# Assuming Things Are Not The Way They Are Would You Believe That They Are The Way They Aren't **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 4, 2011, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205 "2011-04-04T22:46:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/21 "2011-04-05T12:50:51Z")
I don’t believe I would. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/22 "2011-04-05T17:49:37Z")
Is this the real life? ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Nader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Darth\_Nader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Nader)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/23 "2011-04-05T21:48:56Z")
I am the Eggman-- Goo goo ga joob! ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/24 "2011-04-05T22:36:07Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Is this the real life? Naw it’s just fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/25 "2011-04-05T22:39:05Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Well, would you? \ ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/26 "2011-04-06T12:48:53Z")
Aren’t now, or _aren’t then?_. If the former, yes, if the latter, no. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/27 "2011-04-06T13:05:52Z")
Well, I feel more like I do now, than I did when I got here. Does that help? ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Nader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Darth\_Nader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Nader)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/28 "2011-04-06T13:45:24Z")
Do you feel, feel like I do? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/29 "2011-04-06T13:55:57Z")
Yes. Or Never. Delete the one that does not apply. Or does. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Nader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Darth\_Nader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Nader)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/30 "2011-04-06T14:20:59Z")
I think I know-- I mean a ‘Yes’ but it’s all wrong, that is I think I disagree. ---
**Author:** ![Molotok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@Molotok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Molotok)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/31 "2011-04-06T14:42:49Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > A crab is not a fish but neither is it a bowling ball. This is my new mantra 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/32 "2011-04-06T16:48:14Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Well, would you? For the right price. ---
**Author:** ![Truman\_Burbank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@Truman\_Burbank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truman_Burbank)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/33 "2011-04-06T19:37:16Z")
Hang on while I google it… ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/34 "2011-04-06T19:53:30Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Well, would you? Could you - with a box? Could you, should you - with a fox? Sounds like a pesky paradox… ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/35 "2011-04-06T19:58:12Z")
Well little Missy, that’s a mighty big assumption. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/36 "2011-04-06T20:07:39Z")
It depends. When you say things aren’t the way that they are, do you mean that they’ve always not been the way that they are now and we were just wrong about the way that we thought they were, or that they’ve suddenly stopped being the way they used to be and now they’re being some totally different way? It’s an important distinction, because whether or not I’m going to believe things are the way that they aren’t depends on whether or not they were really always that way all along or if they used to be some different way that they aren’t now. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/37 "2011-04-07T02:29:22Z")
Things, by definition, are always the way they are . . . or were the way they were . . . or will be the way they will be. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/38 "2011-04-07T04:38:17Z")
Things aren’t as good as they used to be… and they never were. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/39 "2011-04-07T14:48:28Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Assuming Things Are Not The Way They Are Would You Believe That They Are The Way They Aren’t Isn’t the eventual acceptance of this premise engraved in the history of technology? Seems like everything we now know was the way things weren’t at some point. With that in mind, not only would I, I’d love to. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205/40 "2011-04-07T15:10:52Z")
I think that I would not disbelieve the way things are not. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/assuming-things-are-not-the-way-they-are-would-you-believe-that-they-are-the-way-they-arent/577205.md?page=3)