Scott's Razor
by Scott Hardie on October 5, 2009

Hanlon's Razor states:
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.That's cute, but aren't we all just a little quick to assume either explanation? Nobody trusts anybody else's judgment any more. I propose Scott's Razor:
Never attribute to malice or stupidity that which might be explained by a perfectly good reason that you aren't aware of.
Six Replies to Scott's Razor
Tony Peters | October 6, 2009
I've seen way too much stupidity (even my own) not to assume stupidity most of the time
Steve West | October 6, 2009
My personal hero, Shakespeare, sums it up so well with the oft-quoted, "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." Things are rarely just black or white and mutually exclusive.
Steve Dunn | October 7, 2009
OK wow, I thought TC had been slow for a long time and now I see everyone's hanging out in this green part of the site.
Scott Hardie | October 7, 2009
TC is for talking about things other than Rock Block and the goo game?
Aaron Shurtleff | October 7, 2009
Wait, there's things other than Rock Block and Goo Game??
Logical Operator
The creator of Funeratic, Scott Hardie, blogs about running this site, losing weight, and other passions including his wife Kelly, his friends, movies, gaming, and Florida. Read more »

Redundancy
Can we add "information overload" to the list of phrases retired from the language due to clichéd overuse? It is apparently now used to describe anything remotely intense. Go »
Det är inte så farligt
Yesterday, Kelly and I joined friends who had free passes to shop at the new Ikea store in Tampa before it opens to the public. It was our my first time in one of those stores, and it was every bit the harrowing shopping marathon I'd heard it was. For a store that boasts so frequently about how efficient everything is, having you proceed through the store in one long winding line for four hours sure doesn't feel that way, but every store has ways of getting you to buy more than you came for and Ikea has come up with a unique one. Go »
Throw Out Your Caller ID
I'm all for scientific research into the paranormal, since it will benefit humankind whether the results are affirmative or negative – but apparently it's awfully hard to keep such research scientific. For instance, I never fail to be amused by ghost hunters who claim to have proven a haunting because electromagnetic readings are higher in the area, a phenomenon that has no demonstrated correlation with hauntings. And let's not even get into the ones who claim to have proven a haunting because a "psychic" said they sensed ghosts nearby. Go »
Scott's Car is Dead; Long Live Scott's Car
Is it a reflection of our road-rage culture that a company named Dodge manufactures cars with violent names like Ram, Magnum, Caliber, and Viper? I pondered this at the dealership yesterday during the eternal wait between brief flurries of document-signing so I could buy my first car. It took some doing to get the sunroof and other features I wanted, but I'm now the happy (and relieved) owner of a 2007 Dodge Caliber SXT. Go »
The Revised Revised Revised Story
Last spring, This Modern World ran a great parody charting the decline of civil liberties in recent years, after the then-shocking revelation that the government was building a database of every call made in the country: (link) I was reminded of that over the weekend as the latest shocking revelation came out, that the FBI has vastly abused its new ability to request confidential information in the interest of national security (link), almost as if it was the next panel in the strip. Except I'm not laughing. Oh, what I'd have given to be the reporter at Alberto Gonzales's press conference this morning. Go »
Jackie Mason | October 6, 2009
[hidden by author request]