venting here because y'all will understand

[mickeym]

In the time since my assorted family members have gotten online, I've been urging them to use www.snopes.com to check out the various and sundry emails that get passed around, usually with bright flashing colors and huge fonts, proclaiming something to the effect of OH NOES THE WORLD IS ABOUT TO END. So very many of those are false, false, FALSE, and it's so easily checked.

Do they check? Well. I finally got my mom and sister trained (to at least have ME check if they don't want to). I finally got my mom's cousin to remove me from her "send to everyone under the sun" list for forwarding them.

I can't seem to get it through to my aunt that JUST because someone forwards it to her doesn't mean she shouldn't check it out before sending it on to everyone in her address book.

The latest one is the "ON NOES THE EVIL GOVERNMENT REMOVED 'IN GOD WE TRUST' FROM NEW DOLLAR COINS! REFUSE TO ACCEPT THEM! BOYCOTT THIS! WE'LL STAMP THIS OUT AND GET THEM OUT OF CIRCULATION!" *headdesk*

Thirty seconds after I got it I'd checked Snopes (it's false) and sent the link to everyone my aunt had forwarded the original message to. I probably had that done faster than the time it took her to add everyone from her address book.

*WHY* is it so difficult to get people to check things before hitting 'forward'???

Comments

[raynedanser.livejournal.com]

Ugh. That drives me absolutely utterly batshit. People think that since it comes from someone they trust, it must be true. I think a lot of people don't realize theres places like Snopes to check it out, too.

I did that recently, I don't remember what about. Something Obama was being blamed for (something really ridiculously stupid) and it was actually something that BUSH did ages ago. When I replied to "all" I got my ass reemed by a couple of people since they didn't know me and I was contributing to the spam. *facepalm* Won't be doing THAT again.

[apetslife.livejournal.com]

I think I wrote this EXACT SAME POST a couple of months ago. They still do it. I feel that this just might be the cross we bear in payment for all the joys the internet brings us!

[beledibabe.livejournal.com]

Because people like to be the bearer of bad tidings. It's human nature -- i.e., annoying as all getout.

I know it's obvious, but whenever I'm gobsmacked by human credulity/stupidity/douchebagginess, I keep reminding myself that half the population is BELOW AVERAGE. That fact explains a lot.

[dine.livejournal.com]

*WHY* is it so difficult to get people to check things before hitting 'forward'???

because they're stupid/lazy/gullible? (pick your fave)

the false scare forwards that I love are the ones that include "I checked snopes and this is true" when just reading the damn thing sets off major alarms in my head (and of course, when one does check snopes, it's false false false)

[jamesinboots.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I know a guy who does that stuff - and only crazy political stuff. I'm tempted to threaten to filter all of his emails to spam if he doesn't check his facts, but unfortunately, some people won't believe the facts that are right in front of them. Especially if they've bought into the doom-and-gloom mindsight, and automatically assume the worst about everything. Sigh sigh.

[clumsygyrl.livejournal.com]

your aunt is like my dad.

i just end up erasing most of his emails to me if they have fwd in them