# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=680 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 681 --- ## [Are shock calls from purported police/court officers or children a thing in North America?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-shock-calls-from-purported-police-court-officers-or-children-a-thing-in-north-america/994089)
**Author:** [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-shock-calls-from-purported-police-court-officers-or-children-a-thing-in-north-america/994089 "2023-12-05T22:35:25Z")
There is a kind of scam preying particularly on the elderly and immigrants that’s been a lot in the news in Germany these last few years - apparently also in neighbouring countries; on my search for an English-languáge d… --- ## [Statutory rape WWII movies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statutory-rape-wwii-movies/993869)
**Author:** [@Mislav](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mislav)\ **Replies:** 42\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/statutory-rape-wwii-movies/993869 "2023-12-05T17:09:28Z")
NSFW It is a very unsual and niche (sub)genre of movies. But it is definitely out there. It seems more common in European cinema than American, and it more commonly involves boys and older women, though there are some e… --- ## [Digital artist's sketch and line art layers in sequences](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/digital-artists-sketch-and-line-art-layers-in-sequences/994055)
**Author:** [@Amber13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amber13)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/digital-artists-sketch-and-line-art-layers-in-sequences/994055 "2023-12-05T16:05:09Z")
This game is about real digital artists in general and not you or a specific artist, every digital artist have preferences on making sketches and line art before coloring and shading, this game is about real general digi… --- ## [Abortion as a religious issue?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-as-a-religious-issue/993687)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-as-a-religious-issue/993687 "2023-12-05T14:42:25Z")
The right (or not) to abortion is one of the most hotly contended issues in the US today. I had always assumed it was just a personal choice to people. But now it clearly seems to be a religious belief. Has it always bee… --- ## [What are your favorite songs that begin with the letter Y? See rules in OP: FINAL POLL ADDED](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-songs-that-begin-with-the-letter-y-see-rules-in-op-final-poll-added/993366)
**Author:** [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Replies:** 111\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-songs-that-begin-with-the-letter-y-see-rules-in-op-final-poll-added/993366 "2023-12-05T13:29:46Z")
Rules: If you edit your already-posted entry to make a change, I may not see it. Please do not re-post your entire list – this gets confusing - just add a new post with changes or additions only. EXAMPLE: "Remove ‘All… --- ## [Oh God. Antibiotics and the potty {Lots of TMI}](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-god-antibiotics-and-the-potty-lots-of-tmi/994025)
**Author:** [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-god-antibiotics-and-the-potty-lots-of-tmi/994025 "2023-12-05T13:27:53Z")
I’m in Hell. I had minor surgery on Wednesday. Surgery went well. No issues Thursday, nor Friday. Saturday? Total voiding of my bowels. All at once. And I was this close to being on the potty. Cleaning up the pott… --- ## [Irish anti-immigrant riot \[2023-11-24\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irish-anti-immigrant-riot-2023-11-24/993637)
**Author:** [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irish-anti-immigrant-riot-2023-11-24/993637 "2023-12-05T04:34:37Z")
I was shocked to read this morning, awaking after a beautiful if cold Thanksgiving, that there was horrendous anti-immigrant rioting in Dublin. Some loon stabbed some schoolkids and a school staffer, he was caught, but s… --- ## [My elderly cat may be ailing](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-elderly-cat-may-be-ailing/991986)
**Author:** [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Replies:** 39\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-elderly-cat-may-be-ailing/991986 "2023-12-05T02:55:49Z")
Yesterday was my cat’s 16th birthday (yes, I do know her DOB; whoever surrendered her to the shelter passed it on) and today was the 14th anniversary of her Gotcha Day. I took her to the vet for her routine annual check… --- ## [Why do we distort our mouths when scratching our eyes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-distort-our-mouths-when-scratching-our-eyes/994041)
**Author:** [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-distort-our-mouths-when-scratching-our-eyes/994041 "2023-12-05T01:59:24Z")
I know it’s not just me, but why do our mouths contort into weird shapes when we rub our eyes? That’s all. :smiley: --- ## [If A Christmas Carol had been written by someone else](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-christmas-carol-had-been-written-by-someone-else/430814)
