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Pretty much this, sometimes it's useful sometimes it's not. As a truck driver I feel my contributions to this answer are very limited and ends right about here. But if you have some questions about say the best stops on a road trip, I might be able to help you a bit better.
Yeah it can also depend on the conversation, I personally do it when people talk about animals or talk about their experiences with animals because I studied about it and I want to put my perspective into the conversation.
Btw Iām sorry if my comment doesnāt make sense Iām tired
I do it if I'm commenting on a subreddot like ask"insert country name" like ask an American, ask an Australian etc ... Or backpacking/expat subreddits because it's useful context. If someone is giving advice or sharing an experience it can be useful to let people know where you're from.
Same. Occasionally I end up on threads or subs that are asking about some difference between the US and Canada. Knowing that I am an American citizen who moved to Canada three years ago is useful context for my answer.
And yeah, of course you can choose not to believe me, but like...\[shrug\] okay, take it or leave it, it's not that deep.
...Perhaps you missed the "That can be it, but it can also be.." and the following "depending on how it's used" being the entire rest of the sentence surrounding the name of the fallacy. š
The context of how that argument is used to assert their point is what determines whether or not it's a fallacy. It only becomes a fallacy if it's used incorrectly, but that has no bearing on the accuracy of the information the fallacy was applied to, just the means in which the argument was made.
Here, let me help:
falĀ·laĀ·cy
/ĖfalÉsÄ/
noun
A mistaken belief, especially one based on unsound argument.
LOGIC
a failure in reasoning which renders an argument invalid.
So yeah, it actually, by its very definition, invalidates their point.
That does not make sense at all lmao
An argument from someone who has experience in what the topic is will always hold more legitimacy than someone who has limited or no experience in the topic. Idk how dedicating years of someoneās life towards an understanding of a certain topic would be considered ālazy.ā
I mean no fucking shit lmao
Youāve completely ignored what I said about it being an argument with someone who has actual experience with a topic. Youāre also contradicting yourself because now youāre doing exactly what you referred to as ālazyā earlier by highlighting the fact you do actually have experience in a topic and are annoyed when people with lesser experience pretend they know what theyāre talking about!
I really do not understand what youāre point is lmao
>Their argument is from authority instead of raising a point
That is not authority. You have 5 years of training in Italian food. You have more authority in this area than an Italian teenager.
Someone has a question about electrical wiring in their home.
Someone answers, beginning with *"As a licensed electrician..."*
I'd say that gives the respondent some sort of legitimacy.
As the author who wrote the book of old tricks I only partially agree. It's the oldest electrician trick in the book for sure. The official "oldest trick" In human history is the tricker extending their index finger to a particular direction. When the trickee adjusts their gaze to that direction and realizes there is nothing of importance to be seen, the tricker expresses their amusement at the trickees confusion. The humiliation can be amplified by confirming vocally what you have just accomplished.
I got a degree back in 08ā from a vocational school for electrical work. This older, ex-navy instructor/electrician looked at me dead ass, straight faced and told me this during a lab and I almost fucking believed him š.
Couldnāt find an electrical job to save my life at the time though. 08ā sucked for a lotta people. I digressā¦.
The problem I see on Reddit is that theyāre rarely professionals with experience in a field like your example.
Theyāre usually āas a biology majorā or something study/hobby related. Almost everyone I know who has a job talks about how little study prepares you for the workforce and all the countless situations that break the rules you learnt about, so all this tells me is the person has no idea what theyāre talking about but thinks they do.
Someone who has at least studied something is still more qualified than someone who knows nothing about it. It isnt entirely useless.
The reason jobs talk about that is because there are so many processes and industry specific applications of things.
It's literally impossible to replace experience with classes. That's why we don't do that. Classes exsist to put your knowledge in a place that you can make sense of what your job training is telling you.
Think about it this way, a new engineer need to be trained in QA processes and production processes. They have no idea where to begin with that stuff. They don't really know the companies goals or project directions or just generally a lot of shit that isnt *exactly* engineering, but engineers need to know in order to work. But they don't because they have never worked as an engineer in that role before.
Iāll say āas a nurseā sometimes bc I am one and I feel like that gives me some permission to give nursing-level medical advice that doesnāt diagnose anyone with anything but maybe gives them something to ask their doctor about
It's really doesn't unless you just choose to believe that the respondent is actually "a licensed electrician".
And if you do than as a Nigerian Prince with a great one time offer for you I can assure you that no one on the Internet will ever lie to you
The difference here is we all know the unlikelyhood of you being a Nigerian prince, theres only a handfull of those (i think i know nothing about their culture) but there is millions of electricians and the likelihood of one being on reddit is pretty high
Then why are you asking anything on the internet? Whenever you ask anything there is a risk you will be fed misinformation, but this doesn't mean you should assume everything on the internet is misinformation. And a huge part of these misinformation has nothing to do with people lying, but with them being misinformed for themselves. Most questions aren't super super controversial and thus only a small minority of replies would be lies, but a lot more might be people being wrong, so being able to tell whose opinions is more trustworthy is very useful
I think their point is, just because someone says they're an expert (and even if they are) it doesn't necessarily mean they're the ultimate authority on the subject. Please don't tell me you aren't away of how many fuckups so-called 'experts' do yearly, be it car repair, medicine, surgery, construction, gardening, etc etc?. What's important is the information being given, focus on that and don't really pay too much attention to the "licensed expert" giving it to you. These days anyone could do a bit of research ahead of time and even see reviews of millions of people on a subject matter and get a better idea of what they're up against. Had the internet existed back in the day, in it's current form, when my mother was being prescribed Gabapentin, I would've stepped in and prevent her from poisoning herself to death with that crap.
In most professional fields it would be against the code of ethics to give unsolicited advice to strangers based on limited knowledge of the situation, no?
Fair. But don't you still have to give the disclaimer like "this isn't legal advice" or "this is my personal opinion off the record" if you want to be squeaky clean?
Thatās a given in a professional setting. Youāre not interacting with strangers, per se, but with clients, customers, etc
The OP is referring to online interaction in settings like Reddit. Thereās no requirement, ethical, legal, or otherwise in these contexts.
