# Aren't you shocked by what some people DON'T know? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 30, 2000, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431 "2000-11-30T20:34:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Tansu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/67e7ee/32.png) [@Tansu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tansu)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/261 "2000-12-07T10:34:25Z")
You’ve got it right, Mind Gamer. There aren’t any more details that make it less bad. The people were simply stupid. The idea that someone could have ‘paedophile’ as their job title never struck them as odd. The event came after a few weeks of hysteria where people were ‘outed’ as paedophiles. A national newspaper printed the names and street addresses of a number of convicted paedophiles and threatened to print more each week until the Government introduced a law equivalent to Megan’s Law. There were several cases of mistaken identity. One innocent man had his house wrecked because he wore a neck brace and the local child molester had been pictured wearing a neck brace. The fact that the innocent man had a completely different face and was visibly much younger than the paedophile did not seem to trouble the mob. ---
**Author:** ![BornDodgy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@BornDodgy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BornDodgy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/262 "2000-12-07T10:48:01Z")
WW1 was in the 18th century. stated by a convinced 17 year old student. ---
**Author:** ![elgur2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d26b3c/32.png) [@elgur2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elgur2000)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/263 "2000-12-07T14:14:04Z")
“The more I think, the more I know, the more it hurts” This is one of my favorite lines by Cat Stevens - although it is probably not an excuse for the ignorant people quoted her above! ---
**Author:** ![Andy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/aeb1de/32.png) [@Andy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/264 "2000-12-07T14:47:26Z")
[Here’s](http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/et?ac=003386607102314&rtmo=asXRsHaL&atmo=tttttttd&pg=/et/00/9/3/npaed03.html) an article about the paedophile/paediatrician incident. What made it even more stupefying was that Private Eye, a satirical magazine, had, a week or so earlier, produced a cartoon with a person running from an angry mob yelling back at them “I’m a PAEDIATRICIAN!”. Prescience or what. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/265 "2000-12-07T14:54:09Z")
Considering the thread topic, Me!!Joe!! just took over 1st place on my “Most Ironic Whoosh” list. Wear your ribbon proudly! ---
**Author:** ![Spoonbender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spoonbender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoonbender)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/266 "2000-12-07T15:34:38Z")
A friend of mine, age 29, was at my house, where I had 3 cats. He asked: “Are all cats female?” ---
**Author:** ![Spoonbender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spoonbender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoonbender)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/267 "2000-12-07T15:36:02Z")
…and he definitely meant _all cats in the world_, not just all _my_ cats. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/268 "2000-12-07T15:57:25Z")
Anna Quindlen wrote a column once on the occasion of the death of the family dog; she mentioned that a friend told her that when she was little, she believed that dogs and cats were the same animal, but dogs were male and cats were female. Anna found this view “entirely credible.” ---
**Author:** ![Danimal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Danimal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danimal)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/269 "2000-12-07T17:11:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BornDodgy \* > \*\*WW1 was in the 18th century. > > stated by a convinced 17 year old student. > \*\* I’ll bet I know how he (she?) ended up thinking that. The Seven Years’ War in the mid-18th century is sometimes referred to as the first world war, because there was fighting in Europe, the Americas (well, North America anyway), Asia, and off the coasts of Africa. Fairly paltry next the big blowup in 1914, but probably the widest ranging war in world history up to that point. Your student probably heard a professor refer to the Seven Years’ War as the first world war and confused it with the First World War we all know, the one from 1914 to 1918. Still a remarkable bit of ignorance. I think most 17-year-olds would place WW1 in at least the right century. ---
**Author:** ![KSO](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@KSO](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KSO)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/270 "2000-12-07T18:32:26Z")
This story is appropriate, given that today is Pearl Harbor Day. A few years ago, I was watching “Animal House” with my boyfriend, his roommate, and the roommate’s girlfriend. The scene where Belushi asks “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?” comes on. Boyfriend, roommate, and I all laugh. Roommate’s girlfriend asks, in all seriousness, “WAS it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?” Ack. ---