**Author:** [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Replies:** 173\ **Last updated:** [December 5, 2023, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-a-christmas-carol-had-been-written-by-someone-else/430814 "2023-12-05T01:27:33Z")
The title an homage to what I think is the record holder LOTR thread, though I doubt (and I hope) this will have 1% of that one’s hits and posts, but— you all know the story. How would other writers have told it? A CHR… --- ## [Has this trope been named?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-trope-been-named/994119)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-this-trope-been-named/994119 "2023-12-04T23:59:41Z")
I call it “too stupid to trick”. As in a clever bit of subterfuge fails to work on someone so moronic that they guilelessly take everything at face value, and so they don’t do the second-guessing that the trickster was c… --- ## [Make A Wish](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-a-wish/977625)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-a-wish/977625 "2023-12-04T23:57:25Z")
I came home to my wife watching Wonder Woman 1984. Apparently, people making wishes that are granted is a bad thing. But that’s not what this thread is about. Every time I heard ‘Make a wish!’ it reminded me of this s… --- ## [Bigger smartphone screens and increased data usage?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bigger-smartphone-screens-and-increased-data-usage/994109)
**Author:** [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bigger-smartphone-screens-and-increased-data-usage/994109 "2023-12-04T23:53:05Z")
So I went from an iPhone 8 to an iPhone 12 Pro Max, mostly because the former is going to be no longer supported with updates and the latter was a good deal. I already seem to be using more data than I’m used to with my … --- ## ["Idiocracy": great movie but misunderstood? {As seen in today's political climate}](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiocracy-great-movie-but-misunderstood-as-seen-in-todays-political-climate/994024)
**Author:** [@Mislav](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mislav)\ **Replies:** 33\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiocracy-great-movie-but-misunderstood-as-seen-in-todays-political-climate/994024 "2023-12-04T22:03:53Z")
Spoilers Most of you probably know there’s been a rise of people who claim that “Idiocracy” is actually coming true, and how that movie feels more like a documentary now. And it often turns into a political argument/deb… --- ## [Doug Burgum GOP hopeful fundraising](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doug-burgum-gop-hopeful-fundraising/986967)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doug-burgum-gop-hopeful-fundraising/986967 "2023-12-04T21:55:20Z")
You know he’s overall someone who would appeal to the center. But this seems off. Thoughts? --- ## [Food and drink with rituals attached](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-and-drink-with-rituals-attached/993826)
**Author:** [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-and-drink-with-rituals-attached/993826 "2023-12-04T21:47:16Z")
Absinthe has a lot of alcohol and a potent flavor. Before drinking it, you sweeten with a little sugar, and dilute it with a lot of water. There are several (rather theatrical) rituals for doing this, described in the w… --- ## [Connecting old game systems to a modern TV](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connecting-old-game-systems-to-a-modern-tv/994007)
**Author:** [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connecting-old-game-systems-to-a-modern-tv/994007 "2023-12-04T21:26:09Z")
I dug out a couple of old gaming systems - a Sega Genesis and a Playstation2 - and discovered that my smart TVs have no RCA or S-video inputs. I see that there are adapters available to connect them, but I am wondering … --- ## ["Unalome" yantra](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unalome-yantra/994035)
**Author:** [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unalome-yantra/994035 "2023-12-04T21:09:08Z")
Does anyone know some details about the origins of this particular shape? To me it resembles a rill of smoke developing eddies. Wikipedia says The unalome (อุณาโลม) yantr… --- ## [Mice or Men?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mice-or-men/993975)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mice-or-men/993975 "2023-12-04T20:23:16Z")
Now that I think of it…now that I’m too old to care, but let me ask: What’s Steinbeck’s point in writing “Of Mice and Men”? No, this is not a homework assignment. Just a cynical old fart asking now that I think about th… --- ## [On the stubborn insistence that fictional romances should have real-world significance](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-stubborn-insistence-that-fictional-romances-should-have-real-world-significance/994043)