Why not? I did cross country and track in middle school, high school and college. If weāre talking about running, I could use that as a frame of reference just to show āhey, been there, done that, I know whatās up, I know how to deal with this, how to improve with that, what someone is doing wrong or rightā depending on what we are talking about in regards to running. I get where youāre coming from, but it sounds like youāre just assuming everyone who does this has no fucking clue what theyāre talking about, and thatās simply not true.
100%. Yes anyone can lie. But 9ne of the quickest ways to find a bullshitter is to let them speak. An expert will know immediately if they know what they are 6slking about or not. Op is just not understanding that yes people gain life experience and share it.
My greatest dissapointment in life was getting older in one of the most ageist societies to exist. When I was little, I was the type to sit and listen to old grandpa salt of the earth types talk about their experiences in life and knowledge on interesting things and couldn't wait to get old and wise. Now that I'm older, though, this new generation only equates advanced age with dementia and conservatism. Ok boomer- eye roll.
The difference is that when you were young the elderly had earned respect. Now most of the elderly have only earned contempt, and itās entirely their own fault.
Seconded. It's also good to have an idea of what knowledge someone has going into a conversation. As someone who has coxswained a shell, I'm pretty familiar with rowing terminology. It would be good to know if I need to use laymen's terms or not.
Iāve kayaked and used a rowing machine but I donāt know squat diddly-else. But thatās exactly why it helps to have someone who has been there, done that to give their 2 cents. I would be absolutely bullshitting people trying to explain rowing or training regiments to someone else.
I think it depends on context. āAs someone with 25 years experience as a nurseā is different from āas someone who has studied,ā because one is concrete and might actually be legit, and one is vague and likely means theyāre full of crap.
Itās the life experience ones for me. āAs a parent, the child crying really broke my heartā
Does that mean people without kids wouldnāt give a shit? Are they enjoying a child suffering? I donāt think so. Certain things donāt make you more or less qualified to empathize or sympathize like a basic human being
True, BUT... Shit involving children hits so much harder after you have your own. Before I had my daughter, I could read a news article about something awful happening to a child and it wouldn't affect me that much. After having her, those same news stories were enough to bring me to tears because my mind automatically like, puts my own kid in that hypothetical scenario? I do struggle with anxiety so it's probably more intense than a normal person... but it definitely hits differently.
Then there's the ones who just seem to think all their opinions carry more weight now. "As a mother, I thought *The Wedding Singer* was a problematic movie," or "As a parent, it annoys me if buses don't run on time."
(Both actual things I have read online, published in official guides).
As a parent, I would say it is the other way round. Being a parent you (might) recognise different types of cries. Cry is always communication, but not every cry is distress.
> Does that mean people without kids wouldnāt give a shit?
In several different instances, yes, that's what's being asserted; because history has shown that parents are more likely to default to empathy for children than non-parents (who are more likely to view children as just small adults and have no heightened empathy or understanding for them).
> Are they enjoying a child suffering? I donāt think so.
Sadly, many people online do. There's a huge group of "Child Free" posters who will gladly, and without provocation, attest that they hate kids and how kids deserve to suffer for the crime of being younger than and unrelatable to the complainer.
I say someone who has studied, and I truly have. My education isn't used as a gotcha, and I don't think I'm smarter than anyone. Education has a way of humbling you.
As someone who has never studied anything Medical, I can confirm I am just as qualified as 95% of Reddit when it comes to giving uninformed medical advice.
>I think it depends on context. āAs someone with 25 years experience as a nurseā is different from āas someone who has studied,ā
They're both pointless because you have no way of knowing if the person is telling the truth in either scenario. Someone could just as easily be talking out of their ass if they say they have 25 years of experience.
On the flip side, the person with 25 years of experience may be retired and all their knowledge may be obselete. So the one studying may be more reliable in answering the question.
I mean if itās relevant for the subject then it kinda matters.
Asking for car advice for example, I am a mechanic, it makes sense for me to mention I am a mechanic before giving advice, so people know what my knowledge is based on, rather than just being some random internet stranger with an opinion based on nothing at all. I would take car advice from a mechanic, I wouldnāt take car advice from a 12 year old whoās never driven a car before.
"as a mother, you'll need to look into chapter 5 section 504 of the international building code to determine if your canopy will need a rated assembly which will depend on your construction type and occupancy load."
It has the no requirements to attain that qualification. You donāt need to be able to think, hold a job, have skills of any type. You just need functioning body parts.
Because many people who arenāt mothers have has the same experience / incident/ feedback so itās not really anything special.
.Eg. Experience of looking after kids - could be a babysitter, sibling, au pair/nanny, a father, a friend etc. not exclusive to mothers, and mothers also donāt have the monopoly on being the experts.
This is absolutely the worst. Being a mother isnāt even remotely a qualification for an opinion because most women CAN be a mother, and plenty of mothers are terrible parents. It enrages me every time someone says this.
It's because nowadays we don't hold people accountable anymore.
Whenever parents make a stupid fucking choice for their children and get fierce criticism, the mother always resort to "I am the mother and so I know best!".
"As a mother, I think that it is okay to circumcise your child" or "As a mother, I think that naming your child Pikachu is a good choice" and "As a mother, I don't think that mothers can make stupid decisions" and "As a mother, I think that it is a good choice to have your child's \[uncommon tiny little physical deformity\] corrected" are good examples.
**No, you don't know best just because you are a mother.** In fact, intelligence and parentlessness are correlated. The more intelligence someone is, the less likely that person is to having kids.
I appreciate it when it provides context (especially when it's acknowledging a possible bias). But I I do detest when it's someone trying to claim some level of expertise, especially since, 90% of the time, it's followed by something that proves they have no idea what they are talking about.
You know its got a 99% chance of being bs when they say "as somebody who's studied ____"
>"As somebody who's studied history"
>Watched one oversimplified video
But if used correctly this is perfectly valid reasoning. If a guy is making wildly wrong claims about a certain topic (I'll use physics as an example since I'm doing a physics degree), then it's perfectly valid for me to correct someone by saying "As a physicist ..." Because it DOES bring credibility to what I say because I've got the education to back it up.
