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They pretend to have triple-digit IQs, glasses thicker than Velma’s from Scooby-Doo, and they love flaunting their stuff—bragging about their big brains, of course! They’re the obnoxious wannabe eggheads that make the internet insufferable with their Thesaurus vernacular and incessant desire to prove that their intellectual capacity for reasoning (i.e. ability to sound smarter) is bigger than yours or mine. Combined.

The ‘I Am Very Smart’ Reddit community is chock-full of quality posts poking fun at people who think they have high IQs (but actually just have massive egos). And with a following of 1.5 million, you can bet that folks are interested in seeing these ‘mighty minds’ make utter fools of themselves.

Check out some of the best posts from the community below, upvote your fave pics, and be sure to follow their subreddit if you like their content. Bored Panda has written about the intellectually eloquent r/IAmVerySmart subreddit before, so when you’re done with this list, have a scroll through our earlier post which can be found right over here.

Bored Panda wanted to learn more about the r/IAmVerySmart community, so we reached out to their moderator team and members. They're a vocal and friendly group and they told us all about what their subreddit stands for, how it changed over the years, why people want to try to appear 'VerySmart(TM),' as well as how best to deal with anyone who's been hitting the Thesaurus way, way too hard.

#1

Too Busy To “Ackshually” To Appreciate A Joke, Only To Then Incorrect Them

Too Busy To “Ackshually” To Appreciate A Joke, Only To Then Incorrect Them

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ianmilne2159 avatar
Ian Milne
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You could argue that the monster was called Adam, as that’s what he refers to himself as in the book.

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#3

Absolute Alpha Intellectual. To This Day, I Still Don’t Get It

Absolute Alpha Intellectual. To This Day, I Still Don’t Get It

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The 'I Am Very Smart' community was founded way back in 2013 and it's one of the longest-existing veterans on Reddit. The moderators, even though they encourage poking fun at people who try to sound smart too hard, nonetheless don't tolerate anyone sharing any identifying information. The content's supposed to be about fun while indirectly celebrating actual critical thinking and intellectualism.

Moderator Thumbs0fDestiny was very open about the fact that the main draw of the 'I Am Very Smart' community is revealing someone else's blunder when, instead, people should be humble and succinct. In other words, the sub's popularity comes from one of the most human things ever, the joy that we get from seeing someone else fail or get humiliated, called schadenfreude.

#4

Someone’s Hot Take On The 4th Of July Was Wrong

Someone’s Hot Take On The 4th Of July Was Wrong

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#5

Haha... If You Don’t Get The Joke, You Are An Absolute Moron

Haha... If You Don’t Get The Joke, You Are An Absolute Moron

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Sum Guy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I had to double check if a group of crows are called a murder... pretty funny meme/joke

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#6

Too Smart To Appreciate A Good Play On Words

Too Smart To Appreciate A Good Play On Words

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Jamziee
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"A Squid pro quo?" "I suppose... wouldn't it be nice to be a little closer to sea?" (Hamilton just in case of confusion)

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Or, in their own words, as the mod went in character, pretending to be one of the people the community likes to laugh at: "Every day across the internet, people comment some of the most braggadocious drivel anyone could ever hope to hear, and they do so with such confidence and disregard for logic that it sometimes transcends the bounds of the page it's written on and becomes art. We collect those masterpieces of magniloquence and put them all in one easy to find location where people can come and talk and laugh about the cockalorum character that wrote them. What's not to love?"

"I've talked to NASCAR fans before who say they don't go for the race, they go for the crash. When one goes to the circus and sees the man put his head in a lion's mouth, somewhere inside one's self they kinda want to see the lion chomp down. That's what you get, in the intellectual sense, when you come to r/IAmVerySmart," moderator Thumbs0fDestiny said, getting serious once again.

#7

He Just Tries To Correct The Already Correct Spelling Lmao

He Just Tries To Correct The Already Correct Spelling Lmao

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#8

I Don't Have An Iq Of 136 For Nothing

I Don't Have An Iq Of 136 For Nothing

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#9

This Meme Isn't Funny Because It's Incorrect

This Meme Isn't Funny Because It's Incorrect

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Meanwhile, community member OneGoodRib (loving these user names, by the way), point-blank said that people love laughing at others and there's less guilt if we all poke fun at the "chumheads" who are the targets of the subreddit. "I don’t feel nearly as bad about having a laugh about someone being pretentious as I do about laughing at, say, people who are dressed really poorly in public."

In OneGoodRib's opinion, some people are "super insecure" about their intelligence and believe that being smart is the most important thing in the world. That's why they're willing to sacrifice anything just to make others believe their IQ's hitting Super Saiyan power levels (even if it backfires... magnificently). "It’s okay that they don’t have friends, or talents, or accomplishments, as long as they just keep telling people they’re super smart. And of course some humans are just smug [jerks], it just happens that the people in this sub are smug about being smart rather than smug about motorcycles or veganism."

