# Elevators and Stupid People **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2000, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404 "2000-11-23T01:39:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Conti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c67d28/32.png) [@Conti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Conti)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/1 "2000-11-23T01:39:21Z")
I live in a 20 story building. A few dumbasses think it’s funny to hit every button on the elevator, causing it to go to every floor. Therefore, when i get on…me and everybody else…have to take 10 min to get to the bottom…while we stop on every freakin floor!! Is there any way to cancel a button that has been pushed??? This would come in very handy for all of us who actually have real work to do! Conti ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/2 "2000-11-23T01:48:54Z")
Only if its a newer elevator and has a “Car Call Cancel” button. Just find the little punks who do it and push them down the elevator shaft. ---
**Author:** ![Conti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c67d28/32.png) [@Conti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Conti)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/3 "2000-11-23T01:54:07Z")
hahaha…thats good advice Hail Ants…if i find the little demons, i might take your advice…LOL The elevators DO have a call cancel buton, but the damn thing doesnt work. You can press it all day…press it repeatidly, or press it while pressing the floor you want to cancel…and IT STILL DOESNT WORK! Maybe the management turns the function off, but this is really starting to piss me off! Conti ---
**Author:** ![nineiron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e56c9b/32.png) [@nineiron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nineiron)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/4 "2000-11-23T02:36:13Z")
Take the stairs–it might end up faster in the long run. ---
**Author:** ![dylan\_73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecccb3/32.png) [@dylan\_73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dylan_73)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/5 "2000-11-23T12:42:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Conti \* > **The elevators DO have a call cancel buton, but the damn thing doesnt work.** Those buttons usually only work if you have the key. Otherwise everyone would use them all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Uniball](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Uniball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uniball)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/6 "2000-11-23T12:55:55Z")
In some elevators, you can end this torture by pushing the Emergency button. But it rarely works. I also hate people that keep pushing the button, like it’s a gas pedal. Stooo-peed. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/7 "2000-11-23T14:51:49Z")
> [@](#): > > I also hate people that keep pushing the button, like it’s a gas pedal. Stooo-peed. Sort of like those people who push the crosswalk button over and over again, thinking it will make the light change sooner. (The trouble is, the light eventually changes anyway but they think their repeated button-pushing caused it.) ---
**Author:** ![Andy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/aeb1de/32.png) [@Andy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/8 "2000-11-23T14:57:49Z")
I have to confess, I’ve kind of done this…our lift was very slow (hell, it was only 5 floors) and so I’d sometimes take pleasure in beating people to the top floor by taking the stars while they took the lift. Of course, the only way I could beat them was to press the button at each floor, slow down and casually walk past the open lift door as they impatiently waited for the doors to close before opening again on the next floor…as I stroll past yet again. I suppose I’m a little too competitive sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![jamesglewisf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a5b964/32.png) [@jamesglewisf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jamesglewisf)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/9 "2000-11-23T15:27:08Z")
Where’s the smash smilie when you need it? I hate it when people do this too. ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_the\_drum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5e925/32.png) [@Drum\_the\_drum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_the_drum)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/10 "2000-11-23T16:29:47Z")
When I was a teen the thing to do was go to the second floor and push for an elevator going down. Wait for an empty one. Push 1 so it would go down, then all the other buttons. Then you’d all fart and jump out, sending a bomb to the lobby. Great fun. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/11 "2000-11-23T17:48:57Z")
You’ve probably already tried this, but in the elevator in my office, you can cancel a floor stop by pushing it two more times. Might be worth a try. –sublight. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2000, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/12 "2000-11-24T22:46:25Z")
Uniball wrote: I also hate people that keep pushing the button, like it’s a gas pedal. Stooo-peed. Actually, in some elevators, this will cause the car to ignore all other calls until it gets to your floor. Somebody showed me this trick when I was at Indiana University for a short summer class. ---
**Author:** ![Uniball](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Uniball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uniball)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2000, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/elevators-and-stupid-people/42404/13 "2000-11-24T23:56:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AskNott \* > [BActually, in some elevators, this will cause the car to ignore all other calls until it gets to your floor. \*\* Nah. That’s an urban legend. Automatic elevators don’t do that.