**Author:** [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Replies:** 57\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/on-the-stubborn-insistence-that-fictional-romances-should-have-real-world-significance/994043 "2023-12-04T20:19:24Z")
Inspired by this article. It’s been over a decade since The Office ended. Cast member John Krasinski has been married to Emily Blunt for thirteen years. The relationship between John’s character Jim and Pam, the chara… --- ## [Republican activists work to purge voters in Georgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-activists-work-to-purge-voters-in-georgia/994103)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-activists-work-to-purge-voters-in-georgia/994103 "2023-12-04T19:01:31Z")
This is all really horrifying and sad, and yet nothing new. They have a horde of people combing through the rolls, and AI programs that can pop out hundreds of challenges at once, forcing people to show up and argue agai… --- ## [I can't get food delivered for cash anymore](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-food-delivered-for-cash-anymore/993836)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 73\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-food-delivered-for-cash-anymore/993836 "2023-12-04T18:46:11Z")
So here I am at work, wallet full of greenbacks, and I look for a place to deliver some grub to me…and struck out completely. Every damn one of them wanted the money electronically magicked to them before they would sta… --- ## [COVID as cause of death when it really wasn't: what's the data?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-as-cause-of-death-when-it-really-wasnt-whats-the-data/993861)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/covid-as-cause-of-death-when-it-really-wasnt-whats-the-data/993861 "2023-12-04T17:56:51Z")
I have seen people claiming that hospitals that were treating inpatients for something other than COVID (heart trouble, kidney failure, asthma, whatever), but then tested positive for COVID, and then died in their care, … --- ## [Help Me Identify a Song (1990s?)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-song-1990s/979138)
**Author:** [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-song-1990s/979138 "2023-12-04T17:43:09Z")
I’m pretty sure it was a song with a Flash animation. I was so sure it was a Tenacious D song, but I cannot find it. Anyway, the animation revolves around a female demon being sung to by two I think cherubs. In the end… --- ## [Henry Kissinger Has Died](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/henry-kissinger-has-died/993884)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 116\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/henry-kissinger-has-died/993884 "2023-12-04T17:26:02Z")
From what little I knew of him, I’m not a fan, but I will leave the longer eulogy to others. --- ## [Scat car? Old riding toy ID](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-car-old-riding-toy-id/964803)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scat-car-old-riding-toy-id/964803 "2023-12-04T17:02:43Z")
When I was little, my best friend had a riding toy that he and his grandmother called a ‘scat car’. It was propelled by pumping handlebars, and it was steered with the feet. I’ve cued to 0:35 where it appears in this v… --- ## [What is your most hated song?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-most-hated-song/980621)
**Author:** [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Replies:** 318\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-most-hated-song/980621 "2023-12-04T15:31:38Z")
Both in terms of your degree of dislike of it and its ubiquitousness. Basically if a genii said that you could pick one song, and he would make it so that whenever it was played in your vicinity you would hear it as whi… --- ## [Your Best Meal: At Restaurant, or Friend’s House?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-best-meal-at-restaurant-or-friend-s-house/983920)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-best-meal-at-restaurant-or-friend-s-house/983920 "2023-12-04T13:18:28Z")
Is it true that food is better in the home of a good cook than restaurants with professional chefs and premium ingredients? --- ## [Should Weirding Modules be Good In-Universe Weapons (Dune 1984)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-weirding-modules-be-good-in-universe-weapons-dune-1984/994051)
**Author:** [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-weirding-modules-be-good-in-universe-weapons-dune-1984/994051 "2023-12-04T13:17:01Z")
In the 1984, they added weirding modules as weapons used by House Atreides to explain why they were such excellent fighters. These do not exist in the books (and confused my dad so much they he re-read the books because … --- ## [(Old) FA LA LA LA LA Decking The Halls In The MMP](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-fa-la-la-la-la-decking-the-halls-in-the-mmp/993763)
**Author:** [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Replies:** 253\ **Last updated:** [December 4, 2023, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-fa-la-la-la-la-decking-the-halls-in-the-mmp/993763 "2023-12-04T07:09:50Z")
Good Mornin’ Y’all! Up and caffeinatin’. YAWN ‘Tis 48 Amurrkin out and clear with a predicted high of 58 and N.O.S. for the day. If/when it dries up enough out (rained all yestiddy and into the night) I may get out and a… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=679) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=681)