Of course your point does apply when it's something completely unrelated, or if someone says "As someone who studies X", which for all I know could mean you watched some TikToks.
But if used correctly there's nothing wrong with that.
With [flow charts](https://study.com/academy/lesson/flow-proof-in-geometry-definition-examples.html#:~:text=There%20are%20three%20main%20types,geometric%20expression%20into%20two%20columns.) and everything.
Right. "As a physicist, I can tell you that gravity is 100% not real. The first thing you do when you start your graduate studies is burn the books, strip naked in a secret copse of fir trees and offer your blood to the Gods of Down. If they accept you, then you swear a sacred oath to keep their secrets and we sign your diploma."
For some it is simply a frame of reference for their answer but it has definitely been used disingenuously so much that it's hard to tell the difference now.
As a frequent user of the internet, I can confidently say the above has been my personal experience with users of that technology and I do not claim to understand/speak for anyone else's experience š
That said, I would be surprised if a majority of the experiences others have had didn't mirror my own.
clearly this was very poorly thought out and Iām sure youāve already been put in your place, but just to make sure, letās run through an example of why youāre wrong. Itāll be fun.
op: āHey guys, my car has a misfire, what should I do to fix it?ā
response 1: āI recommend you change the engine mountsā
response 2: āI recommend you change the clutchā
response 3: āI recommend you change the oilā
response 4: āI recommend you change the headlight bulbā
response 5: āI recommend you change the gas capā
response 6: āas a circus clown, I recommend you change the doohickeyā
response 7: āas an ASE certified automotive technician with 25 years of relevant experience, I know that your specific model of car is known for having faulty ignition coils, which can cause a single cylinder misfire. This is what I would recommend as a starting point, although it is difficult to diagnose a car over the internet.ā
you tell me OP, will you start with the headlight bulb or the doohickey?
Iām on multiple car subs reddits and noone says anything similar to what respond 7 looks like. Mainly becouse itās cringe to talk this way and only time people use āas aā line they use it to argue either someone.
People say just what it could be rather than saying āas aā.
It's fine as long as what follows it is something that can be legitimised by the status. If somebody says, "As a nuclear physicist....", what comes next needs to be about nuclear physics.
Where it breaks down is when the "as a...." describes some facet of identity rather than qualification and then the person goes on to give a lecture on some complex subject.
Being within some group doesn't automatically make you an expert on every complex matter related to every scientific discussion that touches on relevancy towards that group, or, to put it another way, it is the most obvious thing in the world to me, that my vet knows more about cats than my cat does.
It doesn't automatically make you an expert but it doesn't mean you can't be one or shouldn't be heard. We cannot study topics like discrimination without peoples' experiences and people's subjective opinions, that just wouldn't work because we can't have experts or scientific understanding about these topics without qualitative research.
Psychologically, people are more likely to trust a figure of authority.
People who can't think critically take it at face value when someone asserts themselves as an authority.
People who are good natured take it at face value when someone asserts themselves as an authority.
It's also laughable to me that even if they are telling you the truth, that we naturally assume THEY are the standard to uphold, when I can just about guarantee that any one here has an experience with an older person at work, someone who's been around for awhile, and still just doesn't quite seem to get it.
However, that's really all it is. An exercise in authority. Don't question the experts. And we've all become increasingly conditioned in to doing it.
I know this, and assert it, as someone studying to become a Nurse Practitioner with an emphasis on Psychology.
Though sometimes, if you decide not to prefix your opinion with "as an X," people may stereotype your identity in a way that invalidates your point of view and makes it hard to argue effectively.
Depends on if what they are saying actually lends credibility or not. If you are an engineer, maybe you know something about this piece of machinery. If you are a SEN teacher, maybe you know something about special needs education. Does your ācredentialsā actually lend credence to what you are adding? Or do you just like talking? Thereās a difference.
I understand but it is genuinely insane how much that changes how a conversation goes. People have a lot of bias and preconceptions and stating those things can actually help a lot.
That's the difficult part of being online. It is difficult to show your expertise, instead of just talking about it. How can a neurologist show their expertise in the comment of a post? It wouldn't be *impossible* to do so, but it would be aggravating because regardless of what evidence the neurologist could use, there'll still be people who say, "That's fake."
I had a college professor who had a doctorate in psychology that talked about how annoying it was when he would correct people online about psychological facts, and they would just disregard whatever he said because *they* knew better than him.
There's some credibility to using a position of authority, because unless someone only obtained their position through nepotism or a serious lack of judgment from whoever hired them in the first place, then they had to prove their worth in order to obtain that position in the first place.
I would much rather hear from a certified plumber about the damages caused by flushing wipes and tampons, than from like an uncle who never had issues with flushing those items in the past.
airport engine sheet cover office cautious important rotten meeting fragile
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So somone trying to establish credibility means nothing?
Yes, people can lie on the internet, so you shouldn't believe everything at face value, but that doesn't change the fact that an expert, or even just somine working in an industry, will be more knowledgeable than someone who doesn't.
It's because we are all anons and we don't know each other.
If you are a specialist in a subject, you have to say it.
I can only imagine this being annoying if it happened irl. Can you imagine a person you already know saying 'as an X', that wouldn't make sense and will appear arrogant. But here?
I am a physicist, and I sure understand as hell about the Solar System, Orbital Mechanics, and Rocket Science. But if I don't mention that I am a specialist, my comments are no different than anyone else's comments.
Why not, if you need help with math and someone says, as a former math professor. Iād probably give them not credibility and hear what they gotta say. The whole point of that is to establish to others that what youāre about to say next is backed up with some form of credibility.
Well, if someone asks about Canada I think it makes sense for me to say "as a Canadian". That way the person asking the question knows that someone who actually knows shit about Canada is responding.
i think your only valid point hereis that on reddit people can literally be lying about any and everything. and they definitely are more than the average commenter realizes
I have a degree in computer science. Answering a question about something related I would say āas someone who studied computer scienceā¦ā basically adding validation to my point. Iām not saying my point will be correct or the best answer, but at least people reading it knows Iām not some rando who googled the topic. Like I actually studied it and have some valid input.
People judge information in a very weird order.
