pet peeve thread
#41
Posted 2012-January-18, 16:00
As for tv, screw it. You aren't missing anything. -- Ken Berg
I have come to realise it is futile to expect or hope a regular club game will be run in accordance with the laws. -- Jillybean
#42
Posted 2012-January-18, 17:15
George Carlin
#43
Posted 2012-January-18, 17:28
gwnn, on 2012-January-18, 02:58, said:
Dutch people who think that they know how to speak English but use terms like "World convention" when they mean "Leaping Michaels" (or "undertaker" when they mean "entrepreneur", i.e. someone who undertakes some activity) leaving those who actually do speak English completely confused.
Rik
The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the new discoveries, is not Eureka! (I found it!), but Thats funny Isaac Asimov
The only reason God did not put "Thou shalt mind thine own business" in the Ten Commandments was that He thought that it was too obvious to need stating. - Kenberg
#44
Posted 2012-January-18, 19:47
#45
Posted 2012-January-18, 20:40
kenberg, on 2012-January-18, 07:27, said:
I was a new faculty member at the University of Maryland and I needed some work done by the office. Things were not moving very fast. Someone came in and addressed me as Dr. Berg, at which the secretary said "Oh my God, I have been treating you like a graduate student".
Yep, that story sounds exactly like some of the things I was complaining about...
#46
Posted 2012-January-18, 20:46
blackshoe, on 2012-January-18, 16:00, said:
Which reminds me of another pet peeve, Bullies.
#47
Posted 2012-January-19, 03:17
I admit that I never really thought about it much, as it doesn't seem like seats recline very far. But I'm a short person (5'6""), so I rarely have legroom problems that taller people do.
#48
Posted 2012-January-19, 03:28
BunnyGo, on 2012-January-18, 00:09, said:
What gets me is when they talk about a percentage change to something that's already a percentage. E.g. if the tax rate is currently 5%, and they say they're increasing taxes by 1%, does that mean they're going up to 6% or 5.05%?
But I've never experienced the confusion you describe. It seems obvious to me that they mean the reduction to apply to the tax rate. If they meant that you'd keep more of your income, they'd say "10% increase in take-home pay."
To make things more confusing, we have a law in Massachusetts called "Proposition 2 1/2". It states that towns can raise property taxes by at most 2.5% each year. But it doesn't apply to the tax rate itself, it applies to the total property tax the town can levy. If home values decline, the town can raise the tax rate to make up for this, and then another 2.5% on top of that. If you happen to be lucky enough that your home's value didn't decline as much as the average, YOUR tax bill will go up more than 2.5%.
#49
Posted 2012-January-19, 07:07
barmar, on 2012-January-19, 03:28, said:
But I've never experienced the confusion you describe. It seems obvious to me that they mean the reduction to apply to the tax rate. If they meant that you'd keep more of your income, they'd say "10% increase in take-home pay."
To make things more confusing, we have a law in Massachusetts called "Proposition 2 1/2". It states that towns can raise property taxes by at most 2.5% each year. But it doesn't apply to the tax rate itself, it applies to the total property tax the town can levy. If home values decline, the town can raise the tax rate to make up for this, and then another 2.5% on top of that. If you happen to be lucky enough that your home's value didn't decline as much as the average, YOUR tax bill will go up more than 2.5%.
We're discussing the same problem, just not so clearly...but I don't think they'd say "10% increase in take-home pay" any more than they'd say "1% less take-home pay" in the example you gave.
Never tell the same lie twice. - Elim Garek on the real moral of "The boy who cried wolf"
#50
Posted 2012-January-19, 13:36
#52
Posted 2012-January-19, 14:48
rogerclee, on 2012-January-19, 14:40, said:
Cue the Blues Brothers reference...
#53
Posted 2012-January-19, 15:13
#54
Posted 2012-January-19, 16:08
#55
Posted 2012-January-20, 08:45
nigel_k, on 2012-January-19, 13:36, said:
Yes, like X increases chance of cancer by 300%, when the risk was originally one in 5 million. Sounds different to "2 more cases of cancer per 5 million people".
I also really hate the way statistics are manipulated, especially since most people will believe what the statistics framers intended them to believe.
#56
Posted 2012-January-20, 08:46
Foxx, on 2012-January-19, 16:08, said:
So you are drawing a salary for surfing the web? Nice work if you can get it...
#57
Posted 2012-January-20, 08:54
Vampyr, on 2012-January-20, 08:45, said:
I also really hate the way statistics are manipulated, especially since most people will believe what the statistics framers intended them to believe.
FYP
Never tell the same lie twice. - Elim Garek on the real moral of "The boy who cried wolf"
#58
Posted 2012-January-20, 08:57
nigel_k, on 2012-January-19, 13:36, said:
I was amused by an article in the Daily Mail. Tax on second homes was reported to be increasing from 50% to 90% of the standard rate. The headline described this as a 40% increase. I wondered at the time whether the paper had deliberately got it wrong to avoid confusing their readers, at the cost of making their story sound less impressive.
#59
Posted 2012-January-21, 08:16
#60
Posted 2012-January-21, 09:43
gwnn, on 2012-January-18, 02:58, said:
Sorry Gwnn, we zullen het niet meer doen.
Finding your own mistakes is more productive than looking for partner's. It improves your game and is good for your soul. (Nige1)