# msmith537, What is your major malfunction? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 24, 2005, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333 "2005-05-24T21:28:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2005, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/41 "2005-05-25T15:36:07Z")
> [@The Weird One](#): > > It’s one thing to make disparaging comments about an entire class of people when you don’t really mean it, and everyone knows you don’t mean it, and it’s just for laughs. (example: I was hanging out with my Jewish roommates and their Jewish friends one night; they were complaining about being broke. “Well, damn,” I said, “You know I’m only hanging out with you guys so I can snag a rich Jewish husband.”) > It’s another thing altogether when someone is making those comments in earnest. ExACTly. Most of **msmith’s** posts are in Cafe Society and Great Debates. I don’t agree with most of his political posts or his views on business, but I can see his points. His posts about his views on women, on the other hand, are insulting to say the least and delivered with the intent to incite ire. I would say the “don’t be a jerk” rule definitely applies. I don’t have a problem with anyone insulting me here in the Pit. I expect it, and I’ll give as good as I get. But consistently demeaning posts in IMHO and MPSIMS needs to be addressed. If he has an explanation other than “jeez, can’t you take a joke?” I’d love to hear it. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2005, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/42 "2005-05-25T20:15:09Z")
> [@Excalibre](#): > > You know, that dance wasn’t as safe as they said it was. Don’t _you_ worry about msmith, let _me_ worry about blank. ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/43 "2005-05-26T13:50:19Z")
> [@continuity eror](#): > > **Ms mith** ’s misogyny doesn’t bug me as much as the fact that he’s (purportedly) an adult man who still calls people nerds, dorks, and dweebs. Which just goes even further to confirm that he is, in fact, that guy from all the 80s movies. Not James Spader, though - the low-rent James Spader, the one who isn’t sexy and can’t act. Wonder if he wears a letter jacket and Ray-Bans? It’s also worth noting that, while women do indeed control the vagina, \msmith\ seems to have more than his fair share of dick. ---
**Author:** ![jlzania](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@jlzania](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jlzania)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/44 "2005-05-26T14:07:53Z")
\*\* msmith537, What is your major malfunction?\*\* I think it’s pretty obvious that **mssmith537** is suffering from Deadly Semen Backup. [SUB]Which is not quite as bad as Deadly Seamen Backup, I’m told.[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/45 "2005-05-26T14:13:56Z")
None of you would be so pissed if he wasn’t close to the mark. And funny. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/46 "2005-05-26T14:19:37Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > None of you would be so pissed if he wasn’t close to the mark. > > And funny. Only he’s not. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/47 "2005-05-26T14:27:28Z")
None of you are pissed if he’s in the thread going “women are really second class citizens who should have their faces covered and walk five paces behind their man.” THEN, you could simply dismiss him as a buffoon and walk away. You’re pissed because he says things like, “woman have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition.” The exact same thing I’ve heard from several women. The problem is, he says it in an inflammatory manner and he’s a man saying it. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/48 "2005-05-26T14:27:47Z")
ms mith–and I’m basing this assessment solely on his posts here–is not a misogynist. Just because someone makes gross generalizations about women, doesn’t mean he _hates_ women. ms mith’s an ass, nothing more. Sometimes he’s funny, sometimes he’s not. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/49 "2005-05-26T15:03:16Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > None of you would be so pissed if he wasn’t close to the mark. > > And funny. The other way around. If he were close to the mark and funny, I wouldn’t be so pissed. If this is truly the experience he’s had with women, then he’s socializing with the wrong women. And, I think you’d be a bit offended if I said “All men are boorish lazy idiots who can’t talk about anything but sports, cars, and their dicks.” No? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/50 "2005-05-26T15:16:53Z")
> [@Maureen](#): > > The other way around. If he were close to the mark and funny, I wouldn’t be so pissed. If this is truly the experience he’s had with women, then he’s socializing with the wrong women. > And, I think you’d be a bit offended if I said “All men are boorish lazy idiots who can’t talk about anything but sports, cars, and their dicks.” No? No, I’d ask you where they are. All the guys I know nowadays watch American Idol, eat lo carb food, and go to Ikea every Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/51 "2005-05-26T15:21:53Z")
