# What were you THINKING? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 13, 2023, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532 "2023-10-13T19:36:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 388
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8131 "2026-09-15T14:44:54Z")
So, Jasmine - just a clueless woman railing against a mean world, or a dogwhistling troll? To give her the benefit of the doubt, I’m raising her “wouldn’t it be nice if everyone was, you know, the same, in their own places. IYKWIM” [thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-homogeneous-society-a-better-healthier-option-in-the-modern-age/1033066) here rather than the trolls one, but it was a close thing. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8132 "2026-09-15T14:47:55Z")
ISTM that it’s another case of biasing the present as compared to the past - i.e. The USA is really bad and dumb right now, Japan is not so bad, and the biggest difference is diversity vs homogenousness, therefore that just be the explanation. Because NOW is somehow special and the reflection of the true nature of things. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8133 "2026-09-15T14:52:18Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > the biggest difference is diversity vs homogenousness I mean, just saying that’s the biggest difference is kind of doing a lot of question-begging. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8134 "2026-09-15T14:56:19Z")
My thought is that, since you don’t like my position in a civilized debate, you decided to come running over here to insult and denigrate me like some highschool bully. I think that’s pretty pathetic. LOL ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8135 "2026-09-15T15:07:56Z")
Yes, because “LOL” is the ultimate, crippling argumentation tactic. It’s a horrible, narrow-focused and narrow-minded thesis for a thread. The board is smaller for its existence. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8136 "2026-09-15T15:11:10Z")
I’m happily debating you over there, civil as you like. But I can’t call your OP a dogwhistle for nativist claptrap there, like I can here. Although you’re not exactly making a case that it was just cluelessness, now are you? Not with the degree to which you’re defending the thesis. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8137 "2026-09-15T21:18:53Z")
I’m w @MrDibble here. That thesis amounts to “The racists are right; only homogeneous societies can be calm and sensible.” Instead of blaming rampant propaganda aimed at making the US into a warzone to benefit Russia’s dictator, China’s dictator, and some wannabe dictators and oligarchs right here in the USA. Maybe we ought to have more education to combat the widespread credulous ignorance of so many Americans who swallow the propaganda like it was candy & beg for more. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8138 "2026-09-15T21:23:46Z")
I’ll just mention, as I did in the thread @MrDibble and @LSLGuy are discussing, that I was the one who separated out the hijack from it’s parent thread. So the OP in question may poorly reflect @Jasmine’s intent. Of course, you can still judge them on the content, and various replies, both before and after the split. IE - I am willing to take responsibility for separating the post out awkwardly as the OP of a new thread, but it was IMHO the best option for the extended hijack. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8139 "2026-09-15T22:10:19Z")
There are things people would say as a post that they wouldn’t want to start a thread about. IMHO, mods should ask posters’ permission to spin off a new thread - and if they say no, delete the posts in question. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8140 "2026-09-15T22:11:33Z")
Never delete posts unless it’s spam or something. Just a Note to not continue the hijack. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8141 "2026-09-15T22:13:12Z")
Maybe. Either way, you shouldn’t make anyone an unwilling OP. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8142 "2026-09-15T22:14:22Z")
We never delete posts except in extremely rare instances, and mostly only if they are spam, when we delete the entire user. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8143 "2026-09-15T22:16:17Z")
Eh. You say it in a thread you’ve said it. If context changes meaning that’s one thing, but having looked at the thread it was birthed from? Don’t see how. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8144 "2026-09-15T22:17:36Z")
I have had posts become the OP for a new thread without my doing before. It has never been a big deal. I agree, if a post is good enough to make, it’s good enough to be an OP. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8145 "2026-09-15T22:19:19Z")
A post is a thought; an OP is a thesis. They demand different degrees of diligence. (Just my opinion, as someone who really doesn’t like starting threads). ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8146 "2026-09-15T22:26:19Z")
I think the worst was this one: > [@Does "White Culture" Exist?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-white-culture-exist/1026483): > > [Moderation] I’ve split this conversation out of the “What Were You Thinking” Pit thread, which was inspired by this post in the “[WhiteDate and several other “White” sites scraped for data](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whitedate-and-several-other-white-sites-scraped-for-data/1026414/1)” thread in P&E. - Miller [/Moderation] Being a white-skinned person and being proud of who you are is fine. Nobody should be ashamed of their skin color. Being proud because you believe your skin color makes you superior is where the line is. And yes, I have no idea what “white culture” is supposed to be… Ironically, it was spun off from **this thread**. Again, I’m not mad about it. It’s no big deal. But it was an offhand comment, not meant to be the start of a debate. Then it became the start of one that lasted for almost 200 posts. To me, this is the worst kind of unwilling OP I can imagine, and ultimately it wasn’t a problem in any way. I also didn’t have a ton of interest in it; I posted a few replies but bowed out of it pretty early. Yet, no harm came of it. It was whatever. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2026, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8147 "2026-09-15T23:53:48Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > A post is a thought; an OP is a thesis. They demand different degrees of diligence. I suspect you give OPs (both the opening poster and the opening post) more credit than is generally due. As someone who has started a few threads: an OP is, to me a thought interesting or provocative enough that I think a whole discussion could be had about it; and if had in a thread with another focus then is worth taking out and giving that discussion its own space to either grow or die. Personally I am not writing theses; I am just trying to start what hope will be a fun or interesting conversation. Maybe one that reduces my ignorance some! Honestly I often spend more time composing responses (including double checking my facts are right) than I have on any OP? ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2026, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8148 "2026-09-16T00:21:15Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > A post is a thought; an OP is a thesis. They demand different degrees of diligence. Mods, you have the opportunity to do something funny and split this post and replies into its own thread. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2026, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8149 "2026-09-16T00:36:18Z")
Har har, it is to laugh. Seriously, I posted to take _ownership_ for any awkwardness when it came to having that post as an OP. If you want to complain about the _moderation_ itself, please feel free to open an ATMB thread about it. If you want to complain about the _content_ of that post, you are free to continue to do so, as I mentioned earlier. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2026, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/8150 "2026-09-16T05:41:40Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > I’ll just mention, as I did in the thread @MrDibble and @LSLGuy are discussing, that I was the one who separated out the hijack from it’s parent thread. So the OP in question may poorly reflect @Jasmine’s intent. Of course, you can still judge them on the content, and various replies, both before and after the split. > > IE - I am willing to take responsibility for separating the post out awkwardly as the OP of a new thread, but it was IMHO the best option for the extended hijack. FWIW, I think you’re putting completely unwarranted blame on yourself. I agree with @DSeid and @Atamasama on this. While @Jasmine didn’t intend to start a whole thread on this topic, I think the post that became the OP of the new thread speaks for itself, and she’s continued to support that view. One might argue about the significance of an OP versus an in-thread post, but the fact remains that words have meaning, and the meaning here is perfectly clear. There’s no missing context. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532.md?page=387) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532.md?page=389)