# Diogenes the Cynic, Fount of Perfect Knowledge **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 20, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534 "2005-09-20T14:37:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/121 "2005-09-20T20:46:40Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > Nope, just using the standards of the 14th Amendment which guarantee them at least an _equal_ education to public school kids. Apparently someone violated your rights, then, because they sure as hell didn’t teach you the same meaning for ‘bother’ as the rest of us. I think you may be a bit fuzzy on ‘equal’ too, at least in the context of the 14th amendment. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/122 "2005-09-20T20:47:40Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > It allows many seniors who sell have owned long-term to sell and enjoy their retirement on the capital gains. It allows many seniors who [del]sell[/del] have owned long-term to sell and enjoy their retirement on the capital gains. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/123 "2005-09-20T21:00:18Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > You know what? I believe you. Or at least I believe that you did not intentionally call her an asshole, if for no other reason than that you have apologized so strongly for having done so inadvertantly. But my objection had nothing to do with whether or not she called the police; rather, it was the references to people minding their own business, and your claim that you had not accused her of not minding her own business previous to the ‘asshole’ post. You had. It was your first post in the thread, as a matter of fact. This is getting into nitpicking territory, but in my first post, I said that i thought the OP “should mind her own business” because at that point I perceived the whole thread as being about a person asking for opinions as to what she should do, but that (as far as i knew) she had not yet made a decision. Most people were saying she should call the police. My unpopular opinion was that she should not (to be exact, that she should “MHOB”). In short, when I said “should” I meant it in the _future tense_, just as the people who were saying she “should” call the police meant it in the future tense. I was not even saying it would make her an asshole if she _did_ call the police, I was just offering a (completely solicited) opinion as to what she “should” do about a situation in her neighborhood. I was not under any impression that she _had_ done anything _yet_. ---
**Author:** ![Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4da419/32.png) [@Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gala_Matrix_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/124 "2005-09-20T22:16:14Z")
I disagree with DtC’s views in the drug-dealer thread, but I agree with his views in the WWII thread. In the drug-dealer thread he did not call Zsofia an asshole. In the WWII thread he did not call anyone a psychopath. Putting words in another poster’s mouth is not nice. And someone in the first page of this thread used “flaunt” when he/she meant to say “flout.” ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/125 "2005-09-20T22:45:27Z")
I’d be worried about those neighbors somehow finding out it was me who called the cops on them. If the houses are that close together it probably wouldn’t be too tough to figure out who dropped the dime. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/126 "2005-09-20T23:10:08Z")
I haven’t slogged through this thread yet but upon reading the thread linked in the OP I have to say I haven’t seen such a completely successful changing of the facts. Here is what the OP said was suspicious: > [@](#): > > There’s a whole lot of people who seem to be living/staying there, for one thing. They’re kinda loud. There’s cars driving up at all hours of the day or night, and nobody really seems to get out of their car - they honk the horn (GRR!) or maybe call on a cel or something, because people sort of come out of the house and they talk and then the other people drive off. (I don’t watch too closely.) > > Also, and here’s where I might be going off the paranoid deep end, there’s often young people (teenagers, I guess, maybe a little older - hard to tell at night) playing basketball in the intersection. Always at night, about once a week that I’ve noticed. There’s a very nice park a very short block away. Could they maybe be lookouts? They just seem kinda… suspicious. They’re not really playing very hard, and they’re not really talking and fooling around either. We have: 1. Cars driving up at all hours of the day. 2. Someone coming out of the house after the car honks, has a short conversation with the driver and leaves. 3. People playing basketball in the street instead of a nearby park 4. Said people showing a faint interest in actually playing the game and horsing around. 5. In the words of the OP they look suspiciously like lookouts. Diogenes (not to specifically call him out but that is the title of this thread) et al managed to turn that into kids playing basketball. For people that bash Bush and Rove incessantly so much for obfuscating facts they do a damn fine job of doing it themselves. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/127 "2005-09-20T23:26:08Z")
I’ve lived near drug dealers, and it’s annoying as hell to have people coming around at all hours bleating their horns and cranking up their music. Neighbors have a right to complain about it, if for no other reason, because their neighborhood isn’t ZONED for all night businesses. Drugs suck anyway. You’re not doing anyone a favor by enabling drug dealing. Dio has two daughters. I’m sure he’d love to have a meth lab across the hall. Sometimes it’s nice to sympathize with the victim instead of the criminal, even if you are a liberal. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/128 "2005-09-20T23:33:03Z")
I would call the cops on a meth lab just because I wouldn’t want to get blown the fuck up. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/129 "2005-09-20T23:35:23Z")
> [@wring](#): > > My interpretation is that **Dio** ’s point is that the level of ‘bother’ created by the neighbor was considered to be apparently insignificant by **Zsofia** as to not rise up to the level of “doing anything about it” **until after** the painter/whoever suggested that there may be illegal activity there. This has been gone over before. The painters’ suspicions were aroused before **Zsofia** ’s were because they were at the house before she was. She hadn’t seen these people at all, prior to the painters observing them. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2005, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/130 "2005-09-20T23:40:59Z")
