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	dark_puck 2006-05-20 02:32 pm UTC (link)
	I'm with Tashabear. Air Force =/= Army. ~~Air Force is better. //air force brat~~ (Reply to this)(Thread)

	mathilde 2006-05-20 02:33 pm UTC (link)
	Any way you cut it up, that's true. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	sewingmyfish 2006-05-20 03:46 pm UTC (link)
	Word! (Reply to this)(Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2006-05-20 06:32 pm UTC (link)
	I don't know. They accepted my brother into the Air Force ROTC-type thing in college, so they can't be all that. Then again, they kicked him out for being a lazy ass, so perhaps they are. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2006-05-20 03:25 pm UTC (link)
	Because inability to spell clearly marks you as dumber than the average 'merican. /snark (Reply to this)

	smut_queen 2006-05-20 05:16 pm UTC (link)
	Apparently it's you who don't care about being intellectual. So amused. (Reply to this)

	gal_montag 2006-05-20 06:28 pm UTC (link)
	Oh dear. I think that needed to be a rocks fall, everybody dies kind of moment. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	mael 2006-05-22 01:52 am UTC (link)
	provides (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	gal_montag 2006-05-22 01:58 am UTC (link)
	Win! (Reply to this)(Parent)

	eidolon_bird 2006-05-20 07:04 pm UTC (link)
	I think the person who said "There's no G in E_CLUSI_E NIGHTCLUB" should be likewise vilified and burned at the stake. Because, ohmygods, that's like... SO STUPID. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	iwanttobeasleep 2006-05-20 08:26 pm UTC (link)
	I think they thought what I thought, that Nightclub was the category. Not that that makes any sense when you think about it. (Reply to this)(Parent)

rachel_pi
2006-05-20 07:24 pm UTC (link)

I would like to say in defense of the Wheel of Fortune contestant that sometimes people say stupid things on gameshows because they're under a lot of pressure. Especially if they've filmed more than one show in a day, which makes you extremely tired, which does happen with WoF and Jeopardy.

Not saying it wasn't dumb but sometimes you just say things without meaning to.

~~Not that I've done that or anything~~

Also, I am especially entertained by

hibiro seeming to say that the people who watch and compete on Jeopardy! are white trash. In my experience, the audience seems largely composed of grandparents and slightly dorky people of all ages.

(Reply to this)(Thread)

	flightstothesea 2006-05-20 07:48 pm UTC (link)
	That was my thought: people get nervous, and even if you're normally a rocket scientist, you can screw up and look like a dumbass. Have I become more educated, or has Jeopardy gotten slightly easier? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

rachel_pi
2006-05-20 08:02 pm UTC (link)

Everyone says dumb stuff occasionally. Sometimes smart people do it on television.

I think the kids and college tournaments tend to be a bit easier than the regular show. Also, I think they're trying to add more "cool" and "fun" categories, and those seem easier. But there is still some super stumper stuff on the show. And a lot of the questions aren't hard so much as tricky. It can be hard to think on your feet and come up with an answer that's not immediately too obvious.

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	flightstothesea 2006-05-20 08:04 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah, I'd noticed that college Jeopardy was a good deal easier than regular Jeopardy. I wonder what the general educational level of the questions is. I mean, are these things that are supposed to be beyond the general knowledge of the average person? Hmm. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	wrongly_amused 2006-05-21 01:51 am UTC (link)
	IMO, Jeopardy really isn't even so much about education as much as it is being well-read. If you know about of useless historical shit that has no real life appllication, then you're set to go! (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

annabelle_lee
2006-05-21 05:27 am UTC (link)

Sadly, that's not always the case. I went to the Teen Tournament tryouts in NYC in 1996 all full of smiles because I knew I was hot shit at anything about history, literature, or trivia. When the tests were handed out to the room, they were full of current events and pop culture questions that we had five minutes to answer. I was utterly screwed.

(Funnily enough, I also tried out for the Weakest Link, but I didn't get in either. It wasn't the test so much as the fact that the audition was on Sept 11, 2001.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

rachel_pi
2006-05-21 08:18 am UTC (link)

Huh. When I tried out for the College Tournament, the test had lots of literature, history, science, useless Biblical trivia, etc, etc. There were some pop culture questions too, but not too many.

