Human idiocy, just like our creativity, knows no bounds. Whether it's a temporary brainfart or something more severe, it seems that we always find a way to push the limit.
And you couldn't find better proof of this than the subreddit r/facecpalm. Created all the way back in 2009, this online community describes itself as "a gallery of inexplicable stupidity" and currently has over 6 million members constantly looking for new 'artworks' for its 'collection.'
Over the years, they have collected plenty of examples of people making a complete fool of themselves both online and in real life, so we thought it would be interesting to make an exhibit, featuring the most memorable ones. Continue scrolling and enjoy!
This post may include affiliate links.
Well You're Not Wrong
It Is Insane
We reached out to the people who look after r/facepalm and one of them agreed to tell us more about the community.
"We moderate according to Reddit's content policy and that means that most of the comment moderation we do is to remove bigotry and racism," they told Bored Panda.
"The subreddit's community is fine, for the most part. A lot of people come here to have a laugh at whatever silly thing is being posted and that's ok."
What About Nurses Who Wear Them 8 To 10 Hours A Day
In Fact, It’s Happened 7 Times
You can see a lot of different themes on the subreddit, and the mod said they can change quite fast. "[What's popular] really depends on what is on people's minds at the time. Currently, a popular topic is the insane lengths people go through to deny the facts about Covid."
But there's a way to determine what we can expect from r/facepalm. According to research, people see actions as stupid for three primary reasons: the actions reflect a foolhardy level of risk, an absent-mindedness and lack of practicality, or an impulsive lack of control.
So even though the word 'stupid' sounds subjective, scientists have discovered that people are very quick to identify it.
"People don't spend time on judging if something is stupid or not," study researcher Balazs Aczel told Live Science. "It comes instantaneously, and as our results showed, they have high agreement. If one person calls something stupid, there's a high likelihood others will do the same thing."
The First Women In The Epitome Of Stupid
This is inhumane on so many levels.... Please never ever say things like this... these days, even babies get raped... old women are getting rape... the fact is a sick mind can do such a thing and will think of any excuse possible...
You Can Still Breathe Idiot
"Let's Spend 10 Grand On Jewelry"
Scientific Name = Poison
It might seem unusual or even strange to investigate how people decide that something is stupid. But scientists love a challenge and researchers who study decision-making had no information, beyond anecdotes, as to how people decide whether an action is stupid.
So the team collected news stories and other online content that someone had described as stupid.
One example was a news story about a robber who set out to steal cellphones, but lifted GPS devices instead — and failed to switch the devices off, allowing the police to discover them (and him) immediately.
Next, the researchers invited 154 different students to gather examples of stupidity from their day-to-day life and read the stories, asking them whether each qualified as stupid.
The students (who were all Hungarian) then chose possible reasons from a long list as to why they'd decided each example would qualify for the label.
Hint Hint
Logic
Who Ever Runs That Station Is Dumb
"It harms everyone, but it harms some vulnerable people even more, so it is, worth it" is not stupid. Nobody is that stupid. That's just evil.
Now Your Own Decisions Belong To A Man You Haven't Met
This makes me very mad. Even after I had 2 kids I still had to fight to get my tubes tied because "what if you and your husband wan't more kids?" Grrrrr
The reasons fell into three categories. The first, dubbed "confident ignorance," is when someone tackles something high-risk without the required skills. The cellphone/GPS caper was a prime example of this kind of stupidity.
The next category was "absent-mindedness," which applied to situations where people knew the right thing to do, but for some reason weren't paying close attention. Aczel said one example would be walking out of the store without paying for your groceries.
The third kind of stupidity was described by a lack of control. It occurred when people knew they shouldn't do something but couldn't resist their impulse to do it anyway. Reaching for the third slice of cake when you know you'll get a stomachache later is an example of this kind of stupidity, Aczel explained.
I Get It Now
Ditto everytime I used the expression "avoid it like the plague." I was wrong. Shockingly, I've learned people don't avoid plagues.
Well Well Well... How The Turntables
I Wonder Why America Is So Unhappy?
As an america we need to learn and evolve from other countries example
She Didn't Deserve It
According to Aczel, stupidity is an interesting concept because it doesn't always track with intelligence.