> [@](#): > > cricetus: > Drugs suck anyway. You’re not doing anyone a favor by enabling drug dealing. Plenty of people on this board use mind altering drugs to get by in life. Lots of successful people consume drugs recreationally every day. “Drugs suck” is dummy talk. If people are making noise at all hours, by all means call the cops. If loitering in the street is blocking traffic or dangerous, call the cops for that. Calling the cops because you think you sniffed out Scarface is going to get you the roll-eyes. Not that it couldn’t be true, but I bet most of the old ladies who live alone reporting drug dens to CrimeStoppers are on the wrong scent. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/131 "2005-09-21T00:01:10Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Plenty of people on this board use mind altering drugs to get by in life. Lots of successful people consume drugs recreationally every day. “Drugs suck” is dummy talk. I have a scotsman fallacy at the ready for the successful people taking drugs argument. Anyway, drugs suck the way “Garden State” sucked. It’s not a moral judgment, it’s an aesthetic one. And are you calling Johnny Rotten a dummy? ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/132 "2005-09-21T00:13:18Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > This has been gone over before. The painters’ suspicions were aroused before **Zsofia** ’s were because they were at the house before she was. She hadn’t seen these people at all, prior to the painters observing them. point is that the level of ‘bother’ created by the neighbor was considered to be apparently insignificant **by Zsofia** as to not rise up to the level of “doing anything about it” until after the painter/whoever suggested that there may be illegal activity there. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/133 "2005-09-21T00:16:51Z")
> [@cricetus](#): > > Drugs suck anyway. You’re not doing anyone a favor by enabling drug dealing. Well, you’re doing the drug dealer a pretty big favor… ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/134 "2005-09-21T00:35:18Z")
> [@wring](#): > > point is that the level of ‘bother’ created by the neighbor was considered to be apparently insignificant **by Zsofia** as to not rise up to the level of “doing anything about it” until after the painter/whoever suggested that there may be illegal activity there. Not so. She hadn’t even moved in yet, and therefore hadn’t had an opportunity to observe it first-hand before the painters did, let alone have the opportunity for it to have bothered her yet. The painters mentioned their suspicion to her, but their suspicion alone was not enough to prompt her into any action, as it shouldn’t, _she hadn’t seen it herself_. She then moved in and had an opportunity to observe the same behavior herself, which bothered her significantly enough that she asked for advice on how to proceed, if at all. Just because someone notices something before you have a chance to, doesn’t mean it wouldn’t have bothered you at all had they not brought it up in the first place. She has noisy neighbors with frequent drive-bys who honk their horns at all hours of the day and night. I’d say it’s quite natural not to respond to allegations from the painter prior to actually moving in and being annoyed by it herself. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/135 "2005-09-21T00:36:56Z")
> [@](#): > > cricetus: > And are you calling Johnny Rotten a dummy? Not intentionally, but I wouldn’t feel misrepresented if people took that inference. Heh, in an angrier thread I would have said “I meant ventriloquist dummy, with the Partnership for a Drug-Free America’s hand up your ass!” 😛 Even if you are making an aesthetic judgement, it’s akin to “music sucks”. But hey, some people think that. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/136 "2005-09-21T01:14:13Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > I would call the cops on a meth lab just because I wouldn’t want to get blown the fuck up. You know something, **Dio** , I’m right with you if we’re talking some guy spreading the wealth of a bag of weed among his friends. More power to him. Based on the implied level of traffic, the hours of operation, and add to that the actions of a group that follow the pattern of “look-outs”, I think I’d be a little nervous as well. Do you really think there’s no danger of crack-addled scum with nothing to lose firing off automatic weapons with less than stellar aiming abilities? You really are out of touch. So what if there’s a meth lab across the hall. You have proven you shouldn’t have any worry about it unless you actually see it happen. From the sound of your posts on this matter, I have to suspect if there really is a lab there bombing you with a contact high. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/137 "2005-09-21T01:17:21Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > I’d be worried about those neighbors somehow finding out it was me who called the cops on them. If the houses are that close together it probably wouldn’t be too tough to figure out who dropped the dime. I didn’t try to conceal that it was me who called the cops on any of my drug dealers. They made no effort to conceal their activities, either they didn’t care or were too stupid to realize that the rest of the people on the street combined got 1/100th of the traffic that their house did. I tend to think the latter given how quickly the customers fled when I called the police using a cordless phone. And I’m an asshole. An asshole who can sleep now, who doesn’t have to clean my yard every day, who doesn’t have to explain to my guests why the people across the street look like they are running a Sonic drive in. It bothered me. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/138 "2005-09-21T01:59:30Z")
What a tempest in a teapot. If \*\*DtC \*\*wanted to call someone an asshole, I have no doubt he would have opened a Pit thread and called that person an asshole. He’s like that. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/139 "2005-09-21T02:09:14Z")
As long as _my_ dealer doesn’t get busted! ---
**Author:** ![dbuzman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de0a6/32.png) [@dbuzman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dbuzman)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2005, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534/140 "2005-09-21T02:12:26Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > They were doing none of those things. From the tone of the OP, it’s obvious that the activity at that house IS causing her to feel anxious or concerned so yes they ARE bothering her. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diogenes-the-cynic-fount-of-perfect-knowledge/322534.md?page=8)