#10

Ummm... Yeah, That’s A Big Yikes

Ummm... Yeah, That’s A Big Yikes

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#11

Only The Most Intelligent Of People Can Understand This

Only The Most Intelligent Of People Can Understand This

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#12

Yeah, I Am Very Smart

Yeah, I Am Very Smart

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Nobody's a stranger to not wanting to sound like a fool, however. We've all been in situations where we end up regretting coming off stupid. However, the 'VerySmart(TM)' that are featured on the r/IAmVerySmart community overcorrect in these situations way, way, beyond the norm.

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"There's a lot of id involved in the VerySmartTM commenters we feature. They seem to have much of their self-esteem tied up in their (mis)conceptions of their own intelligence, or the person they're talking to depending on the circumstance. Who knows why," Thumbs0fDestiny mused. "Perhaps it's because everyone views themselves as the hero of their own story and some people prefer playing the intellectual to the athlete."

#13

I Love Tinder

I Love Tinder

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#14

Stop The Assumptions Now

Stop The Assumptions Now

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caseymcalister avatar
Casey McAlister
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So you are saying a mouse doesn't actually think that a bat is an angel? Oh no, it can't be true, who could have thought? My life will never be the same.

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#15

Nice Try, Smartie

Nice Try, Smartie

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Kari Panda
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What does that have to do with staying in school though? Personally at least, I never learned about Medusa in school.

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They also had other ideas about why some folks try so hard to seem intelligent: "Maybe it's because they are actually of above-average intelligence and their life's circumstances have led to them being right so often, they now just take it for granted, and then we just happen to catch them when that assumption bites them on the ass. Or maybe the person views intelligence as a weapon, a status symbol that must be flaunted for its own sake."

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#17

Nothing Is More Romantic Than Getting Mad Over "Btw"

Nothing Is More Romantic Than Getting Mad Over "Btw"

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#18

I Really Hope My Friend Was Being Sarcastic With These Messages

I Really Hope My Friend Was Being Sarcastic With These Messages

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At the end of the day, everyone's desire to sound smart can be as unique and varied as there are different individuals in the world. Most likely, it's a mix of many small different reasons, the main one probably being that we've evolved to depend on our social group where reputation is everything... and being someone who's looked up to can mean the difference between a life of luxury and being an outcast who has to fend for themselves. However, our 'tribes' aren't dumb: they know when someone's desperately pretending to be someone better than they are.

#19

Pfff... Scientists Can't Get Anything Right

Pfff... Scientists Can't Get Anything Right

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#20

You're Hired!

You're Hired!

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lunareclipse_1 avatar
lunar eclipse
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Why are you going on about your parents achievements? List what you did yourself?

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#21

Cultural Appropriation

Cultural Appropriation

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wandiledludlu avatar
Sum Guy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This was written by an American... I can bet my life's savings on it

linusnilsson avatar
Linus Nilsson
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I took the effort to try to find out, but could not find the answer. I guess the subreddit r/shitamericanssay is a hint, but who am I to judge?

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qahtanrama avatar
River Webb
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

is this person familiar with the entire country of Spain?

lovelydolls666 avatar
PhoebeBird
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

First of all Spain is a European country and secondly Spanish is the most spoken language in the United States so of course loads of people are gonna learn it is extremely useful.

suehazlewood avatar
Sue Hazlewood
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So even though Maori is an official language in New Zealand we white folks should not be speaking it?

laurencaswell4 avatar
Lauren Caswell
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm proud that we are doing right by te reo these days and keeping the language alive as a united country :) some Welsh emmisarries came over several years back to look at our methods, as they are working to retain their native Welsh language

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virgilblue avatar
Virgil Blue
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Since the social justice "club" let complete idiots join I guess. So.e while ago they complained Sailor Moon was too white.

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liddlecatpaws avatar
Jo Johannsen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So if one chooses European languages, it's not cultural appropriation? Very strange viewpoint.

boredpanda_155 avatar
Jay Dresser
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How about a European language like Spanish? People from Spain are white.

andreavilarmelego avatar
Ozacoter
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To be fair I feel that a lot of north/centrum europeans dont consider us white. And I am paler than most of them.