Exactly. And most of the women I know (at least, the ones I’m friends with) are bright, loyal and self sufficient. Saying _all_ women are this way or _all_ men are that way is bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Weird\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/52 "2005-05-26T16:03:18Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > None of you would be so pissed if he wasn’t close to the mark. > > And funny. I _knew_ there was a reason I left Baltimore. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/53 "2005-05-26T16:18:41Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > None of you are pissed if he’s in the thread going “women are really second class citizens who should have their faces covered and walk five paces behind their man.” > > THEN, you could simply dismiss him as a buffoon and walk away. > > You’re pissed because he says things like, “woman have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition.” > > The exact same thing I’ve heard from several women. > > The problem is, he says it in an inflammatory manner and he’s a man saying it. I disagree. I think catsix has been called out on similar behavior and she is a woman. (Not to single out catsix, I think there have been a few female posters that don’t appear to have a real high opinion of other women, but catsix is the only name coming to mind). The problem is saying “all women.” If I said “all gay men are promiscous drug users who care nothing for the health of their partners” people would flame me. There is certainly concern in the gay community over promiscous drug users who don’t consider their own or their partners health, but certainly those men are not the whole. If I said “all young black men are violent, its just a matter of if they have shot someone yet,” I wouldn’t only get my very own pit thread, but I might even get a mod telling me that isn’t appropriate. ---
**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:** [May 26, 2005, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/54 "2005-05-26T16:32:11Z")
> [@Maureen](#): > > The other way around. If he were close to the mark and funny, I wouldn’t be so pissed. If this is truly the experience he’s had with women, then he’s socializing with the wrong women. > And, I think you’d be a bit offended if I said “All men are boorish lazy idiots who can’t talk about anything but sports, cars, and their dicks.” No? Not true. I don’t talk about my dick. ---
**Author:** ![Aangelica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Aangelica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aangelica)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/55 "2005-05-26T16:34:50Z")
**Dangerosa** is right - what he’s doing is not unlike saying “All guys are just looking for an excuse to rape and beat their women”. While it’s true that SOME guys are like that (demonstrably so according to domestic violence stats), not all of them are. I don’t want to be slapped with his baggage every single time he posts on any subject even marginally involving my gender. I know he’s an ignorant misguided sucker - but I thought we were here to combat ignorance, yes? It’s a funny thing about personal insults (including all-inclusive group insults), but they’re hurtful even if you know they’re not the truth. The fact that I’m pretty sure that the source of his rage, hate and bitterness is the fact that the length of time since he last got laid (and didn’t have to pay for it) is best measured in geologic terms doesn’t really make listening to him abuse me (by implication and inclusion). ---
**Author:** ![Aangelica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Aangelica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aangelica)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/56 "2005-05-26T16:39:25Z")
:smack: Preview! Must preview! “…(by implication and inclusion)”… any less obnoxious. I obviously need lunch. Yes! Lunch! mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm burgers ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/57 "2005-05-26T16:59:45Z")
> [@](#): > > **Dangerosa** said: > I think catsix has been called out on similar behavior and she is a woman. (Not to single out catsix, I think there have been a few female posters that don’t appear to have a real high opinion of other women, but catsix is the only name coming to mind). I’ve been jumped on and called a misogynist for saying that I don’t have women friends because of gossip, back stabbing and constant competition. Doesn’t seem like **msmith** is getting treated differently because he’s a guy. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/58 "2005-05-26T17:04:43Z")
> [@UrbanChic](#): > > ms mith–and I’m basing this assessment solely on his posts here–is not a misogynist. Just because someone makes gross generalizations about women, doesn’t mean he _hates_ women. > > ms mith’s an ass, nothing more. Sometimes he’s funny, sometimes he’s not. I think he does hate women; you don’t say the things he’s said about women if you like or even tolerate them. He’s made it brutally clear that he has no use for women, even if he’s never come out and actually said he hates them. He’s not close to the mark, either. That’s part of what makes his schtick so irritating - he’s wrong, but there’s no way for us to prove it. I’m sure he _has_ met women who act like he says we all act. His mistake is making the leap from “some women” to “all women”. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/59 "2005-05-26T17:09:42Z")
> [@Aangelica](#): > > mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm burgers All women drool over burgers… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2005, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333/60 "2005-05-26T17:36:18Z")
> [@Trunk](#): > > You’re pissed because he says things like, “women have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition.” You’re right. Now, if he said “ **some** women have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition,” or “ **i’ve encountered quite a few women who** have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition,” or even “ **all the women i know** have a hard time being friends with each other because they back stab, gossip, and internalize their competition,” then there would be a chance of having a rational and intelligent conversation with him on the issue But he apparently believes that his own experiences extrapolate to the majority of women. Indeed, he seem to believe that they extrapolate to every single woman that has ever drawn breath. You know what they say: there comes a time when you have to realise that the only common factor in all your failed relationships is YOU. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/msmith537-what-is-your-major-malfunction/305333.md?page=4)