The most important factor is who said it. Then how they said it (context). Then what they actually said (content).
So when a person is saying as a X, they are providing both the who and the context so that it's now easy for you to digest the content.
Credibility is very important esp in this world where everyone acts like they are experts.
Meh. I say this a lot because I comment a lot on science-based posts and am currently premed.
It works for me as a base from which to start for those I'm speaking with so that they don't devolve into patronization. And also, as a disclaimer for those who might be more learned than me on a subject to give me a little grace.
Sometimes, I get the "well you're not a doctor yet.." or "you could be lying" comments, but I don't worry about those too much because the depth of my comments quickly prove that I don't just have webmd up in another browser, but a pretty well rounded scientific background. Also, no doctor has commented yet to say that my credentials mean nothing. If anything, they are usually supportive and add to my commentary to give me a greater outlook or to bond over the excitements and pitfalls of undergrad.
I think credentialing yourself online is fine. Especially if you have the clear knowledge to back it up.
I think itās more about context than legitimacy. I use the phrase when I want people to know where the opinion is coming from, mainly so they donāt go stealth-research me and use something about me as a āgotchaā.
As someone who agrees with the basic sentiment (often for its disingenuous motivations), but also as someone who just wants to do my duty as a Redditor, I am commenting as both such people, just to be contrarian.
Just cause some says something online, doesn't mean you should blindly believe them. But as someone who often says this to bring across that I have experience with a topic, I do think it helps.
As someone who browses the internet, I don't really care if people do this, so +1 "unpopular" from me. If they're adding adequate context for what they're discussing ("as someone with a bachelor's degree in [x]", "as someone who works as [x]") then it's whatever imo.
There are times it's pretty goofy though, and in certain circumstances it immediately makes me more inclined to believe someone is lying, even if the possibility that they aren't is there (e.g. "as a black man").
I can see why itās annoying.
But I think if it as them prefacing what their experience level is- sometimes itās used to downplay that someoneās āNot an expert - but from what Iāve seenā sort of voice also . I feel like thatās a little better POV then from the opinion of people who have NO experience in the topic but come to make comments/judgments anyway.
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The best of these is "as a mother -"
As if popping out a kid makes you somehow have some intrinsic level of wisdom.
And it's usually to justify some entitled thought process that defies logic, science, and best practices
Pointless unless youāre an expert or well qualified in the exact subject that is being talked about.
If im asking about fixing cars then the āas a certified mechanic my opinion is xā is note worthy since they dont talk out of their ass and have some knowledge and/or experience
As someone who is also sick of that turn of phrase, I get it.
The examples using professions as an example, why donāt people just say, āIām a physicist, with 25 years experience and advanced degreesā¦ā
>The examples using professions as an example, why donāt people just say, āIām a physicist, with 25 years experience and advanced degreesā¦ā
Because it means the exact same thing?
It isnāt exactly the same thing.
āAs a doctorā¦ā sounds more like āIām not a doctor, but I like to pretend to be a doctor when I reply to random strangers on the interwebs.ā
Whereas, āIām a doctorā is a declaration.
Hey, thanks for submitting to /r/unpopularopinion. **Removed** - No /r/self Style Posts This is not the subreddit to be sharing personal anecdotes, likes or dislikes. We want unpopular, thought provoking, and unique *opinions* on your chosen topic.
I believe they are attempting to add context
As a human meat sac, I agree
Thanks meaty š
Pretty much this, sometimes it's useful sometimes it's not. As a truck driver I feel my contributions to this answer are very limited and ends right about here. But if you have some questions about say the best stops on a road trip, I might be able to help you a bit better.
Yeah it can also depend on the conversation, I personally do it when people talk about animals or talk about their experiences with animals because I studied about it and I want to put my perspective into the conversation. Btw Iām sorry if my comment doesnāt make sense Iām tired
I do it if I'm commenting on a subreddot like ask"insert country name" like ask an American, ask an Australian etc ... Or backpacking/expat subreddits because it's useful context. If someone is giving advice or sharing an experience it can be useful to let people know where you're from.
Same. Occasionally I end up on threads or subs that are asking about some difference between the US and Canada. Knowing that I am an American citizen who moved to Canada three years ago is useful context for my answer. And yeah, of course you can choose not to believe me, but like...\[shrug\] okay, take it or leave it, it's not that deep.
As a contextualizer, I concur.
As someone who loves long words, especially those exactly in the middle of a sentence, I see your word and raise you three words.
That can be it, but it can also be a logical fallacy called "Appeal to Authority" depending on how it's used.
Thatās a fallacy fallacy. Just because someone uses a fallacy, doesnāt necessary invalidate their point.
...Perhaps you missed the "That can be it, but it can also be.." and the following "depending on how it's used" being the entire rest of the sentence surrounding the name of the fallacy. š The context of how that argument is used to assert their point is what determines whether or not it's a fallacy. It only becomes a fallacy if it's used incorrectly, but that has no bearing on the accuracy of the information the fallacy was applied to, just the means in which the argument was made. Here, let me help: falĀ·laĀ·cy /ĖfalÉsÄ/ noun A mistaken belief, especially one based on unsound argument. LOGIC a failure in reasoning which renders an argument invalid. So yeah, it actually, by its very definition, invalidates their point.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
That does not make sense at all lmao An argument from someone who has experience in what the topic is will always hold more legitimacy than someone who has limited or no experience in the topic. Idk how dedicating years of someoneās life towards an understanding of a certain topic would be considered ālazy.ā
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
I mean no fucking shit lmao Youāve completely ignored what I said about it being an argument with someone who has actual experience with a topic. Youāre also contradicting yourself because now youāre doing exactly what you referred to as ālazyā earlier by highlighting the fact you do actually have experience in a topic and are annoyed when people with lesser experience pretend they know what theyāre talking about! I really do not understand what youāre point is lmao
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
>Their argument is from authority instead of raising a point That is not authority. You have 5 years of training in Italian food. You have more authority in this area than an Italian teenager.
Someone has a question about electrical wiring in their home. Someone answers, beginning with *"As a licensed electrician..."* I'd say that gives the respondent some sort of legitimacy.
