Joe wrote:
> On 2008-05-29, Bill wrote:
>> I'm overqualified for MENSA.
>
> What is it that you think is the qualification for MENSA? And how do
> you become "overqualified"?

Judging by numerous items I've read, written by Mensans,
you have to be extremely good at intellectual tasks of
absolutely no practical value, yet able to make statements
that most people can recognize as very stupid.

--
Wes Groleau

You're all individuals!
Yes, we're all individuals!
You're all different!
Yes, we are all different!
I'm not!

("Life of Brian")

On Fri, 30 May 2008 22:14:09 -0500, Joe wrote:

>> **** off, Win-droid. Go troll the Windoze groups.

> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.

Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.

Bugger off, n00b.


--
"Ubuntu" -- an African word, meaning "Slackware is too hard for me".
Now filtering out all posts originating from Google Groups.
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org

On 2008-05-31, Dan C wrote:
> On Fri, 30 May 2008 22:14:09 -0500, Joe wrote:
>
>>> **** off, Win-droid. Go troll the Windoze groups.
>
>> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.
>
> Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.

Same thing entirely. You don't use Ubuntu, and don't provide any real
positive to the newsgroup. You like to belittle people asking for
help, or anyone that is new to linux in general. You serve no other
purpose in life...

>
> Bugger off, n00b.

Get a life outside of the PC, sparkie...


--
Joe - Linux User #449481/Ubuntu User #19733
joe at hits - buffalo dot com
"Hate is baggage, life is too short to go around pissed off all the
time..." - Danny, American History X

Joe wrote:

> Not at all. Though I'm not a member, I believe I would likely qualify.
> The only real requirement is to be in the top 2% of an approved IQ test,
> or the top 2% of Mensa's test.
>
> I could never really determine any real benefit to joining such a
> "club". It seems to be mostly a group of folks that like to pat each
> other on the back. I'd imagine that the bulk of people with IQ's in
> the top 2% do not join, since it doesn't give any real benefit. But
> many people in that group do have self-esteem issues (picked on a lot
> in HS, I'd imagine) that likely make them need to be a member of
> something...

When I was at University, it was only the /most/ /stupid/ students that felt
the need to bolster their egos by joining MENSA. The rest of us used to
just laugh at them.

C.

Joe wrote:

> I never met a member that I felt was "stupid".

I had a MENSA member for a flatmate when I was at University. One evening,
she came rushing into the living room yelling that "the tap's stuck and the
water is overflowing!". Rather than explain the cure to the problem, I
went into the bathroom and removed the sink plug and then freed the tap!

In my experience, most MENSA members are exceptionally good at IQ tests,
but /entirely/ /useless/ at "real world" problems!

> Most that I met were very insecure, though. The antithesis of the
> normal "jock" or whatever. Seemed that they had spent so much time being
> picked on for whatever reason that they needed something to make them feel
> superior.

For fun, some friends and I took the MENSA tests at Uni - we all passed with
extremely high marks, mostly higher than the MENSA members. This simply
added to the insecurity of the MENSA types!

C.

On Sat, 31 May 2008 00:43:34 -0500, Joe wrote:

>>> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.

>> Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.

> Same thing entirely. You don't use Ubuntu, and don't provide any real
> positive to the newsgroup.

No, it isn't. I'll try to simplify it so you can understand: First of
all, I *have* used Ubuntu, and still do occasionally. It's installed on a
test box here. The "win-droids" that I refer to frequently do *NOT* use
Linux in any form. Secondly (or is it thirdly?), Slackware is Linux, just
as Ubuntu is, whereas Windoze is not. Get it?

> You like to belittle people asking for help, or anyone that is new to
> linux in general. You serve no other purpose in life...

Well now, that's a pretty silly statement, isn't it? You have no idea
what I do with my life. Makes your statements in another thread about
being Mensa-ish in intelligence look pretty suspect, eh?

>> Bugger off, n00b.

> Get a life outside of the PC, sparkie...

You'd be amazed.... Again, bugger off, n00b.


