The Internet: 100% True or Nah?

I have a cousin who not too long ago removed me from her friend's list on Facebook (lol). In some (read: almost all) ways, this was a good thing. She would sometimes show her amazing ability of being gullible. It was breathtaking. She would link a video and then swear on all that is holy that it was the truth.

The once instance that stands out though. Remember that snow storm earlier this year where it actually snowed hard on the east coast and in some southern states (Tennessee, Georgia, the Carolinas)? There were videos showing up after that on the Internet claiming that the snow was fake. The proof? They tried melting it with a lighter and it was turning black instead, proving that the snow was made up of plastic or something else dumb.

So naturally, people (my cousin included) lost their shit. They concluded that this was indeed 100% Grade A real. The government!!! and the such. So naturally after that, science came to a completely rational conclusion: 

So naturally after that, people still said "The snow's fake. I don't care what anyone says. Government!!!!!". And that make no sense whatsoever. A random video on the Internet beats science? Really? It's amazing that people would rather believe that know. They'd rather believe every link that posted somewhere instead trying to find if it's indeed true. If I posted on my wall right now a video of me claiming that I put a bottle of Vodka in my freezer for a year and it didn't freeze so they must be putting something in it, people would be like "Government! AAAHHHHHH!!" without actually finding out that Vodka doesn't freeze in typical household freezers.

Now, I will say that there are some things on the Internet that do make some sense in terms of what is possible. The government being responsible for 9/11 that benefits them slightly? You can talk me into that (maybe). The government being responsible for a snowstorm that doesn't benefit them (or anyone really)? I lol at that. Find facts first. Don't just jump to a radical conclusion without A) thinking or B) finding facts. Don't be that silly (hilarious, even) cousin of mine.

Now, here are a few videos that are so fake that you expect the credits to roll afterwards. And people fully believed. *sigh*

PS: I hope my cousin is doing well. My Facebook feed just isn't the same without her posts. :( 

Oh Boy. Politics.

Yesterday while watching the Pats make the Broncos look silly, there were a lot of political ads popping up during the commercial breaks. One in particular was for the NH (a state I don't live in and therefore can't vote there. Why is this on my TV then?) Senate race between Jeanne Shaheen and Scott Brown. This ad featured a full-blown attack on Shaheen, claiming that she sides or agrees or something with Obama (which is bad? Good? Who knows?) and mentions all these things that are wrong with Shaheen.

So in other words:

Voter: "So Mr. Brown, as a voter, why should I vote for you?"

Scott Brown: "Because I'm not Jeanne Shaheen."

Voter: "Well, that changes everything! You have my vote!"


This is one of the reasons why I hate (HATE) politics. You'd rather tell me what the other person will do instead of what YOU will do. How does that make any sense?

And I hate terms like leftist (WTF is that?) and extreme right (again, WTF?) and GOP and blue states and electoral college and gubernatorial debates. It's all stupid. I hate attack ads. I hate defensive ads. I'd rather watch a car commercial or a Burger King commercial or an Old Spice commercial or a hybrid car/BK/Old Spice commercial than a political ad. And for the record, a hybrid commercial with those three things combined into one would be remarkably epic. You know this to be true. Do not fight me on this.

Back on topic, a few years ago when Barack Obama was up for reelection, I had decided that I wasn't voting this time around. I say this time around because back in '08 I voted (for the first time in my life) for Obama. Not because I sided with him on critical issues. Not because I felt he was the right person for the job (even though he was). I voted for him because it would be nice to feel like I helped make history by voting for the first-ever black president in this country. That novelty wore off by the time reelection came around. I was living with my aunt at the time, and being the Obama supporter that she was, she was adamant that I vote for Obama. I told her that I wasn't voting for anybody ("They're both idiots"). You would have thought that I called her an idiot the way she reacted. She felt like I was betraying the family or something. Her reaction reminds me of reactions during religious conversation. And it's why I try to avoid both religion and politics in my life. It's soooo stupid.

So when the polls open (tomorrow? Not sure.) be sure to vote...if you want to. I'll be content with whatever.

PS: This (like religion) will be the last time I bring up politics in my blog.

PS Part 2: Part of me hopes that Scott Brown gets elected, only to find out that he eats babies or something as a hobby. Some voters would still think that an Obama backer is worse than a baby eater. "He's not Jeanne Shaheen, though!"