4 ms·

Why do so many have that exact wording "honest and unbiased review"? So bizarre

by tamana 10y ago

andrewflnr 10y ago
I'm guessing it's lawyer-specified boilerplate that spreads in the same manner as the ALL CAPS type of language you see in software licenses.
- Fej 10y ago
  What's the deal with ALL CAPS PARTS in certain legal documents, anyway? It can't possibly carry any legal weight...?
  - jacalata 10y ago
    I saw someone say once that it is done to fulfil a legal obligation to make certain clauses obvious and noticeable, or a similar phrasing in contract law.
  - brownbat 10y ago
    The Universal Commercial Code requires some terms be "conspicuous" in transactions, and says you can satisfy that requirement with all caps text of equal or greater size than the nearby text. There are some other options, like changing color or alternate fonts, but those are generally just more complicated.[0] An example of a contract term that must be conspicuous is selling something "as is," ie, claiming no warranty that the thing even works at all.[1] A note on Universal Codes - nonprofits, usually mostly made up of lawyers, will write model codes for state laws and then try to get them passed in each state so that state laws are predictable. Almost all states have adopted some provisions from the UCC, but several states have adopted modified versions or old revisions.[2] [0] https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/1/1-201 https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/1/1-201 [1] https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/2/article2 https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/2/article2 [2]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Act
    - jdietrich 10y ago
      >There are some other options, like changing color or alternate fonts, but those are generally just more complicated. The all caps thing is a holdover from the era of typewriters. On most typewriters, switching to bold face required changing the daisywheel or type ball; alternate colours would be lost on xerox- or carbon-copied documents. All caps was the most convenient option. It's now a vestigial convention, like the floppy disk save icon.
      - JupiterMoon 10y ago
        Software licences are often written in plain text. There is no bold and no colour in asci text so uppercase is the only option.
ams6110 10y ago
Because they are revealing that they are actually fake and one-sided. It's like the last time I bought a car at a dealership I got the line "I'll be honest, I haven't sold a car all week and I'll really work with you if you buy one today." Immediate tip-off that he's lying through his teeth.
- dreamcompiler 10y ago
  Completely agree. "I'll be honest" is right up there with "I'm not a racist, but..." in the list of phrases that always self-negate.
  - wallace_f 10y ago
    Unfortunately, someone who reads this might interact with someone who is claiming to be honest, and truly is being honest. Never trust a salesman because they're salesman, not because you think you can read their speech and body language.

Why do so many have that exact wording "honest and unbiased review"? So bizarre

by tamana 10y ago

Why do so many have that exact wording "honest and unbiased review"? So bizarre

I'm guessing it's lawyer-specified boilerplate that spreads in the same manner as the ALL CAPS type of language you see in software licenses.

Fej 10y ago
What's the deal with ALL CAPS PARTS in certain legal documents, anyway? It can't possibly carry any legal weight...?
- jacalata 10y ago
  I saw someone say once that it is done to fulfil a legal obligation to make certain clauses obvious and noticeable, or a similar phrasing in contract law.
- brownbat 10y ago
  The Universal Commercial Code requires some terms be "conspicuous" in transactions, and says you can satisfy that requirement with all caps text of equal or greater size than the nearby text. There are some other options, like changing color or alternate fonts, but those are generally just more complicated.[0] An example of a contract term that must be conspicuous is selling something "as is," ie, claiming no warranty that the thing even works at all.[1] A note on Universal Codes - nonprofits, usually mostly made up of lawyers, will write model codes for state laws and then try to get them passed in each state so that state laws are predictable. Almost all states have adopted some provisions from the UCC, but several states have adopted modified versions or old revisions.[2] [0] https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/1/1-201 https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/1/1-201 [1] https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/2/article2 https://www.law.cornell.edu/ucc/2/article2 [2]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Act
  - jdietrich 10y ago
    >There are some other options, like changing color or alternate fonts, but those are generally just more complicated. The all caps thing is a holdover from the era of typewriters. On most typewriters, switching to bold face required changing the daisywheel or type ball; alternate colours would be lost on xerox- or carbon-copied documents. All caps was the most convenient option. It's now a vestigial convention, like the floppy disk save icon.
    - JupiterMoon 10y ago
      Software licences are often written in plain text. There is no bold and no colour in asci text so uppercase is the only option.

ams6110 10y ago

Because they are revealing that they are actually fake and one-sided. It's like the last time I bought a car at a dealership I got the line "I'll be honest, I haven't sold a car all week and I'll really work with you if you buy one today." Immediate tip-off that he's lying through his teeth.

dreamcompiler 10y ago
Completely agree. "I'll be honest" is right up there with "I'm not a racist, but..." in the list of phrases that always self-negate.
- wallace_f 10y ago
  Unfortunately, someone who reads this might interact with someone who is claiming to be honest, and truly is being honest. Never trust a salesman because they're salesman, not because you think you can read their speech and body language.