# My roommate is ignorant **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 20, 2002, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688 "2002-11-20T03:17:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/21 "2002-11-20T11:11:31Z")
> [@](#): > > Yes, but Pig is a filthy fucking animal. A sewer rat might taste like pumpkin pie, but I’d never know because I’d never eat the filthy motherfucker. Pigs root and sleep in shit, that’s a filthy animal. I won’t eat any animal that ain’t got enough sense to disregard its own feces. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/22 "2002-11-20T11:14:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GingerOfTheNorth \* > **Did you know that whales are not so much mammals as insects, and they exist entirely upon bananas?** Did you know there’s four miles of tubing in your stomach? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/23 "2002-11-20T11:20:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > \*\*Pigs root and sleep in shit, that’s a filthy animal. I won’t eat any animal that ain’t got enough sense to disregard its own feces. \*\* That’s a myth. Pigs are in fact very clean, they just like to roll in mud to keep cool. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/24 "2002-11-20T12:28:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zoe \* > \*\*Neurotik, you don’t go to Dartmouth by any chance, do you? \*\* Nah. Went to Catholic University of America in DC. Good profs, administration is the most incompetent in the country. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/25 "2002-11-20T13:34:30Z")
Didn’t we do this in the “Things I’m embarrassed not to have known” thread some time ago. I confess. 1: I didn’t realize or didn’t remember that “plankton” was blanket term for a soup of different organisms. I vaguely though “plankton” described a specific class of animals. 2: I confused the function of spiracles and malphigian tubules until I refreshed myself recently You’ve got to realize that if someone doesn’t pay sufficient attention in BIO 101 (see plankton example) it sets the stage for a chain of future mis-understandings. If he didn’t grok the general definition of animal then his confusion is understandable, if not excusable. If this confusion about classifications throws you into such a tizzy you might want to look less at your roommate’s ignorance and your own attitude. The world is full of people who manage perfectly well without knowing the big picture taxonomy of life on earth and sometimes they know many things you don’t know. If you bring in or print out a taxonomy chart to review with him, he might be more grateful than being one the receiving end of your name calling no matter how much more the latter satisfies you personally. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/26 "2002-11-20T13:45:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by astro \* > \*\*2: I confused the function of spiracles and malphigian tubules until I refreshed myself recently > \*\* My dear **astro** , I do believe that is the lamest cite of personal ignorance that I have ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/27 "2002-11-20T13:50:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > \*\*Pigs root and sleep in shit, that’s a filthy animal. I won’t eat any animal that ain’t got enough sense to disregard its own feces. \*\* Yeah, but bacon tastes _good_. Pork chops taste _good_. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/28 "2002-11-20T13:52:10Z")
I’ve heard the term “animal” used to refer specifically to mammals in quite a variety of non-technical contexts. I wouldn’t be surpised if your roommate simly had animal = four legged fluffy thingie imbedded in his brain.Then again, if he guessed ant before, I guess not. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/29 "2002-11-20T14:05:28Z")
**Guanolad** [tee hee, how apropos], color yourself whooshed. Ask **Divemaster** for the clue. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/30 "2002-11-20T14:28:17Z")
What a strange bird the frog are! When he sit, he stand almost; When he hop, he fly almost. He ain’t got no sense hardly; He ain’t got no tail hardly either. When he sit, he sit on what he ain’t got almost. (Thought that was Ogden Nash, but I can’t find a cite.) ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/31 "2002-11-20T14:36:19Z")
Bully for you, Neurotik, for making fun of someone because they don’t have the understanding of biology that you do. Isn’t it great to feel just so _superior_ to someone? Think about it, from now on you can look down on your roomate, secure in the knowledge that he is a lesser being than you. Face it, this knowledge is largely irrelevant to his life. Whether or not he knows the heirarchy of organisms won’t help him at his job, or around the house, or anything. It is trivia, and is only truly useful if he wants to prove his worth to people like you. I used to live with a guy that didn’t know a damn thing about science, and didn’t care to know. You know what, though? He was a good guy, and I’m not gonna look down on him because he wasn’t educated. May I ask why you hate your roomate? Does his lack of education make your life more difficult in some way? ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/32 "2002-11-20T14:56:11Z")
Aaargh! I give. From movie is that, gobear? Christ, whatever it is I’ve seen it more than once but I can’t remember! ---
**Author:** ![Jabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5e925/32.png) [@Jabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jabba)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/33 "2002-11-20T15:00:47Z")
It’s _Pulp Fiction_. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/34 "2002-11-20T15:14:30Z")
I’m so embarrassed. Really, I am. I once told someone there’s no line from _Pulp Fiction_ I couldn’t identify. Funny thing is I heard a black man saying the whole pig/filth line in my head but _still_ couldn’t get it! Did I mention how ashamed I was? ---
**Author:** ![Medea\_s\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Medea\_s\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Medea_s_Child)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/35 "2002-11-20T15:16:23Z")
Brain farts can happen. One of the smartest, most talented people I have ever known was trying to explain evolution on an essay exam and under pressure wrote that “whales had gills but grew out of them”. Being the kind, gentle group of friends that we were, we have yet to let her live it down. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/36 "2002-11-20T15:24:15Z")
I have to go with cheesesteak. I once had a massive brain fart while trying to make a painted t-shirt and asked which way the letter C faced. Instead of calling me ignorant beyond belief, we all just laughed about it and sort of went on our way. I notice you wrote your roomate as “laughing nervously” more than once. You must be a real peach. Isn’t it fun to make people feel stupid? Yeah… ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/37 "2002-11-20T15:29:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jarbabyj \* > I notice you wrote your roomate as “laughing nervously” more than once. You must be a real peach. \*\* Isn’t it fun to make people feel stupid? \*\* Yeah… See, that’s just it…it’s IS fun. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/38 "2002-11-20T15:35:11Z")
Suffice it to say Juanita…I heartily disagree. I’d rather make people feel comfortable and happy in my presence than walking around on eggshells afraid of mis-speaking or asking a question lest they be labelled ‘ignorant’ and then HATED for that ignorance. Not my idea of a good time. ---
**Author:** ![Siemsi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b19c9b/32.png) [@Siemsi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siemsi)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/39 "2002-11-20T15:36:27Z")
Ahhhh yes. Unfortunately I deal with ignorant people on a daily basis who are so clueless about the world around them. Sorry you have to live with a fucking moron. Unbelievable. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2002, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688/40 "2002-11-20T15:39:22Z")
And let me add, before you give me the rolleyes, that I do see a difference between joking around with friends and saying “remember that time you couldn’t remember how to draw a C? WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?” and we all have a good gut buster and looking at someone saying 'I can’t believe you’re so fucking ignorant", making them sit through a lecture on something that is obviously not important to them and then, because of that incident deciding that you HATE that person. Is the hierarchy of creatures that god damn important? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-roommate-is-ignorant/137688.md?page=3)