**Author:** ![Spoonbender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spoonbender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoonbender)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/271 "2000-12-07T20:09:29Z")
Got another one: a few years ago my girlfriend, then in her 20’s, asked me what year the Russians landed on the moon. (In her defense, she was born in the early 70’s.) ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/272 "2000-12-07T20:13:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by a35362 \* > \*\*Anna Quindlen wrote a column once on the occasion of the death of the family dog; she mentioned that a friend told her that when she was little, she believed that dogs and cats were the same animal, but dogs were male and cats were female. Anna found this view “entirely credible.” \*\* When I was a kid, we had a… lovestruck and undiscrimating dog, and a passive, do-what-you-want-to-me cat that would have reinforced this misconception. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Pinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dr.Pinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Pinky)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/273 "2000-12-07T21:46:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Thea Logica \* > **:kisses pinky and swears:** Yeah, that’s the usual response. ---
**Author:** ![Welfy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e56c9b/32.png) [@Welfy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Welfy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/274 "2000-12-07T22:39:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ThreeLeggedBob \* > \*\*A few: > > ## My father: What is the Soup du Jour? Waitress: I don’t know, I’ll check. Waitress: (leaves, returns) It’s the Soup of the Day! > > \*\* Are you sure this “waitress” wasn’t a furry little blue person named Grover? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Asbestos_Mango)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/275 "2000-12-07T23:14:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by LaurAnge \* > \*\*The worst I’ve ever heard was when my boyfriend and I were walking along the street at night and passed a group of people a few years younger than me (maybe 16-17). They were all dressed up to go clubbing. All we heard was: > > “Of COURSE Paris isn’t in France!” > > We exchanged horrified looks and then burst out laughing. =\> > \*\* Of course, Paris isn’t in France. It’s in Las Vegas. I’ve been there. Applied for a job there, actually. It’s really nice. There’s the Eiffel Tower, and when you go inside, the ceiling is painted sky blue, with fluffy white clouds so you can pretend you’re outdoors, and the pits all have canopies over them, which kind of gives them a sidwalk cafe/table games feel. Everybody says stuff in French to you- when you buy in at the tables, the dealers say “Bon chans” to you as they give you the chips. Oh, and there’s the mall- lots of really cool shops, and if you go all the way through, you end up at Bally’s. Oh, and if you hang out outside at the right time of day, there’s these guys who play trash cans and trash can lids like drums, it’s really cool. Paris in France. Really. Next you’ll be telling me the Monte Carlo is in Monaco… ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2000, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/276 "2000-12-07T23:49:00Z")
Picture a slightly bored Drain Bead at graduation rehearsal, only sort of listening to the woman up front with the big microphone. Woman at front with big mic: Parking is available in the lots at the French Field House and St. John Arena, as well as the stadium and dorm lots. Show your mortarboard to the parking attendant and he’ll give you a special temporary pass. Student in front of me, in hushed voice to the guy beside her: What’s a mortarboard? ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@MonkeyMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMan)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2000, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/277 "2000-12-08T03:11:05Z")
> [@](#): > > “Of COURSE Paris isn’t in France!” Of course Paris isn’t in France. It’s in Texas. I saw it in a movie once. If that doesn’t convince you, perhaps my salsa can: Pace Foods, blahblahblah, Paris TX 75461 ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2000, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/278 "2000-12-08T15:00:56Z")
No no no! Paris is in _Illinois!_ Geez! ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2000, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/279 "2000-12-08T15:49:38Z")
There’s a Paris, MO. There’s also a Versailles, MO. Guess how it’s pronounced? Yup, just how it’s spelled. Ver-sales. I suppose that makes sense. Uncultured, but still somewhat logical Still, I’m constantly amazed at the number of people who don’t know about the _other_ Versailles. You know, the one way way over to the East? Did stuff during the war? Managed to get a treaty named after it? Huh? So…it’s in Boston? ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2000, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431/280 "2000-12-08T16:07:14Z")
Well, and then there’s Cairo, Illinois. Pronounced by the locals as “KAY-ro,” of course. Oh dear, we’re wandering off-topic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arent-you-shocked-by-what-some-people-dont-know/43431.md?page=15)