# My unique situation invalidates your entire position! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 16, 2005, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319 "2005-02-16T04:37:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TheFaerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TheFaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFaerie)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/21 "2005-02-16T17:00:00Z")
This happens all the time on an e-mail list I am on. For example, someone will mention “I hate it when certain irresponsible people bring their kids to X event because unattended children are distracting. Perhaps X event should be child-free in the future.” This will immediately be followed by protests of “But I bring my kids to X event and they are always well-behaved because I brought them up right! And I can’t always find a baby-sitter because I’m poor/single/etc.” and imply that original poster is a child hating idiot for even bringing the subject up in the first place. Did the original poster say ‘all kids are distracting’? No, original poster said ‘unattended children are distracting’. Did original poster say protesting person’s kids are distracting? No, original poster said irresponsible parents have distracting children and that in their opinion X event would be better served by being child-free. And this is on a local list where nearly all the people know each other IRL and are aware of each person’s family structure. Drives me nuts. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/22 "2005-02-16T17:01:42Z")
You people seem to have forgotten the sentence most useful when faced with these people, “Shut the fuck up, moron!” ---
**Author:** ![Rufus\_Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@Rufus\_Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rufus_Xavier)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/23 "2005-02-16T17:16:53Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > You people seem to have forgotten the sentence most useful when faced with these people, “Shut the fuck up, moron!” Bad advice. One time when I said that to someone, they kicked me in the nuts with a lead-toed boot and now I’m sterile. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/24 "2005-02-16T17:21:55Z")
Yup. This is why the fat threads, SUV thread, and that GODDAMN PICKY EATER TRAINWRECK never seem to die. It gets pretty tiresome after awhile. ---
**Author:** ![abbeytxs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@abbeytxs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abbeytxs)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/25 "2005-02-16T18:11:54Z")
> [@Go You Big Red Fire Engine](#): > > A good reminder that the plural of anecdote is not data or evidence is good in some situations. Also a good reminder that very little is truly black and white. When people make absolute statements it can be like waving a reg flag in front of a bull, someone will just have to prove the exception to the rule. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/26 "2005-02-16T18:29:07Z")
> [@Lamar Mundane](#): > > Data is literally the plural of anecdote. I thought data was the plural of datum. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/27 "2005-02-16T18:48:40Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > Bad advice. One time when I said that to someone, they kicked me in the nuts with a lead-toed boot and now I’m sterile. Shut the fuck up, moron! See how it trips so lightly off the tongue? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/28 "2005-02-16T19:03:24Z")
> [@FinnAgain](#): > > Noooo! > Don’t see the Fnord, then the Fnord won’t eat you! > Yeeeeeeeesh… insanity! Oh yeah? Well, I once knew a guy who had a Fnord that would ONLY eat people who didn’t see it! Are you saying he’s some kind of perverted fnord-having freak who deserves to be flattened by a steamroller? You’ve got a lot of nerve. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/29 "2005-02-16T19:12:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Actually, it is. Data is a conglomeration of a large number of individual situations or data points. Data is literally the plural of anecdote. No, data is _literally_ the plural of datum. Anecdotes is _literally_ the plural of anecdote. Just a pet peeve of mine. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/30 "2005-02-16T19:19:44Z")
> [@Absolute](#): > > Does anyone get annoyed when people bring up their own odd/unique/special circumstances in a thread, apparently with the opinion that their specific situation invalidates everything being discussed? > > For example, in a thread about the practice of asking their party guests to remove their shoes in the host’s house, someone else posts a frothing complaint to the effect of “Well, a friend of mine has a permanent disability and needs to wear a leg brace and special shoe, and your policy is insensitive to the needs of people like her, and you’re all horrible people and your parties suck and God kills a kitten every time you tell someone to take off their shoes.” > > I mean, come on. Obviously, in the special case of your friend, she wouldn’t be forced to remove her leg brace and hop around the party all night. A small minority of situations where a policy or position doesn’t make sense doesn’t invalidate the whole thing, it just means that there must be _gasp_ exceptions! > > I can’t think of any more examples now because I’m dead tired, but does anyone know what I’m talking about? It seems like I’ve been seeing people do this more and more lately, and not just on this board. > > Maybe we’re all becoming more selfish. Anectdotal evidence has some place in arguments. Like if someone makes the claim that, “There is just no way you can justify not taking your shoes off” well then you can bring up an anectdote to show that there really _is_ at least one way. But in general anectdote should only be sprinkled in to an argument to help with analogy and shouldn’t be the crux of an argument itself. ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/31 "2005-02-16T20:17:16Z")