Even people who possess a very high IQ can make extremely dumb moves. The research revealed that judging a behavior "stupid" reveals the observer's expectations of how someone should behave, he said. But the person doing the stupid thing might be operating according to a different set of expectations or goals.
Gun Ownership
Apparently Canada’s Healthcare Is Bad
It Was Media Control All Along
Checkmate
Clearly you havent been burdened with an over abundance of brain cells
On a more practical level, you might be wondering if any of this matters. But understanding why people call something stupid might provide better ways to call out dumb behavior, Aczel highlighted. For instance, it might be more helpful to tell someone they're being overconfident than that they're being stupid.
They’re Everywhere Man!
"Going Everywhere"
70,000 Covid cases came directly as a result of Donald Trump's rallies. We don't need propaganda, we have the votes.
They're Confused
Math Is A Myth
After the research, the team said they plan to concentrate on the cognitive mechanisms people use to monitor others' behaviors. One mystery, Aczel said, is the question why people find stupidity so amusing, a fact that drives more and more people to become members of r/facepalm.
"People want to watch other people doing something stupid as a source of amusement," he said. And it's hard to argue with that.
An 8 Year Old Shouldn’t Have To Do This
Yeah, How Dare He
Yes, shame on him for kissing and probably saying "I love you, I'm proud of you" to his son.
Just Your Average Pro Life Hypocrite
She is apparently answering her own question. She is not pro life, just anti abortion.
Cops Pepper Sprayed Their Own Senator Without Realizing He's An Authority Figure
For Me It Feels Weird To See 6:00 Instead Of 18:00
How Can People Break-Up For Such Stupid Reasons!
"Risk ginger grandchildren" - wtf. But a boyfriend who dumps his woman on command of his mom is a bullet dodged, no matter what.
Having A Functioning Circulatory System
No, perverts are criticizing women for not having the photoshop boobs they usually jerk off to.
Hospital Bill
Sorry Buddy, It's Not Christmas Yet
It's A Great Time To Be A White Debt Collector
It Is Pride Month
Slayed
“If Masks Were Necessary We Would Have Evolved One By Now”
But Nasa Uses The
Antivax Logic
The State Of The World
Most people make decisions unconsciously, because of feelings or bias or whatever is floating around in the depths of the brain... and then they look around for facts to validate a decision that's already been made without benefit of facts. This is why sane people make decisions that seem irrational, and it's also why the Universal Basic Intelligence Test is seeing whether a person will change their mind about something when provided with information that proves a previous decision or opinion wrong. Intelligent people change their minds according to the best information available, stupid people cling to stupid decisions.
Technically The Truth
High Iq Destruction
I know plenty of people who didn't learn a language, didn't read a poem and didn't memorize a fun fact ánd have no muscles to show for it.
Not A True Catholic!
It-It's Almost As If Services Become Easier With A Modernized World? And That Baby Boomers Laughing That Millennials Can't Use A Rotary Phone Is-Pathetic?
What If We Made An App That Would Endanger Lots Of Women?
Apparently There’s Something Wrong With Using A Stock Photo
Ah Yes, Chemistry
She has exploding, vagina-smelling candles. And people buy them. People are stupider than I thought...
Yoga>homeless People
Such A Dumba**s
Why the hell would you let him do that? If you loved him, you'd be helping him decide which scholarship was the best one! Then life for the two of you could be so much better!
Ironic Idiots
Do you know how many pieces of Trump Trash I have had tell me to go back to my own country, even after I explained I am Native American? These people are literally the dregs of humanity.
Logic
Japanese Woman Is Accused Of Appropriating Her Own Culture
Woah What Observation
An Interesting Title
When Us Healthcare Is F***ed
Wow, A Train That Runs Without Tracks!
Lmao
Yeah Sure
Because marriage is a scientific ritual in which the girl goes into the thimbidilywhatsit and has her genetic code altered.
I Can't Stop Laughing At This. I Have No Words
This Is Bloody Awful Really
To all other commenters, I have a cat who I put outside, but on a leash. It's really much better than just letting them everywhere.
They Really Have Gotten To Us
It's too bad a really small but loud minority has managed to offend the majority of this country.
One Person Still Counts As "Somebody"
Workers are not real people, right? They are just things that exist to serve you then they stop existing when you are not looking, right? /s
Deep Showerthought
If you like bored panda but not social media, it means you like sarcastic people but not people
Incredible
We have school uniforms here. Private and all public schools. It's great because all the students don't have to worry about what to wear, fashion etc Poor and rich kids all look the same.