--
"Ubuntu" -- an African word, meaning "Slackware is too hard for me".
Now filtering out all posts originating from Google Groups.
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://improve-usenet.org

Beauregard T. Shagnasty wrote:
> Bill wrote:
>
>> Beauregard T. Shagnasty wrote:
>>> So .. that tells me you need Internet Exploder and Outhouse Distress
>>> to read all the things your sister sends you, eh? Do you really read
>>> it? When I get crap like that from my 84 year old uncle - who uses
>>> Incredimail to make things worse - I just hit the Delete key.
>> Nah, she sends me good stuff, lots of animal pictures and cutesy
>> things but she keeps sending me those damned 'Blue Mountain' animated
>> cards.
>
> I usually reply to the card senders with "Thanks for the sentiment, but
> please don't send any more of those."

I did and she finally stopped.
>
>> I disabled Outhouse and only use IE because MickeySoft will
>> only do updates that way. The bastards make it a PITA to download
>> updates with FF, Opera, or even Avant.
>
> Before I stopped using Windows (Win2K), I got updates just fine without
> ever using IE. The update manager popped an icon in the Systray and said
> updates were ready to download. Click it and go.

That one is called "Automatic Updates" and if you don't have it set to
preview before it installs stuff....well???
>
>> BTW, I said she was my sister, not my aunt, and definitely not stupid.
>> She and I both are health freaks and workout every day, both physically
>> and mentally.
>
> Right, I said "your sister" but "my uncle." None of us are health nuts.
> I try to convince my doctor that motorcycle riding is exercise.
>
Even semi-serious dirt biking is. My favorite is oval dirt track racing,
full throttle and sideways.

>> Heh. I am about to become a great grandfather thanks to my 22 year old
>> grandson.
>
> Aha. My grandbabies are only four years, and eight weeks. I started
> late.
>
>> Now, back to my sci-fi PDF.
>
> A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...
>
Heinlein, 1957, "Citizen of the Galaxy".
Bill

Dan C wrote:
> On Fri, 30 May 2008 22:14:09 -0500, Joe wrote:
>
>>> **** off, Win-droid. Go troll the Windoze groups.
>
>> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.
>
> Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.
>
> Bugger off, n00b.
>
>
Do we need a alt.os.ubuntu.insults group?
Bill

Joe wrote:
> On 2008-05-31, Wes Groleau wrote:
>> Joe wrote:
>>> On 2008-05-29, Bill wrote:
>>>> I'm overqualified for MENSA.
>>> What is it that you think is the qualification for MENSA? And how do
>>> you become "overqualified"?

Having an IQ over the 132 minimum.

>> Judging by numerous items I've read, written by Mensans,
>> you have to be extremely good at intellectual tasks of
>> absolutely no practical value, yet able to make statements
>> that most people can recognize as very stupid.
>>
A lot of them do that to each other as the 2 who worked for me took me
to a meeting once and it was a night of either really bad puns, or
trying to look smarter than the rest. I went out with them on Wednesdays
after work for pizza and (too much) beer, and the conversations got way
out of hand.
>
> Not at all. Though I'm not a member, I believe I would likely qualify.
> The only real requirement is to be in the top 2% of an approved IQ test,
> or the top 2% of Mensa's test.

I said above it was 132, but that may have evolved downward a bit. It
used to be called the upper 1%.

>
> I could never really determine any real benefit to joining such a
> "club". It seems to be mostly a group of folks that like to pat each
> other on the back. I'd imagine that the bulk of people with IQ's in
> the top 2% do not join, since it doesn't give any real benefit. But
> many people in that group do have self-esteem issues (picked on a lot
> in HS, I'd imagine) that likely make them need to be a member of
> something...
>
>
There were people there from some pretty jobs but smart and I just
figured that maybe they were smart but not motivated. Since I went in
Silicon Valley, almost everyone there was an engineer or technician or
something to do with electronics.
The only benefit that you get is to pay your annual membership fee and
hope to find some people worth getting to know, like CEO's.
Other than that, it did seem possible to steer a few people into a
conversation on Rocket Science, Nuclear Physics, Astronomy, or whatever
I felt like, so the night wasn't a total wash.
I would give credit here, as most Linux users tend to be in the upper 5%
anyway, or close. Windows (exclusive) users (office drones) tend to be
on the other side of the bell curve.

