61–65 of 65 posts
I haven't seen this point addressed, neither in the article nor in this discussion. But does it sound to anyone else like he is implying that he wants to live but would like to poison his mother-in-law? (I know it's cliche, but the phrasing sounded odd to me. Maybe it was intended humorously.)
Reminds me of a theory I came up with awhile ago. Why do little humans have such a strong propensity for sticking everything in their mouths? Well, way back when in the stone age, infant mortality was high. Mortality among the newborn is high for many species. As a result, low tech-level human communities don't invest in a little individual until they make it in the world for awhile. In fact, the little buggers haven…
The theory may very well be true, but it isn't very helpful. Firstly, you probably won't have an infant around when you get to that deserted island and secondly, if you do, it's probably your own and you'd rather die yourself than watch your child die. Of course the latter is stupid, because the child will die if you die, but humans aren't rational beings.
Theory is a tangential discussion of food tasting and not meant to be applied to this specific context. Applying it so would be not too smart. I hope you're not making conclusions by projecting your own thought processes.
I love how this guy clearly has no idea what he's talking about, relies primarily on a single source (US Army Survival Manual) that's based on decades of research and experience in these kinds of life-and-death situations, then proceeds to disagree with the source on multiple points. So much for fighting ignorance...
Cecil does know what he's talking about. The Straight Dope is a website based on people submitting questions to Cecil who, in turn, does the research and presents the findings for you along with some of his trademark witticism. It's been a wildly successful website. The readers know the premise - that Cecil, not an expert but definitely a pretty smart guy - is doing the work for you. And given the wealth of informati…
That's exactly my point: he did a little research, found one primary source upon which to rely, and then proceeds to disagree with that source, based solely (as far as I can tell) on his opinion. Why wouldn't I just listen to that source directly, which is based on actual expertise?
And its success is completely irrelevant to whether he knows what he's talking about.