The Wrong People Have Money
Hate that I have to defend a Kar-Jenner, but it wasn't her makeup artist. It was someone she heard off from her own make up artist and not someone she had actually met or worked with. Kylie donated an amount to make that person reach their desired goal, which happened to be 5k. Then she shared the donation link, after the goal was already hit. And she got called out for that because people don't really have the patience to read a sentence or two.
Uber Eats Super Bowl Ad For “Eat Local” Does More Harm Than Good
Trash TV
Ed Solomon Is The Person Who Wrote Men In Black
Something Seems Odd
Don't Have A Cashapp
Yeah, Sounds About Right
And there are a lot of "financial geniuses" who "debunked" this. But we get it, if you rent and you get unemployed, you get evicted and homeless and there's no hassle for the banks. But imagine getting unemployed with a mortgage to pay. The bank will have to foreclose your mortgage, they might even lose some money on your mortgage, which they will have to recoup by pestering and annoying you for the rest of your life.
Fired 200 Rounds !
well in a country where shops are more valuable than black lives, where carrying a gun to defend yourself at all costs under all circumstances is common, where you have had 350 or so school shootings since 2000, where health insurance is not affordable or effective and/or medical care can bankrupt you, where you regularly go to war and have in the last 20 years killed nearly a million civilians in other countries, where you have the death penalty, .... we should NOT be surprised that the right to life is lower value than some jewelry.
Yikes
A Man Dying Of Old Age....very Dangerous And Unexpected
Wut?
It's Al-Gebra, Not Al-Qaeda
Accidentally Left Wing
Nothing More To Say
What Was He Expecting?
I once gave some money to a guy after he interviewed me for a job. He looked surprised and asked me why. I told him that I never had so much fun so it was only right that I pay the clown.
This Teacher Thinks Is The Same To Teach In 2020
Disgusting
Yep. That's called "old people always making up excuses to be mad at everyone else"
Playing "Hard To Get"
This Would Be Funnier If It Wasn’t So Dangerous
Help My Infant Is Gay Bc He Likes Colours
"But Thats Soshulism"
How dare you counter idiotic political statements with facts? Next you'll be telling me that only women can decide about what happens in their womb. You filthy socialised leftist. [Sarcasm: Off]
America In One Picture
Damned if you did, damned if you don't. Laura Browder could've made better choices, sure, but she was desperate to get that job because otherwise she and her kids would've gotten kicked out and become homeless. And we know how much the USA loves homeless people. Regardless, she didn't deserve to be thrown into jail like that. I can't imagine how her kids must've felt to see their mum in that state. Most of all, it may have ruined her chance to get a job and provide an honest living for her and her children :(
I Had To Teach A Historical Geology Class Because The Geologist Who Was Supposed To Teach Is Was A Young Earth Creationist
When You Believe Politicians Over Doctors
Why The Hell Would You Do This
I work for a hospital, in a COVID ICU. They're cutting support personnel, they're cutting supply chains, they're failing to provide needed equipment. Because the lack of support is making this such a shitty place to work, nurses are leaving in droves and they're having to pay the new hires much higher salaries to stay staffed. And of course, the one thing they're *not* cutting is executive salaries.
Wow Calling A Homelessman An Animal
Just Pay Your Student Loan
They're Too Stupid For Mars
NASA isn't the bad guy, but this still adds up to the USA could help poor people without much trouble.
It's A Funny Facepalm Though
Let me guess: even if she got a real Koala, she didn’t prepare and research to handle or feed the animal whatsoever, I‘m I correct?
Wow Sooo Brave
I'm Stuck On That Too
To Be Fair, It Is Family Guy
You Have To Remove The Protective Coating.... Please Can Someone Shut Down The Internet
This is so common. Where I'm from, they give us the disposable face shields for air travel. My mom travelled alone and then complained to me that it was hard to see out of. I peeled off the plastic in front of her and she as like "ohhh." And so the next time I travelled by air, I noticed a majority of people at my gate, wearing those shields without removing the plastic film. So I made a big show of struggling to remove mine and a few noticed and started removing theirs. It spread around.