BTW, Whoops seems to be a good name for this thread.
Bill Baka

Christopher Hunter wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>
>> I never met a member that I felt was "stupid".
>
> I had a MENSA member for a flatmate when I was at University. One evening,
> she came rushing into the living room yelling that "the tap's stuck and the
> water is overflowing!". Rather than explain the cure to the problem, I
> went into the bathroom and removed the sink plug and then freed the tap!
>
> In my experience, most MENSA members are exceptionally good at IQ tests,
> but /entirely/ /useless/ at "real world" problems!

I see some glimmer of truth in that. Me, the non-Mensa guy as the
engineer in charge, and the 2 Mensa guys who worked for me as
engineering technicians. They could have been engineers but they always
seemed to need me to point them in the right direction.
>
>> Most that I met were very insecure, though. The antithesis of the
>> normal "jock" or whatever. Seemed that they had spent so much time being
>> picked on for whatever reason that they needed something to make them feel
>> superior.

Try picked on in 4th to 6th grades, school handle for me was 'The
brain.', yet I was a soccer and baseball jock (as much as you can be in
grade school). Life is weird.

>
> For fun, some friends and I took the MENSA tests at Uni - we all passed with
> extremely high marks, mostly higher than the MENSA members. This simply
> added to the insecurity of the MENSA types!
>
> C.
>
If I get really bored I might join for my 65th birthday, so I have time
to think about it.
Bill (Ehh!) Baka

Dan C wrote:
> On Sat, 31 May 2008 00:43:34 -0500, Joe wrote:
>
>>>> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.
>
>>> Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.
>
>> Same thing entirely. You don't use Ubuntu, and don't provide any real
>> positive to the newsgroup.
>
> No, it isn't. I'll try to simplify it so you can understand: First of
> all, I *have* used Ubuntu, and still do occasionally. It's installed on a
> test box here. The "win-droids" that I refer to frequently do *NOT* use
> Linux in any form. Secondly (or is it thirdly?), Slackware is Linux, just
> as Ubuntu is, whereas Windoze is not. Get it?
>
>> You like to belittle people asking for help, or anyone that is new to
>> linux in general. You serve no other purpose in life...
>
> Well now, that's a pretty silly statement, isn't it? You have no idea
> what I do with my life. Makes your statements in another thread about
> being Mensa-ish in intelligence look pretty suspect, eh?
>
>>> Bugger off, n00b.
>
>> Get a life outside of the PC, sparkie...
>
> You'd be amazed.... Again, bugger off, n00b.
>
>
What's funny here is that the original thread was 'Whoops' and here we are.
Bill Baka

Bill wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>> On 2008-05-31, Wes Groleau wrote:
>>> Joe wrote:
>>>> On 2008-05-29, Bill wrote:
>>>>> I'm overqualified for MENSA.
>>>> What is it that you think is the qualification for MENSA? And how do
>>>> you become "overqualified"?
>
> Having an IQ over the 132 minimum.
>
>>> Judging by numerous items I've read, written by Mensans,
>>> you have to be extremely good at intellectual tasks of
>>> absolutely no practical value, yet able to make statements
>>> that most people can recognize as very stupid.
>>>
> A lot of them do that to each other as the 2 who worked for me took me
> to a meeting once and it was a night of either really bad puns, or
> trying to look smarter than the rest. I went out with them on Wednesdays
> after work for pizza and (too much) beer, and the conversations got way
> out of hand.
>>
>> Not at all. Though I'm not a member, I believe I would likely
>> qualify. The only real requirement is to be in the top 2% of an
>> approved IQ test,
>> or the top 2% of Mensa's test.
>
> I said above it was 132, but that may have evolved downward a bit. It
> used to be called the upper 1%.
>
>>
>> I could never really determine any real benefit to joining such a
>> "club". It seems to be mostly a group of folks that like to pat each
>> other on the back. I'd imagine that the bulk of people with IQ's in
>> the top 2% do not join, since it doesn't give any real benefit. But
>> many people in that group do have self-esteem issues (picked on a lot
>> in HS, I'd imagine) that likely make them need to be a member of
>> something...
>>
>>
> There were people there from some pretty jobs but smart and I just
> figured that maybe they were smart but not motivated. Since I went in
> Silicon Valley, almost everyone there was an engineer or technician or
> something to do with electronics.
> The only benefit that you get is to pay your annual membership fee and
> hope to find some people worth getting to know, like CEO's.
> Other than that, it did seem possible to steer a few people into a
> conversation on Rocket Science, Nuclear Physics, Astronomy, or whatever
> I felt like, so the night wasn't a total wash.
> I would give credit here, as most Linux users tend to be in the upper 5%
> anyway, or close. Windows (exclusive) users (office drones) tend to be
> on the other side of the bell curve.
>
> BTW, Whoops seems to be a good name for this thread.
>
>


