# Fuck JURY DUTY!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 27, 2004, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247 "2004-01-27T02:54:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2004, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/101 "2004-01-30T22:24:06Z")
> [@ParentalAdvisory](#): > > So people who do not vote don’t have a say in how the country is run? actually, as far as I can see, that’s a factually true statement. You certainly can have an opinion, have a voice, yell it from the street corners, write letters to the papers etc, but as far as having a ‘say’ in how the country is run, the only real way to do that is to vote for those you wish to represent your stance. ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2004, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/102 "2004-01-30T23:01:24Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Well, the old cliche is put your money where your mouth is … > > So if you don’t care to vote, any opinions you may have about how the country is run are not worth my time. > 😃 Yes, but if all the canidates are worthless pieces of shit, and I vote for neither of them, I still don’t have a say in how this country is run? I see your point, but just because the guy you voted for president, or your friend voted for president, doesn’t mean that either is good. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2004, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/103 "2004-01-30T23:17:02Z")
Let’s admit it, Catperson and Kung Fu Lola have defeated us with superior arguments. After all, none of the rest of us has any idea what it’s like to be a college student, right? ---
**Author:** ![Montresor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@Montresor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Montresor)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2004, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/104 "2004-01-30T23:25:38Z")
Although I haven’t previously posted in The Pit since my entree into the SDMB, I felt the need to add to the pileon and add yet another voice to the chorus of excoriation. The OP is a whiny little punk, and I can only hope that one day he/she is wrongfully arrested or subjected to a trivial civil suit, and ends up with his/her future in the hands of a dozen similarly blockheaded booger-eating morons. But the comment below also really jumped out at me: > [@kung fu lola](#): > > I guess what bothered me the most about this thread was the vitriol being spewed at the OP, for DARING to think that his bought and paid for education was more important than doing something any old yahoo could do… WFT? Since when does “a jury of one’s peers” equal “some old yahooes who aren’t pharmacology students”? Who ARE one’s peers, if not college students, single parents, doctors, lawyers, mechanics, EVERY-freakin’-BODY? I profoundly resent the implication in **Lola** ’s post that somehow being a college student is some higher calling that trumps one’s basic obligations to our legal system. Being a college student is no better and no worse than most other ways one can choose to spend one’s time in this country; as many a college student has found out on the other end of the legal system, one is still a citizen first. “College” is not its own country. And the idea that the OP’s time has been bought and paid for and is thus somehow immutably “his” really doesn’t wash with me, either. After all, California is an “at will” employment state, which I believe means that there is a contract between the employer and the employee (stating, among other things, that the employee will be there). But what the hell do I know, I’m just some yahoo with a job. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2004, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/105 "2004-01-30T23:44:00Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Stop encouraging him! Would you want him on _your_ jury? Yes. Judging from the OP’s “intellect”, regardless of the evidence against me, a handful of magic beans _poof_, I’m outta there, scott-free. And as for **Kung-Fu Lola** , After reading some of the garbage you’ve spewed. (“So he got pulled out of a hat to mouth off about some wanker who broke the law. Big whoop.”)I hope that someday you’re accused of a serious crime and you get someone exactly like you and the OP on your jury. Fenris ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/106 "2004-01-31T01:17:01Z")
> [@ParentalAdvisory](#): > > Yes, but if all the canidates are worthless pieces of shit, and I vote for neither of them, I still don’t have a say in how this country is run? > > I see your point, but just because the guy you voted for president, or your friend voted for president, doesn’t mean that either is good. The answer to the first statement here is “No, you still don’t get a say in how the country is run, _as long as you don’t freakin’ vote!"_ I don’t care who you vote for, write in your own name, or Fred Phelps’ name, but VOTE!” The answer to your second statement is “Yes, but even if there are two rotten candidates, vote for _somebody_.” ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/107 "2004-01-31T01:58:55Z")