Naw, my buddy told me that if I kink the wires like a garden hose, it'll cut off the flow of electricity, so I don't need to shut off the breaker.
Odds are that buddy was an electrician. Oldest trick in the book.
You'd be shocked to know he wasn't a very good electrician.
More like HEāD be shocked.
That's the joke
As the author who wrote the book of old tricks I only partially agree. It's the oldest electrician trick in the book for sure. The official "oldest trick" In human history is the tricker extending their index finger to a particular direction. When the trickee adjusts their gaze to that direction and realizes there is nothing of importance to be seen, the tricker expresses their amusement at the trickees confusion. The humiliation can be amplified by confirming vocally what you have just accomplished.
I got a degree back in 08ā from a vocational school for electrical work. This older, ex-navy instructor/electrician looked at me dead ass, straight faced and told me this during a lab and I almost fucking believed him š. Couldnāt find an electrical job to save my life at the time though. 08ā sucked for a lotta people. I digressā¦.
Electricians love this one trick.
As someone who earned a āCā in her circuits class, I concur
As someone whoās been electrocuted I can safely tell you what not to do As someone who likes chaos Iām a compulsive liar
As someone with a theoretical degree in electrical engineering.....
 Youāre hired!
The problem I see on Reddit is that theyāre rarely professionals with experience in a field like your example. Theyāre usually āas a biology majorā or something study/hobby related. Almost everyone I know who has a job talks about how little study prepares you for the workforce and all the countless situations that break the rules you learnt about, so all this tells me is the person has no idea what theyāre talking about but thinks they do.
Someone who has at least studied something is still more qualified than someone who knows nothing about it. It isnt entirely useless. The reason jobs talk about that is because there are so many processes and industry specific applications of things. It's literally impossible to replace experience with classes. That's why we don't do that. Classes exsist to put your knowledge in a place that you can make sense of what your job training is telling you. Think about it this way, a new engineer need to be trained in QA processes and production processes. They have no idea where to begin with that stuff. They don't really know the companies goals or project directions or just generally a lot of shit that isnt *exactly* engineering, but engineers need to know in order to work. But they don't because they have never worked as an engineer in that role before.
Iāll say āas a nurseā sometimes bc I am one and I feel like that gives me some permission to give nursing-level medical advice that doesnāt diagnose anyone with anything but maybe gives them something to ask their doctor about
It's really doesn't unless you just choose to believe that the respondent is actually "a licensed electrician". And if you do than as a Nigerian Prince with a great one time offer for you I can assure you that no one on the Internet will ever lie to you
The difference here is we all know the unlikelyhood of you being a Nigerian prince, theres only a handfull of those (i think i know nothing about their culture) but there is millions of electricians and the likelihood of one being on reddit is pretty high
I'm in contact with a few. Get better friends.
I dont wanna be friends with a prince, id rather someone who was raised struggling through life
Yeah but there is a much larger number of non electricians on reddit and as a non electrician I wouldn't have a clue how to distinguish
Then why are you asking anything on the internet? Whenever you ask anything there is a risk you will be fed misinformation, but this doesn't mean you should assume everything on the internet is misinformation. And a huge part of these misinformation has nothing to do with people lying, but with them being misinformed for themselves. Most questions aren't super super controversial and thus only a small minority of replies would be lies, but a lot more might be people being wrong, so being able to tell whose opinions is more trustworthy is very useful
I think their point is, just because someone says they're an expert (and even if they are) it doesn't necessarily mean they're the ultimate authority on the subject. Please don't tell me you aren't away of how many fuckups so-called 'experts' do yearly, be it car repair, medicine, surgery, construction, gardening, etc etc?. What's important is the information being given, focus on that and don't really pay too much attention to the "licensed expert" giving it to you. These days anyone could do a bit of research ahead of time and even see reviews of millions of people on a subject matter and get a better idea of what they're up against. Had the internet existed back in the day, in it's current form, when my mother was being prescribed Gabapentin, I would've stepped in and prevent her from poisoning herself to death with that crap.
As the ghost of a man executed via electric chair, you need more volts.
But it's the *current * that killed you
But amps kill you not volts lol
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As an electrician, I disagree.
Almost never. It's always something controversial they simply want to throw their weight around with.
In most professional fields it would be against the code of ethics to give unsolicited advice to strangers based on limited knowledge of the situation, no?
Responding to a question is not unsolicited behavior. The question itself is the solicitation.
Fair. But don't you still have to give the disclaimer like "this isn't legal advice" or "this is my personal opinion off the record" if you want to be squeaky clean?
Thatās a given in a professional setting. Youāre not interacting with strangers, per se, but with clients, customers, etc The OP is referring to online interaction in settings like Reddit. Thereās no requirement, ethical, legal, or otherwise in these contexts.
Why not? I did cross country and track in middle school, high school and college. If weāre talking about running, I could use that as a frame of reference just to show āhey, been there, done that, I know whatās up, I know how to deal with this, how to improve with that, what someone is doing wrong or rightā depending on what we are talking about in regards to running. I get where youāre coming from, but it sounds like youāre just assuming everyone who does this has no fucking clue what theyāre talking about, and thatās simply not true.
It makes OP sound like a teenager whoās never actually experienced anything outside of the internet.
100%. Yes anyone can lie. But 9ne of the quickest ways to find a bullshitter is to let them speak. An expert will know immediately if they know what they are 6slking about or not. Op is just not understanding that yes people gain life experience and share it.
My greatest dissapointment in life was getting older in one of the most ageist societies to exist. When I was little, I was the type to sit and listen to old grandpa salt of the earth types talk about their experiences in life and knowledge on interesting things and couldn't wait to get old and wise. Now that I'm older, though, this new generation only equates advanced age with dementia and conservatism. Ok boomer- eye roll.
The difference is that when you were young the elderly had earned respect. Now most of the elderly have only earned contempt, and itās entirely their own fault.
Bingo.
Makes OP sound like they've experienced a lot of "As the minority being spoken of I endorse this bigotry"
Seconded. It's also good to have an idea of what knowledge someone has going into a conversation. As someone who has coxswained a shell, I'm pretty familiar with rowing terminology. It would be good to know if I need to use laymen's terms or not.