Did they give you the 50 question test where you have to answer each question in like 20 seconds? That was tough stuff. There were only maybe six of us out of 50 people that passed it.

It seemed like a mix too when I actually got on the show. Of course, I got really lucky and got a Shakespeare category and a founding fathers one and the only sports questions were about tennis. ^^

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

annabelle_lee
2006-05-21 08:44 am UTC (link)

Now that I think about it, the 50 questions with 20 seconds each sounds about right. I think there were also a couple of questions where we had to look at the TV monitors up front to answer them.

And yes, it was tough. The guy sitting on my left got called up, but the girl on my right and the rest of the row, including me, failed. I think there were three groups of testing and only a couple from each made it on to the next round.

As for the topics, what can I say? Maybe the teen tournament testing had a different focus from the show that year or something. Sucked for me, cause I'll always remember the answer to the last question I spaced out on was Mariah Carey, but oh well. And hey, congrats! How did you do overall?

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rachel_pi
2006-05-21 02:17 pm UTC (link)

Yeah. I actually thought the 10 question initial test was harder and had more pop culture and stuff. I was worried I wasn't going to pass that one.

I think I mostly just got lucky with my first round topics. You really can't predict what's going to come up.

Thanks! I came in third overall in the tournament. Which I thought I would be more upset about, because I am competitive like whoa, but the guy who won was amazingly smart and an awesome player to boot. He totally deserved it.

And I won a ton of money anyway, so can't complain. :)

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	khym_chanur 2006-05-21 12:09 am UTC (link)
	♪♪♪I lost on Jeopardy, baby! oooo-Ooo-ooo-ooooh♪♪♪ (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	freezer 2006-05-21 01:10 am UTC (link)
	Weird Al FTW. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2006-05-20 11:18 pm UTC (link)
	Jesus. The sacred cow of the military. It was one throwaway comment, but as usual the "OMG YOU'RE NOT DYING FOR YOUR COUNTRY LIKE MY BRAVE BROTHER/HUSBAND/BOYFRIEND IS SO YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO SPEAK EVER!!!1111" brigade is out getting precious. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	dracothelizard 2006-05-21 12:01 pm UTC (link)
	It's almost as bad as when service industry people wank about people who OMG don't leave tips after receiving not so good service. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	aerobot 2006-05-21 12:59 am UTC (link)
	Of course, the ones saying it are the ones who don't actually have the balls to step up and make that sacrifice for their country and their fellow countrymen, so I don't know why I bother. It's true that people diss the military when they know nothing about it, but not being in the military =/= being gutless. Not everyone can do it, people! (Reply to this)(Thread)

	annabelle_lee 2006-05-21 05:31 am UTC (link)
	And not everyone wants to, either. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	aerobot 2006-05-21 06:55 am UTC (link)
	That too. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	radiotrash 2006-05-21 07:34 am UTC (link)
	"..are the ones who don't actually have the balls.." checks pants Nope, no balls here. (Reply to this)(Parent)

ladysorka
2006-05-21 01:28 am UTC (link)

...I seriously thought about the Navy during high school, and got far enough that I took the ASVABs and talked to a number of recruiters. I eventually decided not to join, since I'm, you know, gay, but all I can remember is all these recruiters desperately trying to get me into intelligence because I scored higher than a certain number of the test, which almost nobody does.

So, uh.

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	mathilde 2006-05-21 01:37 am UTC (link)
	I seriously considered the Air Force, specifically the language school (I took four languages in high school out of sheer boredom, and scored extremely high on the aptitude tests). But I opted to go to college early instead, thereby disqualifying myself because I hadn't a high school diploma. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dark_puck 2006-05-21 04:12 am UTC (link)
	I also considered Air Force, then remembered that I couldn't run worth shit. Basic training would KILL me. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	amxjm 2006-05-21 07:49 am UTC (link)
	I took the ASVABs in high school, but I only did that as a generic "get out of class" thing. Never been a military guy, never will. ~~Especially since I've got a host of other things that'd keep me out of the armed services anyway, but still...~~ (Reply to this)(Parent)