> [@Fish](#): > > **kung fu lola** , I’ll speak only for myself, but I reacted to this: > I don’t think the OP is irresponsible or unpatriotic. I do think the OP is stupidly rebelling against the wrong thing just because jury duty _is inconvenient right now._ In a moment of pique, the OP says he will _never_ serve on a jury and will act contemptuously of the entire system because it’s someone else’s problem. The OP would, if made to sit on a case, _actually try to derail someone else’s life_ because he happens not to want to be on the jury panel that day. Someone may be standing trial for something very serious and is depending on twelve good jurors and true, except for the one who’s determined to rebel and demonstrate how little he respects anything but himself. I agree. But I honestly don’t think that a person would Reaaaaaaalllly do this if push came to shove. IMHO, most people even those who complain and SAY that they will do such and such are just venting. This person (he/she still hasn’t come in and corrected us as to his/her gender??) sounds very like many people his age. Lacking understanding of a process, he/she gripes in a way that suggests they really think that bratty behaviour, like a toddler holding his.her breath will get their way. Like I said before, I’ll bet that if this rant had been by a popular and clever doper, one who writes well, not ONE person would have come in guns blazing with the wounded cry of “where is your sense of DUTY”??? ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/108 "2004-01-31T03:05:29Z")
> [@CanvasShoes](#): > > I agree. But I honestly don’t think that a person would Like I said before, I’ll bet that if this rant had been by a popular and clever doper, one who writes well, not ONE person would have come in guns blazing with the wounded cry of “where is your sense of DUTY”??? Uh-huh. It’s true, folks, **CanvasShoes** found out the secret of… _THE CLIQUE!_ Might as well confess folks, he’s too smart for _us_. See, for those of in the Clique, SDMB Private-Messaging isn’t disabled\* and we all use it (and our secret forum on the SDMB) to discuss all the non-Clique posters and come to an agreement on who to build up and who to tear down, 'cause _all_ “popular and clever” Dopers share one opinion, after all. That’s the only _possible_ explanation. It couldn’t possibly be that for many grown-ups (of all ages) the words “civic-duty”, “obligation”, “responsiblity” aren’t just really big words that kinda confuse us, they _mean_ something and it’s nauseating when the spoiled-brat brigade comes in and says “But it’s haaaaaaaard. I don’ wannnnnnnnnnna do anything that isn’t fuuuuuuuun.” any time something drags them from the valuable time they spend analyzing the latest Brittany Spears album for nuances indicating zetigeist change. Clique-master Fenris \*Wanna see if you’re a “popular and clever doper, one who writes well”? Go to a user’s public profile, click on the “Send this user a Private Message” link and if it says “Your administrator has disabled private messaging.”, you’re _not_ one of _us_. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/109 "2004-01-31T03:24:02Z")
> [@ParentalAdvisory](#): > > Yes, but if all the canidates are worthless pieces of shit, and I vote for neither of them, I still don’t have a say in how this country is run? > > . You could always run for office yourself. I’ll vote for ya! ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/110 "2004-01-31T04:05:58Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Uh-huh. > > It’s true, folks, **CanvasShoes** found out the secret of… > > _THE CLIQUE!_ > > Might as well confess folks, he’s too smart for _us_. See, for those of in the Clique, SDMB Private-Messaging isn’t disabled\* and we all use it (and our secret forum on the SDMB) to discuss all the non-Clique posters and come to an agreement on who to build up and who to tear down, 'cause _all_ “popular and clever” Dopers share one opinion, after all. That’s the only _possible_ explanation. > > It couldn’t possibly be that for many grown-ups (of all ages) the words “civic-duty”, “obligation”, “responsiblity” aren’t just really big words that kinda confuse us, they _mean_ something and it’s nauseating when the spoiled-brat brigade comes in and says “But it’s haaaaaaaard. I don’ wannnnnnnnnnna do anything that isn’t fuuuuuuuun.” any time something drags them from the valuable time they spend analyzing the latest Brittany Spears album for nuances indicating zetigeist change. > > Clique-master Fenris > > \*Wanna see if you’re a “popular and clever doper, one who writes well”? Go to a user’s public profile, click on the “Send this user a Private Message” link and if it says “Your administrator has disabled private messaging.”, you’re _not_ one of _us_. Oh bother. [winnie the pooh off] No, I’m talking about typical posts posted here in SDMB. Not some double secret IM group of dopers. If a well-known and popular doper posts a well written rant, 90% of the posts are in agreement, regardless of the