# I wish Americans would use Google occasionally **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 11, 2005, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565 "2005-11-11T13:54:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/21 "2005-11-11T15:21:23Z")
**Dead Badger** : I’m going to argue that you’re wrong and that the Internet, regardless of misspelling, was invented by Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn. [Even the BBC agrees with me.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4415326.stm) ---
**Author:** ![Fortean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/96bed5/32.png) [@Fortean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fortean)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/22 "2005-11-11T15:31:21Z")
Warning! Dour hijack ahead! > [@](#): > > Speaking of things Fortean, there apparently are still obsessive followers of the paranormal who take as their hero Charles Fort, an early devotee of whacko urban legends. > > There were people laughing at the gullibility of Fort and his patrons back in the '30s, but updates are available via Google. Bah. Insult Forteans all you like, but leave OUR LEADER CHARLES FORT out of it. He was very far from gullible. He was fascinated in all things strange and anonomolous, but took nothing at face value – not even scientific explanations, which is why some people think he takes the side of the paranormal believers. As the man says himself: > [@](#): > > Sometimes I am a collector of data, and only a collector, and am likely to be gross and miserly, piling up notes, pleased with merely numerically adding to my stores. Other times I have joys, when unexpectedly coming upon an outrageous story that may not be altogether a lie, or upon a macabre little thing that may make some reviewer of my more or less good works mad. But always there is present a feeling of unexplained relations of events that I note, and it is this far-away, haunting, or often taunting, awareness, or suspicion, that keeps me piling on." /dour hijack averted, well done everybody ---
**Author:** ![Scruloose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@Scruloose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scruloose)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/23 "2005-11-11T15:36:18Z")
> [@Dead Badger](#): > > Disclaimer: I am an American, albeit abroad. Please do not shoot me. OK then - you can go. But _be careful_! We’ve had reports of furriners 'round these parts, and the hit squads are awfully jumpy today. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/24 "2005-11-11T15:42:01Z")
> [@Fortean](#): > > He was fascinated in all things strange and anonomolous, but took nothing at face value – not even scientific explanations, which is why some people think he takes the side of the paranormal believers. “To doubt everything or to believe everything are two equally convenient solutions; both dispense with the necessity of reflection.” – H. Poincaré I’m not saying that this necessarily applies to Charles Fort, but it is worth keeping in mind nonetheless. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/25 "2005-11-11T15:42:11Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > **Dead Badger** : I’m going to argue that you’re wrong and that the Internet, regardless of misspelling, was invented by Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn. [Even the BBC agrees with me.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4415326.stm) Alright, but can we please acknowledge that I was in fact joking? I put the smilie there like a good boy, which I never do. I even compared Stephen Fry’s internet credentials with Jesus’. I do know who Vincent Turf is, y’know, although what Star Trek has to do with this is beyond me. It was still Stephen Fry. Maybe Jesus helped some. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/26 "2005-11-11T15:44:21Z")
> [@Fortean](#): > > Bah. Insult Forteans all you like, but leave OUR LEADER CHARLES FORT out of it. He was very far from gullible. [Oddly enough](http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/Fort,%20Charles%20Hoy.html), a Google search on “Charles Fort gullible” turns up 45,000 hits. I would reveal more, but a steady rain of frogs has just begun here, and I could be teleported at any mome ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/27 "2005-11-11T15:44:59Z")
**Dead Badger** : I knew you were joking, which is why I cited the BBC in preference to all of the other cites Google drug out of the vasty deep. My humor is perhaps too subtle. ---
**Author:** ![zuma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9c0ed/32.png) [@zuma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zuma)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/28 "2005-11-11T15:55:36Z")
Brain Glutton represents all Americans? This is the stupidest pitting I’ve ever seen. Plus, if you were not stupider than he was, you’d realize he’s from Florida… Things are different in Florida. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/29 "2005-11-11T15:56:34Z")
From [Tim’s FAQ](http://www.w3.org/People/Berners-Lee/FAQ.html). > [@](#): > > Q: I understand you invented the Internet… > Sorry, not me! I was lucky enough to invent the Web at the time when the Internet already existed - and had for a decade and a half. If you are looking for fathers of the Internet, try Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Fortean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/96bed5/32.png) [@Fortean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fortean)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/30 "2005-11-11T17:05:43Z")
