What are the worst misconceptions you know of?

[moretimethansense]

OT: That men can't be raped by women

It's just no one complains about it.

I'd say the victims would, if people would take them seriously.

 

[RanD00M]

That Hitler was German(Seriously, some people still think that he was German).

Austria, Germany, not a lot of differences there. And he lived most of his life in Germany, and at that was German. He just wan't born in Germany.

OT: Not a lot of misconceptions that I know of. But after reading this thread, I've learned about a couple of them. Not that I had said misconception set as reality in my own mind. More of that I now know of some misconceptions.

 

[imagremlin]

That America is a country when its actually a continent.

 

[urathgodofsudani]

Gender isn't binary. Neither is sex. XX Doesn't mean woman, XY doesn't mean man.

 

[Dark Knifer]

That America is a country when its actually a continent.

Uhh, what about Canada and Mexico? Are they not part of the North America continent?

 

[CarlMin]

The idea of neutering being the ethical thing to do if you own a dog. Its more like the other way around really.

What's unethical about it? Could it not be argued that you're stopping the unwanted breeding of animals that in turn could not be supported or looked after??

Absolutely! But the responsibility lies with the owners. A puppy is not a toy you can get for your daughters birthday. And irresponsible breading is what causes the overpopulation. The puppy mills and the breeders are the ones to blame, but they are making a lot of money on their industry and are not easy to reach.

Castrating male dogs can result in bone cancer, doubles the small risk of prostate cancer and increases the risk of orthopedic disorders as well as the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations. Furthermore, the drastic hormone change may cause several behavior effects that might cause depression or obesity. When it comes to bitches, the situation is more complex. The many medical disadvantages of neutering has lead the scientific community to look for surgical or medical alternatives, but the mainstream veterinary profession is still making a lot of money on neutering and spraying so things wont change for a good while. However, a few countries in Europa has already put a ban on neutering of dogs. In Norway, castrating your pet is illegal unless its necessary due certain medical reasons.


For more information on the subject, i can recommend this summarization by Laura Sanborn from Rutgers University.

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

 

[Baradiel]

That America is a country when its actually a continent.

Uhh, what about Canada and Mexico? Are they not part of the North America continent?

I think that was his point. Not sure, but thats how I read it:

ie, When people say 'America' they usually mean the United States of America, as opposed to either of the 'Americas'. I think that was what he was getting at.

 

[Dark Knifer]

That America is a country when its actually a continent.

Uhh, what about Canada and Mexico? Are they not part of the North America continent?

I think that was his point. Not sure, but thats how I read it:

ie, When people say 'America' they usually mean the United States of America, as opposed to either of the 'Americas'. I think that was what he was getting at.

Ah, that makes more sense... Sorry for the misunderstanding.

 

[Steven True]

Which is ridiculous, there are plenty of people out there who have no opinion one way or the other.

Then those people are called agnostic atheists.
Atheist: They lack a belief in any god(s).
Agnostic: They lack knowledge of any god(s)

You are wrong there pal,
Agnostisism is the belief that it is impossible to know ehether or not there is a(are) god(s) an agnosic atheist is somone that strongly believes that there is no god but knows thaty they can't know for sure.

I will agree with you on your definition of agnosticism, since it essentially the definition I proposed.
But, atheism in not a belief that there are no gods. It is the lack of the belief in a god. These are too different things. Atheism, simply put, is the lack of theism.
Agnostic atheist can be someone that strongly believes that there is no god but knows thaty they can't know for sure.
It can also be someone that has no strong beliefs about any god(s) and knows that can't know for sure.

 

[imagremlin]

That America is a country when its actually a continent.

Uhh, what about Canada and Mexico? Are they not part of the North America continent?

I think that was his point. Not sure, but thats how I read it:

ie, When people say 'America' they usually mean the United States of America, as opposed to either of the 'Americas'. I think that was what he was getting at.

Ah, that makes more sense... Sorry for the misunderstanding.

Yep, that's exactly it. I was born is South America, which, together with North (and, for some, central America) make up America, the continent. Therefore, technically speaking I'm an American.

 

[Kyoufuu]

- That not believing in gay marriage or being opposed to gay marriage and being against gays are the same thing.

Its not?

I think it is!

Ladies and gentlemen, proof that it is a -very- common misconception.

Being against gays would be something like the Westboro Baptist Church, the 'God hates gays' lot, those people. The misconception that this is the same as simply not believing in gay marriage is equivalent to believing that Muslims who believe in the Koran kill non-Muslims ("If they attack you, you may kill them. This is the just retribution for those disbelievers." K 2:191). Aka, a big one.

 

[Kyoufuu]

However, a few countries in Europa has already put a ban on neutering of dogs. In Norway, castrating your pet is illegal unless its necessary due certain medical reasons.


For more information on the subject, i can recommend this summarization by Laura Sanborn from Rutgers University.

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

So they did find life on Europa? Intelligent life that bans the neutering of dogs?

 

[GenericAmerican]

All Germans are Nazis...I hate my friends for this.

Guns are evil...why? Because some idiot decided to kill someone with it? Well then Knifes are evil, cars are evil, your hands are evil.

Football players are all whore mongers and idiots, not true

The world is overpopulated...in some areas sure, big cities and what-not...where I live, no-o-o-o. Could use more people out here

I play video games=I am a nerd? Wait what? I also hunt, play sports, and write. Following that logic I am a nerd, who is a rightwing gun-toting-nutjob, who is musclebound and sleeps with cheerleaders, and is a 'fag' because reading is for chumps.

Fag, or gay, means homosexual...not it doesn't

Rock/metal, is evil.

I could go on and on

 

[CarlMin]

However, a few countries in Europa has already put a ban on neutering of dogs. In Norway, castrating your pet is illegal unless its necessary due certain medical reasons.


For more information on the subject, i can recommend this summarization by Laura Sanborn from Rutgers University.

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

So they did find life on Europa? Intelligent life that bans the neutering of dogs?

Funny. Europe, obviously. I wrote it on my iphone so it automatically corrected to "Europa". ^^

 

[tigermilk]

That Napoleon was a midget. He was 5' 7", which is hardly a shrimp.

And about average height for a man of the time.

 

[TeeBs]

That gay people can fly through walls.

 

[harknesssimm]

that marxism is a political theory

its a social theory based on the movement towards an economic system, its closer to feminism than stalinism.

also that misanthropes can't be nice people

 

[Singularly Datarific]

That Napoleon was a midget. He was 5' 7", which is hardly a shrimp.

And about average height for a man of the time.

Well, shorter than the average British (They're TALL)
and political cartoons exacerbate every feature.

That gay people can fly through walls.

Whaaaaaaaat? But my friend's uncle's cousin says so!

 

[TeeBs]

That Napoleon was a midget. He was 5' 7", which is hardly a shrimp.

And about average height for a man of the time.

Well, shorter than the average British (They're TALL)
and political cartoons exacerbate every feature.

That gay people can fly through walls.

Whaaaaaaaat? But my friend's uncle's cousin says so!

Trust me dude, I asked a gay guy and he got really angry which means it must be true!

 

[PekoponTAS]

The misconception that unique tastes = hating popular things to be cool.