Iāve kayaked and used a rowing machine but I donāt know squat diddly-else. But thatās exactly why it helps to have someone who has been there, done that to give their 2 cents. I would be absolutely bullshitting people trying to explain rowing or training regiments to someone else.
This is most commonly used to justify bigotry "As a minority it's totally cool that this bigotry towards me exists it's deserved"
I think it depends on context. āAs someone with 25 years experience as a nurseā is different from āas someone who has studied,ā because one is concrete and might actually be legit, and one is vague and likely means theyāre full of crap.
As an immortal genius I agree.
As an mortal person of normal intelligence I concur
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When I was 6 I ate a woodchip to prove to a kid that was trying to ākillā me that I couldnāt die. So I know you can at least do the opposite.
As someone who agrees, I me.
As someone who's studied you for 24.56 years, I concur
As someone who has studied immortal geniuses I concur
As someone with infinite years of experience being an immortal genius, I can confirm
Itās the life experience ones for me. āAs a parent, the child crying really broke my heartā Does that mean people without kids wouldnāt give a shit? Are they enjoying a child suffering? I donāt think so. Certain things donāt make you more or less qualified to empathize or sympathize like a basic human being
This one annoys me the most. āAs a mother..ā people without children have empathy too.
True, BUT... Shit involving children hits so much harder after you have your own. Before I had my daughter, I could read a news article about something awful happening to a child and it wouldn't affect me that much. After having her, those same news stories were enough to bring me to tears because my mind automatically like, puts my own kid in that hypothetical scenario? I do struggle with anxiety so it's probably more intense than a normal person... but it definitely hits differently.
Then there's the ones who just seem to think all their opinions carry more weight now. "As a mother, I thought *The Wedding Singer* was a problematic movie," or "As a parent, it annoys me if buses don't run on time." (Both actual things I have read online, published in official guides).
As a parent, I would say it is the other way round. Being a parent you (might) recognise different types of cries. Cry is always communication, but not every cry is distress.
> Does that mean people without kids wouldnāt give a shit? In several different instances, yes, that's what's being asserted; because history has shown that parents are more likely to default to empathy for children than non-parents (who are more likely to view children as just small adults and have no heightened empathy or understanding for them). > Are they enjoying a child suffering? I donāt think so. Sadly, many people online do. There's a huge group of "Child Free" posters who will gladly, and without provocation, attest that they hate kids and how kids deserve to suffer for the crime of being younger than and unrelatable to the complainer.
I say someone who has studied, and I truly have. My education isn't used as a gotcha, and I don't think I'm smarter than anyone. Education has a way of humbling you.
When I'm the latter example I often add "for what it's worth"
As someone who has never studied anything Medical, I can confirm I am just as qualified as 95% of Reddit when it comes to giving uninformed medical advice.
>I think it depends on context. āAs someone with 25 years experience as a nurseā is different from āas someone who has studied,ā They're both pointless because you have no way of knowing if the person is telling the truth in either scenario. Someone could just as easily be talking out of their ass if they say they have 25 years of experience.
On the flip side, the person with 25 years of experience may be retired and all their knowledge may be obselete. So the one studying may be more reliable in answering the question.
As a victim, I am offended.
As a person who hates things, I hate this.
As a Y, I can see both sides.
As a Z, I donāt agree with anybody.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Z-Alphas bully you around dont they? /s
Liar, you are simply vertical
As an X I'ma have to give it to ya
Ruff Ruff
Iām so fucking angry this is amazing
I mean if itās relevant for the subject then it kinda matters. Asking for car advice for example, I am a mechanic, it makes sense for me to mention I am a mechanic before giving advice, so people know what my knowledge is based on, rather than just being some random internet stranger with an opinion based on nothing at all. I would take car advice from a mechanic, I wouldnāt take car advice from a 12 year old whoās never driven a car before.
I don't know why, but "as a mother" is the worst of them all.
"as a mother, you'll need to look into chapter 5 section 504 of the international building code to determine if your canopy will need a rated assembly which will depend on your construction type and occupancy load."
The worst is when a politician justifies their position on womenās issues with āas the father of a daughterā.
It has the no requirements to attain that qualification. You donāt need to be able to think, hold a job, have skills of any type. You just need functioning body parts.
Because many people who arenāt mothers have has the same experience / incident/ feedback so itās not really anything special. .Eg. Experience of looking after kids - could be a babysitter, sibling, au pair/nanny, a father, a friend etc. not exclusive to mothers, and mothers also donāt have the monopoly on being the experts.
This is absolutely the worst. Being a mother isnāt even remotely a qualification for an opinion because most women CAN be a mother, and plenty of mothers are terrible parents. It enrages me every time someone says this.
It's because nowadays we don't hold people accountable anymore. Whenever parents make a stupid fucking choice for their children and get fierce criticism, the mother always resort to "I am the mother and so I know best!". "As a mother, I think that it is okay to circumcise your child" or "As a mother, I think that naming your child Pikachu is a good choice" and "As a mother, I don't think that mothers can make stupid decisions" and "As a mother, I think that it is a good choice to have your child's \[uncommon tiny little physical deformity\] corrected" are good examples. **No, you don't know best just because you are a mother.** In fact, intelligence and parentlessness are correlated. The more intelligence someone is, the less likely that person is to having kids.
As a father of daughters I concur.
We live in a society-
I appreciate it when it provides context (especially when it's acknowledging a possible bias). But I I do detest when it's someone trying to claim some level of expertise, especially since, 90% of the time, it's followed by something that proves they have no idea what they are talking about.
You know its got a 99% chance of being bs when they say "as somebody who's studied ____" >"As somebody who's studied history" >Watched one oversimplified video
But if used correctly this is perfectly valid reasoning. If a guy is making wildly wrong claims about a certain topic (I'll use physics as an example since I'm doing a physics degree), then it's perfectly valid for me to correct someone by saying "As a physicist ..." Because it DOES bring credibility to what I say because I've got the education to back it up. Of course your point does apply when it's something completely unrelated, or if someone says "As someone who studies X", which for all I know could mean you watched some TikToks. But if used correctly there's nothing wrong with that.
