# Above-it-all pussies at the New Yorker

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [March 9, 2012, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238 "2012-03-09T06:53:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/1 "2012-03-09T06:53:21Z")

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Why this reference to New Yorker? Some sort of rivalry with CL empire?  
[Link.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/3041/if-you-turn-up-the-heat-on-a-frog-in-water-so-slowly-it-doesn-t-notice-will-it-eventually-boil-alive)

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**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/2 "2012-03-09T06:58:41Z")

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I don’t see anything sinister about the reference. It’s just Cecil’s sarcastic dig at another journalistic outlet, one which is known more for more for literary commentary than Mythbuster-type debunking.

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**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/3 "2012-03-09T11:55:15Z")

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Know-it-all master dissing Above-it-all pussies.

Hmm…

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/4 "2012-03-09T21:08:33Z")

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I don’t think it is a matter of above-it-all, more that the New Yorker isn’t exactly a journal describing experiments. While they did nave writers who understood science in the past, the general view is that New Yorker writers far from being familiar with differential equations find it challenging to balance a checkbook.  
I’ve subscribed for 30 years and that’s not quite true, but I get Cecil’s snark.

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**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/5 "2012-03-09T21:27:48Z")

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> [@Voyager](#):
>
> I don’t think it is a matter of above-it-all, more that the New Yorker isn’t exactly a journal describing experiments. While they did nave writers who understood science in the past, the general view is that New Yorker writers far from being familiar with differential equations find it challenging to balance a checkbook.  
> I’ve subscribed for 30 years and that’s not quite true, but I get Cecil’s snark.

OTOH, their cartoonists can’t hold a candle to Slug Signorino. I’m just sayin’.

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**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\
**Post date:** [March 9, 2012, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/above-it-all-pussies-at-the-new-yorker/615238/6 "2012-03-09T21:58:04Z")

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Calling them “pussies” seemed a bit out of place for Cecil, awfully harsh to use such a direct word.

And I agree that Slug is awesome.