fandomhigh | Dealing With Stupid People [Monday, May 14, 2nd period]

Josh was obviously uncomfortable with the whole "being outside" thing as he perched on a picnic bench and smiled at the students as they assembled.

"Okay, one of the most annoying things you will encounter in your life will be other people," he began, rolling his eyes. "Most of us -- in my universe, anyway, some of you might have other experiences -- can't kill them by using our brains, so we have to come up with different coping methods. We'll get to the more advanced techniques -- sarcasm, the strategic use of an eye roll -- later, but today we'll start out with something that gives you a lot of chance to practice before you send out the final product."

He pulled out a sheaf of papers and dropped it onto the table. "Writing back to stupid people!" he said triumphantly. "In this exercise you need to reply to these obviously deranged letters in a polite way without asking if they've thought to seek professional help for their delusions. There are five different letters so pair up with a partner -- it's better to double check your language against someone else, at least at the beginning -- and write back to these completely insane people."

Josh grinned. "Questions? Problems? I don't really care, but ask anyway."

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"That is a very good point. So we wish to discourage them, but in a gentle way?" he asked. "So, maybe make it clear that we couldn't understand what they were trying to tell us? That the meaning was lost in their unique approach?"

"That'd work perfectly," Mac said with a nod. "We're just encouraging them to... maybe use grammar and actually make sense. It's is nicer than telling them that they might be crazy, at least."

Karal gave her a quick smile. "No matter how deserved it might be," he said. "How about: While we greatly appreciate the time and effort that you have dedicated to creating your message, we sadly are unable to respond, as your particular approach to language has rendered us speechless. With wonder."

"Wondering, at what you actually mean," Mac continued. "Oh, and then we can respectfully request that they re-word it in such a way that someone whose brain is not finely attuned to their own can follow."

"Perfect," he laughed. "How could they possibly be offended at that? And with a touch of luck, they'll decide we're simply not worth the effort and deliver their spam to someone more appreciative."

"Hopefully. I'm learning so much from this workshop already," Mac decided sending a quick grin at Karal. There might be just a little bit of sarcasm in her words. "And, it's surprisingly fun."

"Yes, I can feel my knowledge and intelligence growing even as we speak," he replied, indulging in a little sarcasm of his own. "But it has been fun, even if it's not a particularly valuable class."

[ooc: sleep well!]

Dealing With Stupid People [Monday, May 14, 2nd period]

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2

Re: Write to Stupid People: Letter #2