# Is Shodan more retarded lately, or has he maintained a consistent level of retardation all along?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shodan-more-retarded-lately-or-has-he-maintained-a-consistent-level-of-retardation-all-along/610530>\
**Category:** The BBQ Pit\
**Created:** [January 24, 2012, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shodan-more-retarded-lately-or-has-he-maintained-a-consistent-level-of-retardation-all-along/610530 "2012-01-24T20:31:26Z")\
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**Showing post:** 143

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**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\
**Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-shodan-more-retarded-lately-or-has-he-maintained-a-consistent-level-of-retardation-all-along/610530/143 "2012-01-25T22:54:17Z")

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I’ve wanted to start a thread (perhaps in this very forum 😃 ) to advocate  
**Often, Anecdote _is_ the singular of data**

I understand the proprieties of statistics, dangers of bias, and need for double-blind experimentation. Yet enlightened extrapolation from personal data is often useful, indeed may outperform published estimates. (An example arose in a thread where a former homeless child gave prostitution population estimates based on personal experience; Dopers laughed at her, instead citing obviously-flawed, but “published”, data.)

As an example of almost-deliberate stupidity, I’d give Shodan’s dismissal of anecdotes in his screeds against AA. I don’t think he insulted my mother _intentionally_, instead it’s just another example of his almost-deliberate stupidity.

> [@Shodan](#):
>
> Where did I do that, and in what forum?
> 
> And FTR, I have never played Go.
> 
> Regards,  
> Shodan

You compared my mother to Laetrile. If it makes you feel better, I didn’t feel you were thinking to insult … just not thinking at all.

> [@Okay, let's have that "Does AA work?" thread. (Alcoholics Anonymous)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-lets-have-that-does-aa-work-thread-alcoholics-anonymous/557706/29):
>
> > [@Okay, let's have that "Does AA work?" thread. (Alcoholics Anonymous)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-lets-have-that-does-aa-work-thread-alcoholics-anonymous/557706/28):
> >
> > I have only the “anecdote” that among alcoholics I’ve known, success at sobriety was very strongly correlated with AA attendance.
> > 
> > I’ve already mentioned one woman, sober for the last 30 years of her life, who became a very successful life-saving counsellor and, despite having strong will-power, _still_ insisted on attending meetings because she “needed to.”
> 
> And second-hand anecdotal evidence is always better than scientific studies. That’s why we can be sure that Laetrile works.
> 
> :rolleyes:
> 
> Regards,  
> Shodan

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