5 ms·

> I will also give you the best advice I can, ... “When they give you lined paper, write the other way.” What the hell does that even mean? If that is your b

> I will also give you the best advice I can, ... “When they give you lined paper, write the other way.” What the hell does that even mean? If that is your best advice, you are probably full of bad advice. I cannot comprehend the level of confusion required to think that quote is clever.

cinquemb 15y ago
There is more being said with those words than just whats written. "le contexte est plus fort que le concept"
- vacri 15y ago
  or, curiously juxtaposed, "to read between the lines"...
johngunderman 15y ago
I interpreted as "write on the paper at a 90 degree angle to the lines" (aka not the way you should be doing it). This seems to be a standard rehashing of "going against the grain", advice to be different, to not follow expectations. That's not what I would necessarily call bad advice.
- Jach 15y ago
  The Esteemed Great Leader pg might say, or rather he did say in http://paulgraham.com/hs.html http://paulgraham.com/hs.html which I'll just quote: "Rebellion is almost as stupid as obedience. In either case you let yourself be defined by what they tell you to do. The best plan, I think, is to step onto an orthogonal vector. Don't just do what they tell you, and don't just refuse to."
LVB 15y ago
I agree. The school-issued iPads will auto-rotate the virtual paper making this advice pointless.
joelmichael 15y ago
Any student who wrote in a direction perpendicular to the lines of the paper would likely be sent in for well-deserved psychological counseling.
acuity12 15y ago
The quote is a metaphor. It is clearly not about going the other way on lined paper, but rather the basic principle that one should not blindly follow instructions because someone else says they are right. If what you are told to do is wrong, don't do it.
- demallien 15y ago
  Actually it's even stronger than that. There was no instruction to follow the line, it's just an assumption something that comes naturally which is why it is such a pernicious thing. The quote is a warning against having your thoughts and actions guided in a predetermined direction even without you being aware of it.
LockeWatts 15y ago
>What the hell does that even mean? If that is your best advice, you are probably full of bad advice. I cannot comprehend the level of confusion required to think that quote is clever. It means go against the grain? I can't comprehend the level of ignorance that makes you incapable of understanding one of the classic dystopian novels.
tseabrooks 15y ago
Bring a metaphor to a room full of over-literal logic-minded engineers and watch it get kicked to death I guess. :-(
mistercow 15y ago
It means "don't submit to authority".

cinquemb 15y ago

There is more being said with those words than just whats written. "le contexte est plus fort que le concept"

vacri 15y ago
or, curiously juxtaposed, "to read between the lines"...

johngunderman 15y ago

I interpreted as "write on the paper at a 90 degree angle to the lines" (aka not the way you should be doing it). This seems to be a standard rehashing of "going against the grain", advice to be different, to not follow expectations. That's not what I would necessarily call bad advice.

Jach 15y ago
The Esteemed Great Leader pg might say, or rather he did say in http://paulgraham.com/hs.html http://paulgraham.com/hs.html which I'll just quote: "Rebellion is almost as stupid as obedience. In either case you let yourself be defined by what they tell you to do. The best plan, I think, is to step onto an orthogonal vector. Don't just do what they tell you, and don't just refuse to."

LVB 15y ago

I agree. The school-issued iPads will auto-rotate the virtual paper making this advice pointless.

joelmichael 15y ago

Any student who wrote in a direction perpendicular to the lines of the paper would likely be sent in for well-deserved psychological counseling.

acuity12 15y ago

The quote is a metaphor. It is clearly not about going the other way on lined paper, but rather the basic principle that one should not blindly follow instructions because someone else says they are right. If what you are told to do is wrong, don't do it.

demallien 15y ago
Actually it's even stronger than that. There was no instruction to follow the line, it's just an assumption something that comes naturally which is why it is such a pernicious thing. The quote is a warning against having your thoughts and actions guided in a predetermined direction even without you being aware of it.

LockeWatts 15y ago

>What the hell does that even mean? If that is your best advice, you are probably full of bad advice. I cannot comprehend the level of confusion required to think that quote is clever. It means go against the grain? I can't comprehend the level of ignorance that makes you incapable of understanding one of the classic dystopian novels.

tseabrooks 15y ago

Bring a metaphor to a room full of over-literal logic-minded engineers and watch it get kicked to death I guess. :-(

mistercow 15y ago

It means "don't submit to authority".