subject. Hell, if they’re well above average intelligence to boot (collounsbury comes to mind), they can get away with extreme rudeness and verbal abuse of other dopers to boot, and STILL have a bunch of supporters, generally more for than against. Again, frequently regardless of the subject matter or opinion. Had this rant against jury duty been done in such a way, IMHO that’s what we would have seen here. FTR, as I said in at least three posts, WAS the OP snotty? Yes. My point was that this, and the rant against jury duty are two separate issues, that the dopers in this post seem to be griping against as if it were one and the same. This OP behaved, and posted in a way that is typical of many of his age. Yeah, it was bratty, but I thought the idea here was fighting ignorance. Silly me, I thought perhaps that could be done in a more socially acceptable and mature manner than name calling and putdowns of the offending party. And this is the part where several reply “Well, this IS the ‘pit’”. Ummm, YEAH folks and he WAS ranting. Perhaps not well, but it was a rant. People DO overexaggerate in rants, and so on. Seems like too many people are making a mountain out of a molehill, and mainly due to his attitude. But then they’re using the subject matter to get all righteous and offended about it. Which WAS my point, that of if he’d not been snotty, and instead had been clever and funny, I bet he wouldn’t have gotten so much guff. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/111 "2004-01-31T05:22:21Z")
> [@CanvasShoes](#): > > \*\*If a well-known and popular doper posts a well written rant, 90% of the posts are in agreement, regardless of the subject. Hell, if they’re well above average intelligence to boot (collounsbury comes to mind), they can get away with extreme rudeness and verbal abuse of other dopers to boot, and STILL have a bunch of supporters, generally more for than against. Again, frequently regardless of the subject matter or opinion. \*\* Yeah, it’s cliche, but: cite? I remember Coll getting raked across the coals on a regular basis. I joined in the raking on several occasions. \*\* > [@](#): > > Had this rant against jury duty been done in such a way, IMHO that’s what we would have seen here. \*\* IMO, nonsense. What we would have seen are posts saying “That was a great rant, but you’re still a spoiled asshole.” Dopers _do_ value wit and clever writing, but not to the exclusion of values. \*\* > [@](#): > > FTR, as I said in at least three posts, WAS the OP snotty? Yes. My point was that this, and the rant against jury duty are two separate issues, that the dopers in this post seem to be griping against as if it were one and the same. \*\* Because they can be combined into one response. There’s only three combinations of “tone” and “topic” 1. Had the OP been about a sane topic but written in the OP’s whiney, semi-literate tone, you would have seen stuff like “Groan, get _off_ my side. Note to everyone else—the OP doesn’t represent me.” (see any number of vegetarian/anti-vegetarian flamefests for examples of this… ) 2. Had the OP been a wittily written post about an insane topic, you would have gotten “Cute rant, but too bad you’re an asshole with issues” type response from the opposition (see FatherJohn’s semi-psychotic “SUVs will kill us ALL” rants or Phaedrus’s drivel for examples) 3. Finally, in the case of the OP, we have a moron writing badly to promote a stupid POV (“I don’ wannnnnnnna haveta do _aaaaanything_ that’s boooooring!”) and he’s getting no kudos at all. What do you want? Literary criticism? This ain’t a creative writing forum. If he’d gone into GD and said “I think the jury selection system is outmoded. Resolved: professional jurors are the way to go. Discuss” and explained that he finds jury duty ducedly inconvienient and frankly, professional jurors who could be trained and schooled in how to be good jurors would both serve society and justice better than the “unskilled” juror that we now have, he’d have gotten a 5 page debate with nary a flame in sight. Instead, what other options did the OP give people. He’s a whiney asshole who’s trying to justify being a selfish prick and writes on about a third grade level. There’s not much room to be supportive here. > [@](#): > > This OP behaved, and posted in a way that is typical of many of his age. \*\* I cry “Bullshit”. There are too many literate, intelligent, cogent high-school/college age Dopers who put the lie to the idea that snivelly “It’s all about MEEE” behavior is “typical” of that age. > [@](#): > > \*\*Yeah, it was bratty, but I thought the idea here was fighting ignorance. > > Silly me, I thought perhaps that could be done in a more socially acceptable and mature manner than name calling and putdowns of the offending party. \*\* Fighting ignorance sometimes means giving the ignorant a good, swift, verbal kick in the ass. Have you actually _read_ Cecil’s columns? In the words of the master, “If ignorance were corn flakes, the OP would be Kelloggs” (paraphrased). Cecil is _not_ noted for being warmly supportive of brainless cretins. Remember when he