Stranger Than Fiction: UK Edition
Every week, I come across a story that boggles my mind. You know, a tale that makes me shake my head in disbelief.
And more rarely, just every once in a while, I find one that makes me bang my head against a wall in utter disillusionment with humanity and fear for the future of our species.
Case in point: A gem I found on Yahoo! News.
Let me give you a bit of background first. About a century ago, Great Britain ruled approximately one-quarter of the world’s population and the earth’s surface. The sun never set on the British Empire because its dominions ranged all the way around the globe.
But the Empire was lost … and now it appears the British people are going collectively insane.
A recent poll of 3,000 UK citizens revealed, among other disturbing beliefs:
- Nearly 25 percent of respondents thought Winston Churchill—the British prime minister during the Second World War and one of the wittiest men in the 20th century—was not a real person.
- The same percentage said the most famous nurse in history, Florence Nightingale, never healed anyone because she was a myth.
- On the other hand, more than half of those polled asserted that fictional detective Sherlock Holmes actually existed.
posted by David Amulet @ 9:31 AM
20 wisecracks
20 Comments:
Should I blame George Lucas for this too? ;-)
Considering all that Sam Adams did to push the cause of rebellion... Something tells me the Brits would first attack his dear old dad's brewery putting an end to one of the few at least PASSABLE American beers on the market. We can't let that happen!
Either insane or collectively stupid...
You've got mail!
Weren't there thousands of people on the last British census who listed their religion as Jedi? What do we expect?
Cube: What a great lesson for kids, eh? Don't think--feel!
Perplexio: If they attack Yuengling, then we're all in trouble.
Lisa: How about insanely collectively stupid?
Bob: Good point. I'd heard of Jedi philosophy before Star Wars, back when it was just a branch of Buddhism.
-- david
it's all that warm beer
*evil laugh* Too late,I am already here
I'll buy that!
Tag, you're it.
Isn't there a sect of Christianity in the UK that models itself after Ned Flanders?
I think the polls in the UK are squewed because of drunken hooligans purposely screwing with the pollsters and the pollsters are taking the screwball factor seriously.
Jim. There are worse things than warm beer. Like no beer, for example.
Pix: The good Brits are all here already!
Lisa: Sold!
WIGSF: Of course, there are no screwballs in any other countries that affect polls ...
-- david
1. I think American drunken screwballs are too lazy to f with the pollsters here enough to be a real factor. Also, the bars in GB close so early that the Brits are as a rule drunk earlier than Americans, who like to tie one on after 8PM, when the pollsters have to stop calling here.
2. I think I read somewhere about how if you have really bad teeth, an infection can move from your teeth to your brain, making you insane. I'm allowed to talk about the British bad teeth because I'm British and I have bad teeth.
But then again, I could have made up that fact about going insane from a toothache . . .
Well, they were less insane when they could get off the island and breed with others, now it looks like maybe the Kentucky syndrome will be called Island Fever. Oh I don't know. My British car says that the British invented everything the romans didn't get around to, apparently insanity is one. Wait! My car told me? Maybe it's a contagious disease!!!
LOL at Jim's comment!
I would love to see a poll like this done in the US about some of our factual and fictional characters.
Why don't you make one up?
I am glad this wasn't the story that is out there right now about my hometown! ha
Tina: You gave me a great morning laugh--thanks.
Mike: Wow. My car says you're crazy.
Barbara: A great idea--I may just do that.
Phats: It is sad, isn't it, for me to tarnish the image of an entire country based on a poll. Oh well.
-- david
Yeah...but with those gorgeous accents, they can get away with anything. ;)
Or maybe it just affects ME that way? ;)
years ago I read about an Anglican minister who wrote seven sermons, one on each of the Seven Deadly Sins, while he was in seminary, then he preached those same seven sermons in strict rotation in his parish for the rest of his life, that pretty well says 'England' to me
PQ: A good accent makes up for a lot. Like bad teeth.
Jim: That's so dull. He needs a rotation of at least 14 to not get bored.
-- david
I could make the reference that they have more 10%-ers than America. The reference is to that 10% of U.S. citizens that believe that Elvis is still alive, Licoln was a Democrat and JFK was killed by the government. I believe we are spinning our way to catching the British, though. For those other countries that wish to play along: tell your students "there really is no wrong answer."
Martin: I've never heard the reference to 10%-ers. I like it.
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