This is funny - we’re getting an example _within_ the thread. “Anecdotal evidence doesn’t cut it.” “Well there was this _one_ situation where anecdotal evidence was valid.” 😃 This is a pretty good example as well. In [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=302105&page=1), CanvasShoes said: > [@](#): > > - > > Quote: > Originally Posted by Indygrrl > Also, just to clarify, I wasn’t anywhere near his bumper. He just didn’t like the message I was giving that he needed to move it on. We’ve got nine speedbumps between my apt. and the entrance, and it shouldn’t take 10 min. to get out.\* > > Unless like me, a person has serious back problems and it’s agonizing PAINFUL to hit a speedbump at the wrong speed or angle. > > It HURTS, and I’m going to creep over them carefully so as not to jar a back that all too often decides that any little excuse (like a speed bump gone over a bit too carelessly) is a good reason to cause instant and excrutiating pain. > > NOT that your apartment dude had that as his excuse, I’m just saying that yeah, there are reasons the person in front of you isn’t moving at a pace that’s to your taste, and it’s not that they’re trying to hold you up. ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/32 "2005-02-16T20:28:22Z")
> [@Lamar Mundane](#): > > Actually, it is. Data is a conglomeration of a large number of individual situations or data points. Data is literally the plural of anecdote. > > Just a pet peeve of mine. Data is collected in a systematic fashion, with care being taken to avoid bias and include all relevant data points, whether they support or oppose the hypothesis. You can have a thousand anecdotes, but if they were not collected in a systematic fashion that accounts for bias, they are _not_ data. (Plus, also what previous posters said about the misuse of _literally_. Speaking of pet peeves.) ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/33 "2005-02-16T20:57:51Z")
> [@abbeytxs](#): > > Also a good reminder that very little is truly black and white. > > When people make absolute statements it can be like waving a reg flag in front of a bull, someone will just have to prove the exception to the rule. You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. Tons of things are truly black and white. Penguins are black and white. How dare you tell the penguins they’re not truly what they are, you jerk! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/34 "2005-02-16T21:04:48Z")
> [@Podkayne](#): > > (Plus, also what previous posters said about the misuse of _literally_. Speaking of pet peeves.) Yeah. That literally chaps my hide. ---
**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:** [February 16, 2005, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/35 "2005-02-16T21:38:30Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. Tons of things are truly black and white. Penguins are black and white. How dare you tell the penguins they’re not truly what they are, you jerk! > > 😃 Nuh-uh! Baby penguins are brownish-grey, you sick sick bastard. Won’t someone _please_ think of the baby penguins?!?! ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/36 "2005-02-16T21:45:27Z")
> [@](#): > > Data is collected in a systematic fashion, with care being taken to avoid bias and include all relevant data points, whether they support or oppose the hypothesis. You can have a thousand anecdotes, but if they were not collected in a systematic fashion that accounts for bias, they are not data. Eh, I’m not so sure about that. A collection of biased and sloppily-collected anecdotes is data, even if it’s bad or worthless data. ---
**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:** [February 16, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/37 "2005-02-16T21:55:51Z")
If the anecdote is about Brent Spiner, does it count double? ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/38 "2005-02-16T22:07:37Z")
I think as long as anecdotal evidence is presented as such, then it is fine. In fact, on a message board, there is an argument that it should be positively encouraged: example - most of the questions in GQ could be answered probably much more succinctly and scientifically by running a Google search or looking up Wikipedia or what-have-you, but by coming to somewhere such as the SDMB, you get the hard facts and you also get some interesting related personal stories, which is something an encyclopedia will never give you. It also makes the place a bit more human, and is one up the wankers who love to cry “CITE!” at every opportunity. There is a place for hard evidence backed up by verifiable cites, and there is a place for anecdotal stories. As long as one doesn’t try to masquerade as the other, there should be no problem. I think most people are smart enough to recognise anecdotal stuff when they see it. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/39 "2005-02-16T23:01:25Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > I think most people are smart enough to recognise anecdotal stuff when they see it. Cite? _::: ducks and runs :::_ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319/40 "2005-02-16T23:42:48Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > I think most people are smart enough to recognise anecdotal stuff when they see it. Sorry, but I gotta disagree with you on this one. If most (more than 50%) people where capable of recognizing anecdotal information when it was presented, we would not need to have message board like this one. In my experience, most people cannot filter out anecdotal or irrelevant information when trying to make or study an argument. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-unique-situation-invalidates-your-entire-position/290319.md?page=3)