called the guy a “craven puppy” for trying to see if he could draft-dodge to Canada? Or when he asked the poster if he’d stopped taking his lithium? Frankly, if Cecil (who _invented_ the “Fighting ignorance since 1973 (it’s taking longer than we thought”) motto) were here, I’d guess that the OP would be roasted like a marshmallow. > [@](#): > > \*\*Ummm, YEAH folks and he WAS ranting. Perhaps not well, but it was a rant. People DO overexaggerate in rants, and so on. \*\* I can live with exaggeration, but a pathetic attempt to justify whiney selfish behavior in written in a barely literate voice is not exaggeration. > [@](#): > > \*\*Which WAS my point, that of if he’d not been snotty, and instead had been clever and funny, I bet he wouldn’t have gotten so much guff. \*\* Really? You’d say that if someone wrote a clever, funny post about, say, how handicapped people should kill themselves 'cause they’re taking up too much space with their wheelchairs, the OP wouldn’t get flack? ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/112 "2004-01-31T05:27:25Z")
> [@CanvasShoes](#): > > Oh bother. [winnie the pooh off] > Which WAS my point, that of if he’d not been snotty, and instead had been clever and funny, I bet he wouldn’t have gotten so much guff. Which is exatly the point. If the OP didn’t come across as such a snot-nosed little brat afraid of doing their civic duty, then no harm-no foul. However, what you post is what you get (WYPIWYG). And given such statements as: > [@](#): > > “I will never serve as a juror as I know it’s a waste of time for me.” and > [@](#): > > “If they make me sit on a case I will act as rude as possible…never listen to the damn case…show up late…wear offensive clothing or whatever.” it goes a little past fighting ignorance, to the point of fighting those who _spread_ ignorance. Granted, freedom of speech is a sacred right in this country, but there are sometimes . . . well, never mind. But by God, it takes me by surprise that someone would seem to _actively revolt_ at the idea of doing their civic duty. Maybe I’m reading too far into it. Correct me if I’m wrong. Tripler Goddamn Communists. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/113 "2004-01-31T05:35:57Z")
Speaking only for myself, **CanvasShoes** , I didn’t look at the original poster’s post count until I had already read the OP. My reaction was to content, not to the relative fame of the person presenting it. In fact, I rarely read poster names and post counts unless the person’s point catches my eye. I admit I may not be typical, though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/114 "2004-01-31T06:02:04Z")
Quote: Originally Posted by CanvasShoes If a well-known and popular doper posts a well written rant, 90% of the posts are in agreement, regardless of the subject. Hell, if they’re well above average intelligence to boot (collounsbury comes to mind), they can get away with extreme rudeness and verbal abuse of other dopers to boot, and STILL have a bunch of supporters, generally more for than against. Again, frequently regardless of the subject matter or opinion. > [@](#): > > Yeah, it’s cliche, but: cite? Well, one in particular was the thread when Collounsbury was finally dropped. There were a TON of supporters, stating along the lines of “who cares if he’s a jerk, he’s so right and so intelligent”. (paraphrased). Quote: Had this rant against jury duty been done in such a way, IMHO that’s what we would have seen here. > [@](#): > > IMO, nonsense. What we would have seen are posts saying “That was a great rant, but you’re still a spoiled asshole.” Dopers do value wit and clever writing, but not to the exclusion of values. I disagree. A lot of people can’t stand jury duty. How does the disliking of jury duty (and the ranting thereof), PERIOD, = spoiled asshole? Quote: FTR, as I said in at least three posts, WAS the OP snotty? Yes. My point was that this, and the rant against jury duty are two separate issues, that the dopers in this post seem to be griping against as if it were one and the same. > [@](#): > > Because they can be combined into one response. > There’s only three combinations of “tone” and “topic” > > 1. Had the OP been about a sane topic but written in the OP’s whiney, semi-literate tone, you would have seen stuff like “Groan, get off my side. Note to everyone else—the OP doesn’t represent me.” (see any number of vegetarian/anti-vegetarian flamefests for examples of this… ) > > 2. Had the OP been a wittily written post about an insane topic, you would have gotten “Cute rant, but too bad you’re an asshole with issues” type response from the opposition (see FatherJohn’s semi-psychotic “SUVs will kill us ALL” rants or Phaedrus’s drivel for examples) > > 3. Finally, in the case of the OP, we have a moron writing badly to promote a stupid POV (“I don’ wannnnnnnna haveta do aaaaanything that’s boooooring!”) and he’s getting no kudos at all. Fair enough. > [@](#): > > What do you want? Literary criticism? This ain’t a creative writing forum. If he’d gone into GD and said “I think the jury selection system is outmoded. Resolved: professional jurors are the way to go. Discuss” and explained that he finds jury duty ducedly inconvienient and frankly, professional jurors who could be trained and schooled in how to be good jurors would both serve society and justice better than the “unskilled” juror that we now have, he’d have gotten a 5 page debate with nary a flame in sight. I don’t “want” anything. I’ve just seen other people, even ones who’ve acted like complete jerks, given the benefit of the doubt in at least a FEW posts. Granted, I haven’t seen any other threads by this poster. But I thought it only fair to give him the benefit of the doubt, that he’d found himself in a frustrating position that he (obviously incorrectly, and in naivete and ignorance) thought was going to “ruin” him, and that he was venting such. > [@](#): > > Instead, what other options did the OP give people. He’s a whiney asshole who’s trying to justify being a selfish prick and writes on about a third grade level. There’s not much room to be supportive here. Sometimes when people feel as if they have they’re backs against the wall, and have no recourse, they DO act whiny, bratty, and over the top. His OP struck me as THaT sort of whiny, rather than that he actually meant that he’d do that which he threatened. Quote: This OP behaved, and posted in a way that is typical of many of his age. > [@](#): > > \*\* > I cry “Bullshit”. There are too many literate, intelligent, cogent high-school/college age Dopers who put the lie to the idea that snivelly “It’s all about MEEE” behavior is “typical” of that age. Excuse ME. I said “of **many** that age”. I did NOT say “typical of that age”. Quote: Yeah, it was bratty, but I thought the idea here was fighting ignorance. Silly me, I thought perhaps that could be done in a more socially acceptable and mature manner than name calling and putdowns of the offending party. > [@](#): > > Fighting ignorance sometimes means giving the ignorant a good, swift, verbal kick in the ass. Have you actually read Cecil’s columns? In the words of the master, “If ignorance were corn flakes, the OP would be Kelloggs” (paraphrased). Cecil is not noted for being warmly supportive of brainless cretins. Remember when he called the guy a “craven puppy” for trying to see if he could draft-dodge to Canada? Or when he asked the poster if he’d stopped taking his lithium? Frankly, if Cecil (who invented the “Fighting ignorance since 1973 (it’s taking longer than we thought”) motto) were here, I’d guess that the OP would be roasted like a marshmallow. Yes, and own some of his books too. Everyone is not Cecil. Just because that is HIS best way of dealing with it doesn’t mean that everyone has to, or SHOULD go to the same level as the OP and turn into jerks themselves. IMHO. Quote: Ummm, YEAH folks and he WAS ranting. Perhaps not well, but it was a rant. People DO overexaggerate in rants, and so on. quoteI can live with exaggeration, but a pathetic attempt to justify whiney selfish behavior in written in a barely literate voice is not exaggeration. [/quote] Is that what he was doing? Again, I didn’t get that from his rants. I saw something else entirely. Again, bratty yes. What I saw was what I’ve seen many people do when faced with something unknown, which THEY believe (whether correctly or not) is something they can’t find an answer too. That doesn’t mean that I think he was justified in his whining. As I’ve said several times, but let me put it a different way, does this kind of reaction = total asshole. And does assholery back solve the problem or teach them anything? IMHO, No. Quote: Which WAS my point, that of if he’d not been snotty, and instead had been clever and funny, I bet he wouldn’t have gotten so much guff. > [@](#): > > Really? You’d say that if someone wrote a clever, funny post about, say, how handicapped people should kill themselves 'cause they’re taking up too much space with their wheelchairs, the OP wouldn’t get flack? Oh for Pete’s sake. Could you be any sillier? Of course not. That’s a completely illogical example. I was perfectly celar that I meant THIS subject, that of jury duty. Where, in my sentence above do you see that I said “funny and clever about just any old subject”??? ---
**Author:** ![blasphmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@blasphmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blasphmer)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/115 "2004-01-31T06:08:49Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Second, you DID sign up for jury duty when you registered to vote, dumbass. Registering to vote is the exercise of your franchise, and one of the obligations that comes with it is to serve on a jury. > > This is one of my pet peeves… companies are required to give you time off for this, they pay you something, and you’re doing something extremely useful for your community and your fellow man, yet selfish and petty assholes routinely bitch about it and try to weasel out of it. Makes me completely pissed. No, you’re the dumbass. Many states are now going to a drivers liscense jury pool where anyoen driving is sold into the jury pool by mailmerging the states lists. Also, around here, for the district court the last time my neighbor went the company gives you UNPAID time off, and the “pay” you get for being on the jury doesn’t cover the exhorborant rates charged by the court parking garage. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/116 "2004-01-31T06:20:41Z")
> [@Fish](#): > > Speaking only for myself, **CanvasShoes** , I didn’t look at the original poster’s post count until I had already read the OP. My reaction was to content, not to the relative fame of the person presenting it. In fact, I rarely read poster names and post counts unless the person’s point catches my eye. > > I admit I may not be typical, though. 🙂 OH! Sorry I wasn’t very clear about that. No, it’s not the post count. I’ve read relative necomer’s posts that seem to fit what I’m describing as well. Oh well, it’s not that big a deal. I’m obviously not going to change anyone’s mind. I just didn’t see this kid as being so much an asshole, as having a problem and not addressing it very well, and perhaps coming off not very well in type. And that likely due to his inexperience and youth. (maybe it’s the old mom in me). I think people judged him too quickly and harshly. Others think he’s the next incarnation of the Prince of Darkness. Hey, for all I know, … 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/117 "2004-01-31T06:31:01Z")
> [@Tripler](#): > > Which is exatly the point. If the OP didn’t come across as such a snot-nosed little brat afraid of doing their civic duty, then no harm-no foul. > > However, what you post is what you get (WYPIWYG). And given such statements as: > > and > > it goes a little past fighting ignorance, to the point of fighting those who _spread_ ignorance. > > Granted, freedom of speech is a sacred right in this country, but there are sometimes . . . well, never mind. > > But by God, it takes me by surprise that someone would seem to _actively revolt_ at the idea of doing their civic duty. > > Maybe I’m reading too far into it. Correct me if I’m wrong. > > Tripler > Goddamn Communists. I agree. But I guess I’m being a mom here. There are ways, and there are WAYS of teaching someone who’s “not seeing the light” the correct way. There are kids who are being brats because they’re just spoiled brats, and then, as I said above sometimes this is how people act when they believe they’ve been backed into a corner. The OP strikes me as the latter, as one who made whiny threats in frustration and ignorance of his/her rights and options, rather than one who actually BELIEVED and would do the bratty things he said. But again, I could be wrong, and may have let the mom in me be judging this one. He (the OP) reminds me of a young friend of my daughter’s (who is now 24) at that age. Very naive about how the whole “establishment thing” worked, and very easily put on the defensive when not knowing the processes and how they all affected him. That’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/118 "2004-01-31T07:05:03Z")
> [@blasphmer](#): > > Also, around here, for the district court the last time my neighbor went the company gives you UNPAID time off, and the “pay” you get for being on the jury doesn’t cover the exhorborant rates charged by the court parking garage. Are you saying that it is too high a price to pay for justice? ---
**Author:** ![Largo62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@Largo62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Largo62)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/119 "2004-01-31T07:26:46Z")
> [@bluethree](#): > > Let’s admit it, Catperson and Kung Fu Lola have defeated us with superior arguments. After all, none of the rest of us has any idea what it’s like to be a college student, right? Well, um, it’s been a long time. Some of us just forgot. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Ferrous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Ferrous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferrous)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2004, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247/120 "2004-01-31T07:36:57Z")
'Scuse me a sec…If I could just slip in here for a sec to respond to a minor point… > [@Qburn](#): > > I guess since I’m over 30 I personally know people who’ve had to deal with these issues, including myself. > > The point wasn’t that CatPerson could be drafted right now, but rather that your country can and has asked it’s citizens to make sacrifices greater than serving on jury duty. Okay. I’ve got no problem with that point. And just FTR, I’m over 30 myself, and I’m registered with Selective Service, so I know whereof you speak in that regard. But what you said earlier was “Your country is well known for sending persons your age draft notices.” Which makes it sound like a common, ongoing thing, which it really isn’t. Registering, yes. Being drafted, not recently. Probably a minor quibble, but I felt the need to respond. I agree with your position as clarified. 'Kay? 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-jury-duty/226247.md?page=7)