
"You’d never know you had gotten it. Then something triggers it, maybe an infection or something, and then you start showing symptoms/Can now test positive. So technically a partner from years before could have given it to you and you either think your SO is cheating or haven’t been with anybody in a long time. Either way it’s scary when you think about it."
DesperateMango1731
After Death
"Does a person really stay conscious for a few moments after beheading?"
SammyGotStache
"There was a French physician who tested this in the early 1900s. After a criminal was beheaded he picked up the head and shouted the criminal's name. The guy opened his eyes and made eye contact with the physician over a period of 30 seconds whenever his name was called. Edit: I provided the source in other comments but here it is on the original comment."
UnadulteratedWalking
Theories
"Size correlates to what? Feet? Nose? So many theories."
throwxxawayxx10977
"I have size 12 feet and a massive nose and huge hands and the little guy is small."
FireTrickle
Oh the lies and the rumors and the shade.
More is More
"They did prove that women with larger breasts will get more tips. Which isn’t really not safe for work, because Kari literally was working at a coffee shop."
Unsettleingpresence
"If breast enlargements will help your job would you be able to write them off on your taxes?"
Mr3k
Deep Down
"How deep underwater are you still able to orgasm?"
Successful_Present39
"Pretty sure there's no lower limit. When you're underwater, your body is under pressure, but for the most part doesn't actually get compressed. Only your air spaces (lungs, sinuses, inner ears) are really subject to compression from ambient water pressure. There can be painful exceptions like air pockets inside a tooth filling, which I do not recommend experiencing."
"Most of your body is water or various solids, which push back on the ambient water pressure. You prostate shouldn't be blocked by water pressure any more than your bladder is. Source: am old scuba diver, I've done all kinds of things a hundred feet underwater. At that depth the ambient pressure is 4 bar, which in olden-tymes units is nearly 60 pounds per square inch. Also: fish do it underwater, doesn't seem to stop them."
UlrichZauber
Tasting Men
"Does pineapple make your semen taste better?"
TMNT4lyfe
Keep Thinking
"Post orgasm clarity: How much better can you solve puzzles or remember something?"
texanaftdy
"Well, recently I did a lot of reaction time tests on humanbenchmark.com and while normally I get average of around 140-145, after a good O I consistently got around 130-135, very often getting single clicks close to 120 which almost never happens in other cases. And it's weird because I feel more tired but apparently my reaction time improves for some reason."
berni2905
Safety First
"A take on the top ten OSHA violations list to see if they are as dangerous as they say."
Mariuxpunk007
"Safety regulations are written in blood."
GegenscheinZ
Well that is a ton of great suggestions. Let's work on it.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
Many people value solitude, and having time to themselves.
For others though, loneliness can be a crippling feeling.
Having no one to talk to or spend time with can get wearying after an extended amount of time.
Something many people know more than ever after the global pandemic hit in spring of 2020.
But while some people simply succumb to being lonely, others will find ways to help them cope with, if not completely forget, being all alone.
Redditor No_Blackberry_6286 was curious to hear the different ways people have of coping with their loneliness, leading them to ask:
"Reddit, how do you cope with loneliness?"
Make the most with what makes you happy
"I've learned to enjoy my own company and focus on my hobbies."
"Funny enough, this gives me stuff to talk about when I am around people."
Voices in the background
"Listening to people talk on YouTube so I feel less alone in my house."
Millions of friends, just one click away.
"Chat with random people on Reddit."
Still figuring it out
"I don't I'm f*cking miserable."- Savathunh
"I don't :("- __MashedPotatoes__·
Get my body movin'
"Working out."
"It makes me feel better about myself and I have something to do alone."- DerpBread69
Who says I need to?
"I love solitude."- Befuddled_GenXer
Hit the snooze button
"Sleep 12+ hours a day."- RockandRoll682
Instant tension and relief
"Lots of arguing online about sh*t I don't care about at all, just to have some form of social interaction, and get off at least 3 times a day."-
There are very few worse feelings than that of being alone.
But it's also quite remarkable how much doing something that makes you happy, be it ever so simple, can elevate your feelings.
In this day and age of advancement, it's crazy how so many things leave our heads scratching.
Like how in 2022 is such and such still around?
Everyone in New York wondered that for the past decade until they took the final payphone.