I don't remember any Mensa groups from my college or graduate school
days. I think the membership level was always 2% (there are other groups
with more demanding qualifications), although I didn't join until after
the death of my partner and I was looking for new activities. I am a
member of message groups about my hobbies (movies, astronomy--several
professional astronomers guide the discussion with us amateurs, and
others from time to time). There are no required meetings. The only
"meetings" I attend are of a dining group. Conversation is at a more
intellectual level than other such groups, as is also true for the
message groups. There is no petty bickering or ad hominem arguments, but
I mostly deal with mature persons. I wish some knowledgeable persons
would start a Mensa-linux group.


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Wes Groleau wrote:
> BUT, I'd venture to say that neither you
> nor I probably meant very many of the thousands
> of Mensans. And probably of all the ones we met,

MET, not meant. Where are the brains when you need them?

--
Wes Groleau

Words of the Wild Wes(t) = http://Ideas.Lang-Learn.us/WWW

Wes Groleau wrote:
> Christopher Hunter wrote:
>> In my experience, most MENSA members are exceptionally good at IQ tests,
>> but /entirely/ /useless/ at "real world" problems!
>
> Although I started the anti-Mensa subthread,
> let me backpedal a little. The official
> entrance standard is 98th percentile of IQ
> By accepting the 98% percentile on lots of
> different tests, they probably expand to
> about the 95th percentile. But the number
> of people in that five percent who actually
> join is probably less than one percent.
> And how many of those do what I did?
> (Discover you've joined a club dominated
> by pompous blowhards and drop out.)
>
> BUT, I'd venture to say that neither you
> nor I probably meant very many of the thousands
> of Mensans. And probably of all the ones we met,
> only the worst ones bothered to tell you they
> were members. I know I'm usually reluctant to
> reveal I once joined.
>
> On four IQ tests, one person scored less
> than percentile 75, over 99.5, and two
> values in between. Not very reliable,
> are they?
>


When I applied there were two ways of qualifying: submitting the result
of a professionally administered IQ test taken fairly recently, or
taking a test administered by the local club. I took the local club test
and had the impression that it had seldom been updated. It was said that
few flunked it, possibly because few people would submit themselves to
humiliation without having felt well qualified to pass the test. I
remember preparing myself by trying out a sample test on some website.


--
++====+=====+=====+=====+=====+====+====+=====+=== ==+=====+=====+====++
||Arnold VICTOR, New York City, i. e., ||
||Arnoldo VIKTORO, Nov-jorkurbo, t. e., ||
||Remove capital letters from e-mail address for correct address/ ||
|| Forigu majusklajn literojn el e-poŝta adreso por ĝusta adreso ||
++====+=====+=====+=====+=====+====+====+=====+=== ==+=====+=====+====++
NOTICE: Due to Presidential Executive Orders, the National Security
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They may do this without any judicial or legislative oversight. You
have no recourse or protection.

CBFalconer wrote:
> AV3 wrote:
> ... snip ...
>> I wish some knowledgeable persons would start a Mensa-linux group.
>
> Well, I see:
>
> alt.mensa.boston
> alt.mensa
> uk.org.mensa
>
> among others on my Usenet server.
>


To be sure, most local groups have a public website, but the more
interesting groups are called Special Interest Groups (SIGs), which have
activities and message groups restricted to Mensa members. Websites
probably wouldn't be in the alt.* groups.


There are local, national, and international meetings, which I presume
have websites, but I have yet to attend even one. There was a Mensa
section meeting at the U. S. national astronomers meeting last fall, but
it unfortunately conflicted with another activity and I missed it.