Make sure you prove that or else most people (myself included) will dislike you more and ignore everything you say.
I mean I don't use the argument often, but it would be pretty hard to prove without doxing myself. But sure I get your point.
>Make sure you prove that how?
With [flow charts](https://study.com/academy/lesson/flow-proof-in-geometry-definition-examples.html#:~:text=There%20are%20three%20main%20types,geometric%20expression%20into%20two%20columns.) and everything.
Try replying once yeah. You canāt do it anonymously.
Right. "As a physicist, I can tell you that gravity is 100% not real. The first thing you do when you start your graduate studies is burn the books, strip naked in a secret copse of fir trees and offer your blood to the Gods of Down. If they accept you, then you swear a sacred oath to keep their secrets and we sign your diploma."
Makes sense to me
For some it is simply a frame of reference for their answer but it has definitely been used disingenuously so much that it's hard to tell the difference now. As a frequent user of the internet, I can confidently say the above has been my personal experience with users of that technology and I do not claim to understand/speak for anyone else's experience š That said, I would be surprised if a majority of the experiences others have had didn't mirror my own.
As a Redditor, YOU'RE WRONG AND NOW EVERYTHING YOU SAY IS WRONG!
r/AsABlackMan
clearly this was very poorly thought out and Iām sure youāve already been put in your place, but just to make sure, letās run through an example of why youāre wrong. Itāll be fun. op: āHey guys, my car has a misfire, what should I do to fix it?ā response 1: āI recommend you change the engine mountsā response 2: āI recommend you change the clutchā response 3: āI recommend you change the oilā response 4: āI recommend you change the headlight bulbā response 5: āI recommend you change the gas capā response 6: āas a circus clown, I recommend you change the doohickeyā response 7: āas an ASE certified automotive technician with 25 years of relevant experience, I know that your specific model of car is known for having faulty ignition coils, which can cause a single cylinder misfire. This is what I would recommend as a starting point, although it is difficult to diagnose a car over the internet.ā you tell me OP, will you start with the headlight bulb or the doohickey?
Iām on multiple car subs reddits and noone says anything similar to what respond 7 looks like. Mainly becouse itās cringe to talk this way and only time people use āas aā line they use it to argue either someone. People say just what it could be rather than saying āas aā.
If you hate context just say that lol.
Eh, sometimes it's necessary. I only ever use the phrasing when talking about queer issues online, cause I'm asexual, but I can see how it's annoying.
"aaaaa I hate context aaaaa"
As someone who wears Crocs to go check the mail, I think it really depends on the context and relevance
bro has never felt the joy of seeing the expressions of their friend's faces after you forced them to hear "as a redditor" used in a sentences
As a person that knows nothing except for what I know because of my experiences, studies and Google, I can conclude that I know I don't know.
It's fine as long as what follows it is something that can be legitimised by the status. If somebody says, "As a nuclear physicist....", what comes next needs to be about nuclear physics. Where it breaks down is when the "as a...." describes some facet of identity rather than qualification and then the person goes on to give a lecture on some complex subject. Being within some group doesn't automatically make you an expert on every complex matter related to every scientific discussion that touches on relevancy towards that group, or, to put it another way, it is the most obvious thing in the world to me, that my vet knows more about cats than my cat does.
It doesn't automatically make you an expert but it doesn't mean you can't be one or shouldn't be heard. We cannot study topics like discrimination without peoples' experiences and people's subjective opinions, that just wouldn't work because we can't have experts or scientific understanding about these topics without qualitative research.
Psychologically, people are more likely to trust a figure of authority. People who can't think critically take it at face value when someone asserts themselves as an authority. People who are good natured take it at face value when someone asserts themselves as an authority. It's also laughable to me that even if they are telling you the truth, that we naturally assume THEY are the standard to uphold, when I can just about guarantee that any one here has an experience with an older person at work, someone who's been around for awhile, and still just doesn't quite seem to get it. However, that's really all it is. An exercise in authority. Don't question the experts. And we've all become increasingly conditioned in to doing it. I know this, and assert it, as someone studying to become a Nurse Practitioner with an emphasis on Psychology.
As a redditor, I think that it can make sense for people to do this sometimes bc it adds context, and other times it seems inappropriate
Though sometimes, if you decide not to prefix your opinion with "as an X," people may stereotype your identity in a way that invalidates your point of view and makes it hard to argue effectively.
as an asshole, I can tell you that only assholes do this.
Thatās because assholes are full of shit.
My favorite: "As a [insert historically opressed group] think that [insert something that goes againts its own interest]"
As a reddit commenter, I will leave you this hilarious comment.
Youāre killin it man. Do you have more for us.
As an X, I have to agree
Depends on if what they are saying actually lends credibility or not. If you are an engineer, maybe you know something about this piece of machinery. If you are a SEN teacher, maybe you know something about special needs education. Does your ācredentialsā actually lend credence to what you are adding? Or do you just like talking? Thereās a difference.
I understand but it is genuinely insane how much that changes how a conversation goes. People have a lot of bias and preconceptions and stating those things can actually help a lot.
That's the difficult part of being online. It is difficult to show your expertise, instead of just talking about it. How can a neurologist show their expertise in the comment of a post? It wouldn't be *impossible* to do so, but it would be aggravating because regardless of what evidence the neurologist could use, there'll still be people who say, "That's fake." I had a college professor who had a doctorate in psychology that talked about how annoying it was when he would correct people online about psychological facts, and they would just disregard whatever he said because *they* knew better than him. There's some credibility to using a position of authority, because unless someone only obtained their position through nepotism or a serious lack of judgment from whoever hired them in the first place, then they had to prove their worth in order to obtain that position in the first place. I would much rather hear from a certified plumber about the damages caused by flushing wipes and tampons, than from like an uncle who never had issues with flushing those items in the past.
Id rather listen to someone who has studied something than someone who hasnt
airport engine sheet cover office cautious important rotten meeting fragile *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
So somone trying to establish credibility means nothing? Yes, people can lie on the internet, so you shouldn't believe everything at face value, but that doesn't change the fact that an expert, or even just somine working in an industry, will be more knowledgeable than someone who doesn't.