Worst Customer Ever
Came Home To A Newly Laid Concrete Driveway. I Did Not Order A Concrete Driveway Nor Any Other Type Of Driveway. When The Person That Laid It Came Back To See If I Was Happy With The Job, He Realised It Was The Wrong Address. I Now Have A Free Concrete Driveway
Sometimes it also happens with demolition... And that's slightly less funny.
A Reason Why Youtube Ads Are A Problem
As Someone Previously Living In Their Car This Is Accurate
Throwback To When The White House Secretary Posted His Password Publicly 2 Days In A Row
I Understand The Need For This (I Really Really Do) But This Sucks So Much
Pray For Me!
Look At The Confused Face Of Kim!
So glad this idiot isn't around to embarrass our country anymore although he keeps finding new ways every day. What's gonna be really bad as when they find out he's been a spy the entire time.
No Words
Apparently Europe Has No Food And No "Tech"
Did My Job Boss
Lights Are On But Nobody Home
You forgot to censor the 2nd "ass"... That makes your censorship even more ridiculous.
Christmas Eve Service After Their Drummer Recently Died From Covid
“All Apps Are Addictive!”
Woman On American Airlines Plane Duct-Taped To Her Seat After She Tried To Open The Door Mid-Flight
Picasso Was Alive When Snoop Dogg Was Born
The USPS Is Not A Business
Happens To Everyone
This Is Bob
To be fair, if he already had an N95 mask (that you use for woodworking, gardening, whatever), it's okay to wear it. And there were arguments for leaving the economy open. The shutdown has hurt a lot of people; reasonable minds can disagree. At this point, if a Republican simply does not advocate the violent overthrow of our government, I'm counting it as a win
Can't Even Enjoy The View Anymore
Ridiculous
It's Safe
That's The UK Parliament
This Girl Thinks Only She Can Have Preferences
Karen Decides That Children’s Fun Isn’t Enough Of A Reason To Have A Tree House
What Fruit Is Named After A Color?
Movie Theater Tries To Play A Christmas Movie Using An Amazon Prime Account
The Shame
Poor Guy
Oof
🤦🏻♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏾♀️🤦🏿♀️🤦🏻🤦🏼🤦🏽🤦🏾🤦🏿🤦🏻♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏽♂️🤦🏾♂️🤦🏿♂️ (Idk which one is you)
Load More Replies...I haven't even read this yet but I'm willing to bet that 80% of them are dumbass Conservatives.
I was wrong. I admit it. Only 70%. The rest are dumbass conservatives commenting.
Load More Replies...Is this a repeat of another BP post or three? I swear we've seen most of these before.
Most of these post are done by left wing liberals whining because not everyone wants to be exactly like them.
Such overt propaganda with no alternative views actually given any respect. You don't want to listen to any countering ideas because it doesn't fit your narrative. Well done you close minded fool.
Which one triggered you the most? Perhaps these hit a little too close to home for you?
Load More Replies...Well, Q-anon has a lot of followers so that makes them sheeple too, right?
Load More Replies...Because prevention is better than cure. Because natural immunity means that at risk population will get it and clog healthcare services. Yeah natural immunity worked for the plague too, millions of deaths later. Just get vaxed already
Load More Replies...🤦🏻♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏽♀️🤦🏾♀️🤦🏿♀️🤦🏻🤦🏼🤦🏽🤦🏾🤦🏿🤦🏻♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏽♂️🤦🏾♂️🤦🏿♂️ (Idk which one is you)
Load More Replies...I haven't even read this yet but I'm willing to bet that 80% of them are dumbass Conservatives.
I was wrong. I admit it. Only 70%. The rest are dumbass conservatives commenting.
Load More Replies...Is this a repeat of another BP post or three? I swear we've seen most of these before.
Most of these post are done by left wing liberals whining because not everyone wants to be exactly like them.
Such overt propaganda with no alternative views actually given any respect. You don't want to listen to any countering ideas because it doesn't fit your narrative. Well done you close minded fool.
Which one triggered you the most? Perhaps these hit a little too close to home for you?
Load More Replies...Well, Q-anon has a lot of followers so that makes them sheeple too, right?
Load More Replies...Because prevention is better than cure. Because natural immunity means that at risk population will get it and clog healthcare services. Yeah natural immunity worked for the plague too, millions of deaths later. Just get vaxed already
Load More Replies...