--
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||Arnoldo VIKTORO, Nov-jorkurbo, t. e., ||
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Trevor Best illuminated alt.os.linux.ubuntu by typing:
> On Sat, 31 May 2008 06:47:21 -0700, Bill wrote:
>
>> Dan C wrote:
>>> On Fri, 30 May 2008 22:14:09 -0500, Joe wrote:
>>>
>>>>> **** off, Win-droid. Go troll the Windoze groups.
>>>
>>>> **** off, Slack-droid. Go troll the slackware groups.
>>>
>>> Pretty poor imitation. Not the same thing at all.
>>>
>>> Bugger off, n00b.
>>>
>>>
>> Do we need a alt.os.ubuntu.insults group? Bill
>
> Then this one would empty :-(

Bugger off, n00b!
;-)

--
Moog

"The G is for the gnarled face of someone who's on ninety thousand
pounds a week who reckoned he should have had a throw in"

Wes Groleau wrote:
> Wes Groleau wrote:
>> BUT, I'd venture to say that neither you
>> nor I probably meant very many of the thousands
>> of Mensans. And probably of all the ones we met,
>
> MET, not meant. Where are the brains when you need them?
>
I was going to let that slip, but you caught it.
Brilliant minds have more neurons to keep track of.
Anyway, what you said about scores is probably true.
I've gotten 132 (hung over at the Army draft center).
150 on line while talking to my boss.
Something over 160 on the 'cream of the crop' test that was published in
Omni magazine in 1979. I'm in there somewhere but I thing the Army test
maxed at 132 because I was accused of 'cheating'. To get drafted???
The meeting I went to was around 30 people on that night and the pompous
asses probably sums it up. Bad puns, "I'm smarter than you." games of
one upmanship, and some, only a little, good technical chatter.
All for me,
I goofed and stayed up all night.
This Sunday will be groggy day for me.
Bill Baka

AV3 wrote:
> Wes Groleau wrote:
>> Christopher Hunter wrote:
>>> In my experience, most MENSA members are exceptionally good at IQ tests,
>>> but /entirely/ /useless/ at "real world" problems!
>>
>> On four IQ tests, one person scored less
>> than percentile 75, over 99.5, and two
>> values in between. Not very reliable,
>> are they?
>>
>
>
> When I applied there were two ways of qualifying: submitting the result
> of a professionally administered IQ test taken fairly recently, or
> taking a test administered by the local club. I took the local club test
> and had the impression that it had seldom been updated. It was said that
> few flunked it, possibly because few people would submit themselves to
> humiliation without having felt well qualified to pass the test. I
> remember preparing myself by trying out a sample test on some website.
>
>
I heard about that and that the Mensa battery took all day. I don't
usually have all day, and if it isn't updated, what good is it?
Bill Baka

Bill wrote:
> AV3 wrote:
>> Wes Groleau wrote:
>>> Christopher Hunter wrote:
>>>> In my experience, most MENSA members are exceptionally good at IQ
>>>> tests,
>>>> but /entirely/ /useless/ at "real world" problems!
>>>
>>> On four IQ tests, one person scored less
>>> than percentile 75, over 99.5, and two
>>> values in between. Not very reliable,
>>> are they?
>>>
>>
>>
>> When I applied there were two ways of qualifying: submitting the
>> result of a professionally administered IQ test taken fairly recently,
>> or taking a test administered by the local club. I took the local club
>> test and had the impression that it had seldom been updated. It was
>> said that few flunked it, possibly because few people would submit
>> themselves to humiliation without having felt well qualified to pass
>> the test. I remember preparing myself by trying out a sample test on
>> some website.
>>
>>
> I heard about that and that the Mensa battery took all day. I don't
> usually have all day, and if it isn't updated, what good is it?
>


Mine took two or three hours, and I was out in good time for lunch. As
to outdated, it is purely a personal judgement that the test they gave
me in 2001 seemed little different in character from the previous such
test I took in junior high school. I pride myself on a good memory, but
I wasn't taking notes for comparison back in the 1950's. YMMD.


--
++====+=====+=====+=====+=====+====+====+=====+=== ==+=====+=====+====++
||Arnold VICTOR, New York City, i. e., ||
||Arnoldo VIKTORO, Nov-jorkurbo, t. e., ||
||Remove capital letters from e-mail address for correct address/ ||
|| Forigu majusklajn literojn el e-poŝta adreso por ĝusta adreso ||
++====+=====+=====+=====+=====+====+====+=====+=== ==+=====+=====+====++
NOTICE: Due to Presidential Executive Orders, the National Security
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They may do this without any judicial or legislative oversight. You
have no recourse or protection.