	b_jellybean 2006-05-21 01:47 am UTC (link)
	How do you wank about that and not someone attempting to solve with the phrase "The Expression That Brokes The Rule"???? I fully admit to being a loser who watches Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy every night. (Reply to this)

	littlebitca 2006-05-21 03:10 am UTC (link)
	Nothing on Wheel of Fortune will ever beat the person who had $55,000 riding on "The thrill o_ _ictory and the a_ony o_ de_eat" and asked "is there an 'M'?" (Reply to this)(Thread)

	batshitinsane 2006-05-22 03:37 pm UTC (link)
	Oh the i_ony of spelling that particular word wrongly amused (Reply to this)(Parent)

rachelthedemon
2006-05-21 05:01 am UTC (link)

One of the questions I remember in the Science section of the ASVAB:

Which of the following animals is a mammal?

a) fish
b) snake
c) parrot
d) cat

Mind you, a 60 on this test was considered passing when I took it. And when I bombed the electrician and mechanic sections and still scored an 89, I had recruiters harassing me via telephone for months because according to them, the average score didn't even break 75.

I decided then that our country was in deep shit.

(Reply to this)(Thread)

	rowan 2006-05-21 07:02 am UTC (link)
	Heh. I read (c) as 'carrot' for some bizzare reason and was REALLY boggling at the question... (Reply to this)(Parent)

(Anonymous)
2006-05-21 07:26 am UTC (link)

My mother told me stories about how she managed to skip out of just about every standardized test in High School (SATs, etc.) and go to McDonald's. The only one she says she got caught sneaking out of was the ASVAB (I think that was it, but she didn't mention the actual name, she just said it was the one to see if you are smart enough to be in the military).

Apparently she got the third highest score in the state and spent quite a while dodging phone calls from recruiters. This is more funny/scary if you know that my mom, though very eloquent, is dyslexic and has always had a terrible time with multiple choice tests.

We're doomed.

-JabberwockyPie

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Yeah, that's the problem with the ASVAB
(Anonymous)
2006-05-21 08:26 pm UTC (link)

I took it in high school as well, and scored high enough that I couldn't get recruiters to stop calling.

They really don't take no for an answer...

These days, I almost wish I had done it. I'd be out by now, and would have a much better resume than I do now. I would have even been out before 9-11.

You couldn't pay me enough to do it now, though.

~pernwebgodess (http://pernwebgoddess.livejournal.com)

(Reply to this)(Parent)

slavekitty
2006-05-21 06:31 am UTC (link)

Ah, Wheel of Fortune. I remember one episode where they had engineering students (two of them together) trying to figure out the word mannequin with just the q and u missing. They *talked it over* and then said with all the confidence in the world, K.

Really, any institutions should only send their English majors to that show, 'cause maybe those two boys could build bridges with the best of 'em, but they ended up being the best televised argument not to go to their university.

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(Anonymous)
2006-05-21 04:37 pm UTC (link)

I'm more or a The Price Is Right fan, myself.

Once, there was this blonde college student who was filled with not-smart. She needed to have the pricing game explained to her like five times (IIRC, it was the one where you roll five die and try to get them to land on five cars to win a car) and when it came time for her to roll the big wheel, she got a 75 the first go round. The person in front of her had gotten 95 cents. She spins the big wheel a second time, claps her hands excitedly, and goes "c'mon nickel!!!"

I almost died laughing.

-lazy person who doesn't want to log in

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	semi-related game show anecdotes ichigatsu 2006-05-21 06:23 pm UTC (link)
	Seen here where I live: Game Show 1 Host: What is the capital of the Philippines? Contestant: buzz Letter P! Game Show 2 Host: Anong klaseng hayop si Kermit the Frog? [What kind of animal is Kermit the Frog?] Contestant: buzz Aso? [dog] The story in the OP doesn't seem quite as bad. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	Re: semi-related game show anecdotes dr_tristessa 2006-05-22 07:30 am UTC (link)
	Conclusion: Everyone's country is fucked! (Reply to this)(Parent)