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liddlecatpaws avatar
Jo Johannsen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I must be missing something... isn't Spanish the language spoken in Spain? Isn't Spain in Europe? Isn't Spanish (and French and Italian, etc. etc.) a Romance language derived from Latin?

christineschneider avatar
Beeps
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The most disturbing thing I ever read was a comment on a Facebook ad for a language learning app. The advert said “learn Spanish faster” and someone commented with an angry emoji and: “I don’t want to learn Spanish faster, I want them to learn English, as after all that’s our language.” I kid you not.

ryandeschanel avatar
Ryan Deschanel
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It looks like SJWs do not understand the concept of "Spain"... Their crown princess is whiter than most whites.

dogsrulegibson avatar
Walter
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

OH MY F*****G GOD. Quit stereotyping that Americans are dumb as s**t!!!!!!!! Sure, a lot of us are idiots, but not ALL OF US. And don't bring out the little old "You're racist" Because, guess what Frenchies? You're not the right people to judge! So please, for the love of god, STOP CALLING US OUT BECAUSE OF ONE IDIOT.

robindjw avatar
Robin DJW
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In New Mexico, Hispanics are NOT a minority. So, many non-Hispanics learn Spanish to better communicate. It certainly improves your employability. Learning ANY second language is a smart thing to do, and what is this "cultural appropriation" nonsense, anyway? Why can we not enjoy and approve or even (gasp) adopt elements of other cultures that we find good? How is this an insult?????????? Build common ground, folks. Eliminate divisiveness.

alexisdraskinis avatar
Alexis draskinis
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My white grandmother would've been really upset to know that she shouldn't have been speaking Spanish all her life, even though she was born there. I should call the rest, that still live there, and tell them to hurry up & pick a white euro language! Lol!

v-pervinca avatar
Pervinca
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

WTF. I really hope he/she was joking with all the appropriation thing.

ellagreenman avatar
Ella Greenman
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Like um white languages? There are whites in africa who speak Swahili, whites in Japan who speak Japanese... I speak spanish and hebrew... Hebrew is spoken in the middle east. I am not middle easten

olepederhagen avatar
Ole Peder Amrud Hagen
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is wrong on so many levels... I assume the person writing this is 110 % pure bred English?

lolawootwoot avatar
Periwinkle
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Who wants to bet they're american? Alot of them speak Spanish in those continents after all. As someone who is white, and half Spanish, with a fully, born, raised and first language coincidently being Spanish, Father, Y'know.. Cultural appropriation 😵

viviane_katz avatar
Viviane
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Starting life as a French speaker, I, too, then appropriated English.

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Bacony Cakes
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Dr. Breen, sitting in his office: Let me read a letter I recently received. "Dear Dr. Breen. Why do so many white people speak non-white languages? Sincerely, A Concerned Citizen." Thank you for writing, Concerned. Of course, your question touches on one of the most basic biological impulses, with all its associated hopes and fears for the future of the species. I also detect some unspoken questions. Do our benefactors really know what's best for us? What gives them the right to make this kind of decision for mankind? Will they ever deactivate the suppression field and let us speak white again?

kathrynbaylis_1 avatar
Kathryn Baylis
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is probably the same kind of person who would stick their nose in, and make a scene in public about people speaking another language—-in a private conversation amongst themselves, and nine of their damn business. FFS, why wouldn’t someone want to expand their mind, their views, and their experience by learning another language to speak with, and therefore better understand, the people whose native tongue it is?

am3thyst951 avatar
Xenia Granados
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Bro learning another language is not cultural appropriation. It learning to communicate with other groups and can be a vital life skill

janna-nym avatar
No you didn't
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wait, what? Leaning a foreign language is a problem? Bold point of view.

leodomitrix avatar
Leo Domitrix
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Errrr..... Who wants to tell the OP that Spain is in Europe? And if whites can only speak European languages, then nobody but nonwhites can speak non-European languages, and you see where this is heading...

jonahalcaraz avatar
Barbz
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

WHAT?!?!?!? Do they think that spanish is a Latino-originated language?

xyllemc avatar
Xylle Flora
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's like saying to me, "Hey why do you speak Hindi? You've lived in America all your life."

alysoncreates avatar
Aly Murphy
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh yes…because I’m white…I cannot speak Spanish even though I was adopted into a Hispanic family (Mom and mom’s side) where my grandma doesn’t even speak English. And I shouldn’t have learned Spanish even though we moved to Mexico for my childhood (1-9). This makes me so annoyed, by this person’s logic…I shouldn’t have learned Spanish from my mom so I could speak and be able to be understood in the country we were living in and to understand and speak with my mom’s side of the family when we moved to the US.

lenferguson0 avatar
Len
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Maybe just maybe... Americans like learning Spanish because it's the second most spoken language in the US? It proves to be very useful sometimes.

chris_troisi avatar
Christopher Troisi
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Spain and Germany are both in Europe. Spanish and Portuguese are also spoken in South america. Knowing Spanish in the US is obviously more useful for the masses than German

skreelenalways avatar
CCTheVampire
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

People have to learn some foreign language(at least in America) in order to graduate from high school. Many people choose Spanish because they think it will be easy. I chose Chinese because they didn't have Korean. I didn't want to learn French or Spanish. Not everyone learns a language because it seems fun or interesting. Maybe it's because they want to be useful one day.

esmeadgnot avatar
Esmé Adgnot
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

First off its not appropriating; second ummm are you familar with the EUROPEAN country of Spain?