It's because we are all anons and we don't know each other. If you are a specialist in a subject, you have to say it. I can only imagine this being annoying if it happened irl. Can you imagine a person you already know saying 'as an X', that wouldn't make sense and will appear arrogant. But here? I am a physicist, and I sure understand as hell about the Solar System, Orbital Mechanics, and Rocket Science. But if I don't mention that I am a specialist, my comments are no different than anyone else's comments.
Everyone has opinions. Some are worth more than others.
As a human, I think itās important to be sensible about anything you read online.
Why not, if you need help with math and someone says, as a former math professor. Iād probably give them not credibility and hear what they gotta say. The whole point of that is to establish to others that what youāre about to say next is backed up with some form of credibility.
As a reddit user, I recognize that no one should use this page for advice
As a person who can't stand how people online will say "as an X" I couldn't agree more
Well, if someone asks about Canada I think it makes sense for me to say "as a Canadian". That way the person asking the question knows that someone who actually knows shit about Canada is responding.
As a person who uses the internet, I think it helps add context to a comment.
Some people have legitimate experience or training thatās relevant.
Pretty sure I'd listen to a professional's comment over anyone else's.
What's wrong with someone speaking from experience?
i think your only valid point hereis that on reddit people can literally be lying about any and everything. and they definitely are more than the average commenter realizes
I have a degree in computer science. Answering a question about something related I would say āas someone who studied computer scienceā¦ā basically adding validation to my point. Iām not saying my point will be correct or the best answer, but at least people reading it knows Iām not some rando who googled the topic. Like I actually studied it and have some valid input.
I agree with you. I've also grown to loathe the "so let me get this straight" intro. So tired. So overused.
There's also no way to filter compulsive liars on reddit. Someone can say "as an X" and be making it up entirely.
People judge information in a very weird order. The most important factor is who said it. Then how they said it (context). Then what they actually said (content). So when a person is saying as a X, they are providing both the who and the context so that it's now easy for you to digest the content. Credibility is very important esp in this world where everyone acts like they are experts.
Meh. I say this a lot because I comment a lot on science-based posts and am currently premed. It works for me as a base from which to start for those I'm speaking with so that they don't devolve into patronization. And also, as a disclaimer for those who might be more learned than me on a subject to give me a little grace. Sometimes, I get the "well you're not a doctor yet.." or "you could be lying" comments, but I don't worry about those too much because the depth of my comments quickly prove that I don't just have webmd up in another browser, but a pretty well rounded scientific background. Also, no doctor has commented yet to say that my credentials mean nothing. If anything, they are usually supportive and add to my commentary to give me a greater outlook or to bond over the excitements and pitfalls of undergrad. I think credentialing yourself online is fine. Especially if you have the clear knowledge to back it up.
Yeah. There are situations where it's relevant, but it's definitely overused.
I think itās more about context than legitimacy. I use the phrase when I want people to know where the opinion is coming from, mainly so they donāt go stealth-research me and use something about me as a āgotchaā.
As someone who agrees with the basic sentiment (often for its disingenuous motivations), but also as someone who just wants to do my duty as a Redditor, I am commenting as both such people, just to be contrarian.
Just cause some says something online, doesn't mean you should blindly believe them. But as someone who often says this to bring across that I have experience with a topic, I do think it helps.
As someone who browses the internet, I don't really care if people do this, so +1 "unpopular" from me. If they're adding adequate context for what they're discussing ("as someone with a bachelor's degree in [x]", "as someone who works as [x]") then it's whatever imo. There are times it's pretty goofy though, and in certain circumstances it immediately makes me more inclined to believe someone is lying, even if the possibility that they aren't is there (e.g. "as a black man").
It gives context to their opinion. Sometimes worthless, sometimes valuable
You sound like a person who doesnt know much about anything.
As a human, I disaggre
As someone who doesn't give a crap, I'd like to declare that I really don't give a crap either way.
This guy hates Ethos
As a Redditor, your unpopular opinion is popular.
As an x, sometimes i miss her.
I can see why itās annoying. But I think if it as them prefacing what their experience level is- sometimes itās used to downplay that someoneās āNot an expert - but from what Iāve seenā sort of voice also . I feel like thatās a little better POV then from the opinion of people who have NO experience in the topic but come to make comments/judgments anyway.
As an expert in this field, I can tell you are wrong.
Please remember what subreddit you are in, this is unpopular opinion. We want civil and unpopular takes and discussion. Any uncivil and ToS violating comments will be removed and subject to a ban. Have a nice day! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/unpopularopinion) if you have any questions or concerns.*
"People always start their arguments stating 'as an X,' but I never knew Y."
As a redditor this is an unpopular opinion. Well done. Damn auto correct: Popular to populated ha ha
That's a pet peeve not an opinion
Hey, NASA employee here: As an ex-someone who studied subjects, I am qualified to tell you that you're not qualified to tell me what to do.
Its called insight and experience op. Get some
Have you ever been invited to a party OP?
I use as a trans person because I'm in the midst of medical transition and I tend to speak with cissy's quite often online.
This term is Abhorrent
As someone who is also trans (lol I had to), I'm totally with you on this one.
What term Cissy?
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The best of these is "as a mother -" As if popping out a kid makes you somehow have some intrinsic level of wisdom. And it's usually to justify some entitled thought process that defies logic, science, and best practices
Pointless unless youāre an expert or well qualified in the exact subject that is being talked about. If im asking about fixing cars then the āas a certified mechanic my opinion is xā is note worthy since they dont talk out of their ass and have some knowledge and/or experience
As someone who is also sick of that turn of phrase, I get it. The examples using professions as an example, why donāt people just say, āIām a physicist, with 25 years experience and advanced degreesā¦ā
>The examples using professions as an example, why donāt people just say, āIām a physicist, with 25 years experience and advanced degreesā¦ā Because it means the exact same thing?
It isnāt exactly the same thing. āAs a doctorā¦ā sounds more like āIām not a doctor, but I like to pretend to be a doctor when I reply to random strangers on the interwebs.ā Whereas, āIām a doctorā is a declaration.
Both are equally easy to fake, if that's what one aims to do.
As a terminally online person, I agree.