I always wonder about companies that still make you send a fax.
Y'all have heard of email right?
RedditorPineapple_WarpDrivewanted to compare notes on why we think certain things and parts of life are not yet obsolete this late in the game of time. They asked:
"It’s 2022, what shouldn’t exist now?"
I feel like the list will be longer than we expect. We are still behind in certain ways.
lazy...
"People sticking gum on random surfaces instead of at least throwing it towards the trash can a few feet away."
iesharael
How is this allowed?
"'Convenience' fees to pay bills online."
Rude_Yam_9962
"Yeah or any 'additional fee' that’s required to buy the product or service. Advertise $100 but then at check out they add in service fee $25, convenience fee $10."
"Always at the last second too, usually right before you enter your credit card info. Wtf? How is this allowed? Just advertise $135 if that’s the price the customer is paying. Should not be allowed to bait a low price and switch with a higher one once the customer is already invested."
Can you hear me now?
"Not being able to get cell service is spots in my own home."
Haunting_Spot_8002
"A friend worked in Africa building homes for the people. He said there were bush men with spears and loin cloths with a cell phone clipped on the side. Middle of nowhere yet reception everywhere."
RedLeader7
"Most of Africa skipped land lines altogether and went straight to mobile. In the west, cell phones and mobile internet are a luxury, in less developed regions it's often the only way to communicate."
pixelbart
System Collapse
"Companies that create problems and sell solutions instead of solving existing problems."
draconic_oxalis
"This was the inevitable outcome of an economic system in which only those doing labor are allowed to have food and shelter, yet technology is constantly reducing the amount of labor that is actually necessary."
"We only get money for food if we are seen to be working on problems. Now we're having a shortage of actual problems so we must make artificial ones to keep surviving. If only we had UBI, all of these pointless industries would disappear overnight as no one wants to keep working these jobs they know are pointless."
snapwillow
Hang Up
"Spam calls."
mstrss9
"I literally had spammers somehow dupe the phone number of my local council, it's scary just how close they can get."
Hazbro29
I HATE these SPAM calls. All hours of the day and night. I hate you!
Speed Up
"Slow internet."
Necessary_Rule_8485
"We figured it out. Just that the companies are greedy and keep the money for themselves instead of upgrading infrastructure."
Unlucky_Clover
Paper Trail
"Junk mail."
furryShambler
"I know! Whatever happened with the Paperwork Reduction Act?"
Julie-Andrews
"in the U.S. you can reduce your junk mail a lot by going to.DMAChoice.org and OptOutPrescreen.com and filling out the forms for your address. I have reduced my junk mail by about 90% : FTC source"
FSMFan_2pt0
car-centric
"Having to spend 3 hours in traffic everyday."
CampaignAlternative3
"Because North American cities have over restrictive zoning laws that segregate cities based on type of usage and they build to a very low density and with car-centric development that makes it so everyone has to use a car to get anywhere."
houndog129
"It's not so easy to just 'find a job closer to home' for example I'll search on Indeed and the closest job in my line of work is like 2hrs away."
PhatShadow
It's Round
"Flat Earthers."
da_sylent
"So everything but earth Is round right? (according to flat Earthers) So as some members say it's like a frisbee in space. What if, bear with me... the reason the world will end is because a giant dog will catch us and kill everyone on earth by shaking the frisbee too much and cause floods and crap. Because if so, that's how I wanna die, letting a pupper have some fun with a fisbee."
viber223
Gross
"Child beauty pageants."
Heliouse66
"If I see a mother make her child do one of those, I WILL judge her."
EarwaxWizard
Can we work on eradicating these things? It's all well past expired.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
It's PRIDE month. It's time to be loud and proud.
Well, every minute of everyday we should be loud and proud.
But this month gives you an extra special buzz.
So in the spirit of learning, we will be taking questions from the class.
I know cisgender straight people still have a lot they don't understand.
What do you need to know?
Redditorhre_nftwanted everyone to feel comfortable enough to be as aloud what they've been waiting to ask a queer person. Safe space for all. They asked:
"What question have you always wanted to ask LGBTQ+ people but didn’t because you don’t want to offend them?"
There is always a good way to ask questions. I don't mind many of them.
