3 ms·
I don't think it's so much a "misunderstood" statistic as much as a number that people (like the commenter you are replying to) deliberately trot out to use as
by hn_throwaway_99 3mo ago
I don't think it's so much a "misunderstood" statistic as much as a number that people (like the commenter you are replying to) deliberately trot out to use as evidence for their position because they are depending on most people being statistically illiterate.
To be clear, I totally agree with your points, I just think this is more of a case of "lying with statistics" than being a misunderstanding.
- willy_k 3mo agoI think in this case Hanlon’s Razor very much applies. "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."
- bcrosby95 3mo agoWhen it comes to political statements everything is opposite day.
- willy_k 3mo agoNo. When it comes to statements by politicians, maybe. But when it comes to what people say in a setting like this thread, being so flippant in discounting people’s earnest-ness is a mistake and gets in the way of actually moving understanding forward.
- sebasv_ 3mo agoThank you for brightening my day. Keep on acing the vibe check!
- account42 3mo agoOnly fools invoke Hanlon's Razor for inherently adversarial situations.
- willy_k 3mo agoOnly fools reconcile situations where people disagree as “inherently adversarial”. If you’re feeling adversarial more power to ya, but other people, myself included, are here to discuss the world for discussions’ sake.