Seriously, though, although the SD is full of US-ers, I wish SOME OF you could be a little more circumspect when we’re talking about Brit stuff, or indeed anything that’s not Murrican. It is the work of a moment to google someone’s name, especially if it is an odd one like Blunkett. And googling will get you to wikipedia or somewhere equally illuminating where you can have a good read about who the man is and why he’s a big philandering barstid, and come back shiny-faced and bushy-tailed, all ready for a pleasant jolly discussion about UK politics with us Brits. Too many times have I seen people ask the most obvious question, receive some several v. polite answers, then contribute nothing to the discussion (as BrainGlutton did in that thread). Now, if you’d googled, you might feel more up to it. We need your lovely and delightful comments from a lovely and delightful Seppoist perspective! All to many Brit threads never reach double figures. Google for Britain! ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/31 "2005-11-11T17:59:05Z")
I’m English, **Fortean** and frankly you’re a fucking embarrassment. This has to be one of the silliest pittings ever. And if you can’t tell the difference between the internet, an American development, and the Web, which does owe something to an Englishman, then you’re the one that needs Google. You’re a twerp. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/32 "2005-11-11T18:36:22Z")
> [@adam yax](#): > > > [@cheesesteak](#): > > > > Blunkett! Whoever he is. > > I just checked Google. They make fire extinguishers. Okay, for some reason I found this very funny, and my lapotp just barely escaped getting spewed with hot coffee. Hee. And **Fortean** , I’ll have you know that some of us 'Mericans not only use Google, but also _gasp_ make an effort to read international news. Some of us even, occasionally, take advantage of the international community here and [ask questions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=342788&highlight=blunkett) when we can’t find the answer with Google. I recommend a slightly narrower brush for your painting needs. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/33 "2005-11-11T18:38:39Z")
How the hell did Canadians get dragged into all of this? _drags her country right back out again_ ---
**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:** [November 11, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/34 "2005-11-11T19:04:25Z")
> [@Fortean](#): > > Seriously, though, although the SD is full of US-ers, I wish SOME OF you could be a little more circumspect when we’re talking about Brit stuff, or indeed anything that’s not Murrican. > > It is the work of a moment to google someone’s name, especially if it is an odd one like Blunkett. And googling will get you to wikipedia or somewhere equally illuminating where you can have a good read about who the man is and why he’s a big philandering barstid, and come back shiny-faced and bushy-tailed, all ready for a pleasant jolly discussion about UK politics with us Brits. Or, you could just not be a gigantic fucking dick and explain it yourself. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/35 "2005-11-11T19:22:04Z")
WTF is this thread all about? This is a serious inquiry, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![Greathouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greathouse/32/2992_2.png) [@Greathouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greathouse)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/36 "2005-11-11T19:22:27Z")
> [@LouisB](#): > > WTF is this thread all about? This is a serious inquiry, by the way. Have you tried google? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/37 "2005-11-11T19:28:10Z")
> [@Fortean](#): > > \*\* Google, that is, not the internets; everyone knows we (TEH BRITS) invented THEM I thought Al Gore invented the internet. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/38 "2005-11-11T19:32:49Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > **Dead Badger** : I’m going to argue that you’re wrong and that the Internet, regardless of misspelling, was invented by Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn. [Even the BBC agrees with me.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4415326.stm) I don’t think so. The [Arpanet](http://www.dei.isep.ipp.pt/docs/arpa--1.html) clearly predated TCP/IP. It’s pretty clear that Kahn and Cerf were just members of a cast of hundreds working on that idea at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/39 "2005-11-11T19:33:38Z")
> [@Lord Ashtar](#): > > I thought Al Gore invented the internet. That was Al Goure, and he _was_ British. I wish you Americans would learn to spell. ---
**Author:** ![YaWanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/bbce88/32.png) [@YaWanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaWanna)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565/40 "2005-11-11T19:35:33Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > I’m **BrainGlutton**! And so’s my wife! Dammit, I’m wracking my brain trying to remember what this is from! Please remind me! And sorry for the hijack. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-wish-americans-would-use-google-occasionally/330565.md?page=3)