I'm Out
"What should I say to someone who comes out to me? Saying 'um, OK' or 'that's nice' sounds like I'm dismissing them but trying to ask questions or engage in conversation about it seems intrusive."
KaleidoscopeOk1749
"It depends, your response should match their excitement. People that casually weave it into conversation usually don't want confetti and vice versa."
Ok_Objective6181
So Many Letters
"I know you guys want to be inclusive and all but I always feel behind on all The letters you add to LGBT, so is it fine I just say 'LGBT+?' This is not meant to not be inclusive, I'm all for LGBT+. But sometimes it gets a bit too many letters for me personally. So will I offend you guys if I only say LGBT+?"
Riufu
"Lol all the labels I identify with are included in the + and I just say LGBT. I don’t know anybody who has been upset over hearing the shortened version. You’re good to keep using the acronym that you already say."
cas47
I Don't Get It...
"What does non-binary mean? I'm from Italy and I've never met someone who came out as non-binary or even transgender. My brother met a guy once and he (my brother) said he looked gender-fluid. Gender-fluid Is the only term used here, nobody talks about non-binary."
"I know that non-binary means that you don't identify with one gender specifically (I guess), but I really really don't get it. I'm bisexual (although I've never gotten in a relationship with a woman) so I always felt like I could relate to most people of the community in one way or another."
"But this is just something I can't seem to understand, also because I've never met someone like that. I know I might never be able to get it because I'm cisgender, but I was wondering if some of you would like to take some time to share their experiences with me so that I can understand you a little bit more."
Basyl_01
Nuances
"I know I can look up the definition of it, but why is 'queer' part of the acronym? Doesn't it encompass 'lesbian' and 'gay?' Is there a nuance I'm missing?"
Ok-Ninja1040
"One of the unintended benefits of the term 'queer' is that it's a good way of saying 'Not straight, and it's not really important for you to know why or how.'"
-CoreyJ-
Hello There
"Is it ok to use adjacent urinals/talk at the urinals if you two are dating/ married?"
CashmeoutsidePearl
So far, nothing here seems offensive.
You Like It?
"I wanna ask them every time an LGBTQ+ character appears in fiction, if they felt it was a good representation or not."
NoStressAccount
Pleasure Principles
"Do asexual people not want sex/don't feel horny, but still get butterflies in their stomach for a person they like? Or does that mean they don't have crushes/attraction in any form?"
skootch_ginalola
"Each person is different but a lot of asexual people still have crushes and can still be in love with people. Asexual people can be in happy and healthy relationships."
"Some asexual people might still find pleasure in sexual activities but they might not focus on sex in life. Not all asexuals are sex repulsed. But some are. There is asexuality and people who are aromantic. Aromantic people don’t feel romantic attraction to people, but might feel sexual attraction. Some people are both asexual and aromantic."
ArcherE14
Chosen at Birth
"Why is intersex included when it's a physiological/chromosomal variation and not a sexual/gender orientation? Sorry if I worded it wrong."
Fluffy-Ad342
"Intersex people often have their gender chosen by their parents at birth and so tend to have experiences very similar to trans people. Often it even has to be corrected later in life with surgeries and hormones. It's the variation from the normal binary gender/presentation of that, which aligns them with the queer community in most cases."
Yaboijustlikesgoats
Identities...
"For non binary folk: I'm having trouble wording what I want to ask, like, why I guess? I identify as a woman but don't fit in with the typical stereotypes or gender roles, but I still consider myself a woman. I don't feel like activities, or behaviors, or clothing or whatever has to have a gender to it, so why specify that you don't identify as man or woman? Idk maybe because it's not something I've struggled with, it's hard to wrap my head around! Either way, I 100% support anyone who identifies any way!"
meowing_cat93
Extra
"Do you have to pay an upgrade fee to go from the LGBTQ membership to the LGBTQ+?"
ticklemejesus420
"Omg dude, you can get it for free with Amazon Prime! You didn't know?"
Araskog
I Like You
"How do you know you are attracted to the same sex? I personally wanted to know this because I am struggling with my sexuality. I have an attraction to men at least as far as I know. But I am constantly going back and forth with women. And it's been very confusing. So I guess it may be how do you know if you're attracted to anyone?"
Plush_Orchid
Ask all you want. Just be respectful. It's easy...
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.