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OMEGA
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

what the hell? learning other languages is us not demanding that everyone speak english

faragiganti avatar
Fara Giganti
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mi amiga es cubana y le importaría un carajo que una persona blanca hablara español. y si esto es en español

leesa_deandrea avatar
Leesa DeAndrea
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Also, the largest ethnic group, worldwide, are Asians. "White" people are the minority.

faragiganti avatar
Fara Giganti
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

my latino friend speaks english so i don't see why white people cant speak spanish

carrieroettger avatar
Carrie Roettger
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Who wants to tell this person that Spanish is a European language? And as far as kids in high school being g "proud" of being able to speak Spanish, at least where I'm from 2 years of a foreign language is required to graduate and Spanish is probably the most practical one to learn.

sussanmercurio01 avatar
Susan Mercurio
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I had to learn how to speak Spanish in order to talk to my Hispanic friends. It's not always cultural appropriation. Sometimes it's just friendly.

easyreader50 avatar
Sharon Vaughn
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Do they not know that Spain is part of Europe? Or, maybe they think that Spanish is only spoke in Mexico. Dufus.

willemsen avatar
Meami
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Maybe they decided to take Spanish because there are a lot more Spanish speakers in the USA than German speakers...

fracarr avatar
François Carré
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Imagino la cara que van a poner los fachas de España si les dices que su idioma no es de blancos jeje

abigail-dundas avatar
AbbiTabbi
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NOT ALL AMERICANS ARE STUPID NOR DO WE ALL ACT LIKE THIS! There are relatively few people like this stereotype. Yes I know that people know this but it is rather annoying and makes me hate my country even more. We're trying, okay?

klapkovamarie avatar
Marie
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hey, learn Czech, it is fun and you are welcome to😁. After that I will not offend anyone with my terrible gramar and misspelling.

hurrem_81 avatar
Hurrem Haseki
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

OMG, an American, for sure.Actually in Spain most of people are white. Also some of the Latinamerican countries are mostly white. So spanish is a language without predefined skincolor. Also learning a foreign language is awesome, and usually helps to understand better the culture.

lmellie21 avatar
Flare
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I did not get what that guy's point was, it's probably best that way.

hobbittrek1994 avatar
Gabrielle Riley
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ok, stuff like that really irks me. There is absolutely nothing wrong with learning about another culture, language or otherwise. I think it gives people a better understanding and tolerance to learn about another person's culture, instead of just sticking with what you know and ignoring differences; it can lead to problems down the road being this intolerant. Be more open-minded, please!

kaching12 avatar
Lexi Mitchell
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Spanish people are white, and a lot of people from south and Central America are also white. I mean, have you seen Shakira? She’s paler than me and I’m part Polish and Irish.

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Analyn Lahr
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Should someone tell them Spain is in Europe? They probably don't realize where Spanish comes from, huh?

michaelcapriola avatar
Michael Capriola
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

BTW, English has a history of borrowing from other languages. Actually, the English language will get another language up in an alley, hit it with a cosh, and rummage thru its pockets looking for vocabulary. (I forget where I read that, but it's more enlightening and almost as funny as the idiocy from "wise poetrychips"

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Noel Benavente
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

minority, almost every latin american country + Spain... minority...

nicoleweymann avatar
Nicole Weymann
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That whole post is all kinds of messed up. I'm guessing it's a caucasian US American feeling insulted on behalf of Spanish speaking minorities in the states? From a European (German) point of view: "White languages"? What's that even supposed to be? And when did Spain get chucked out of Europe? How are people supposed to communicate when groups of languages are artificially "outlawed" to you because of your genetic/cultural/wtf's background? Lastly (for now, but not least): apparently OP assumes minorities would be offended if you tried to learn their language - as opposed to having to learn yours as they have been forced into doing...?

ariasingh avatar
Aria Singh
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is written by an American for sure. Americans have no shame.

ebryson avatar
Eva Bryson
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Please stop with the American shaming. We're proud to be a multi-cultural Nation with many languages.

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The r/IAmVerySmart subreddit shares a lot in common with the 408k member strong r/confidentlyincorrect online community which we’ve covered right over here. Both subreddits poke fun at people who are overly confident in their abilities and just ooze arrogance with their every word.

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But the higher they rise, the more satisfyingly long their fall into internet shame. (And we all know that once something’s up on the net, it’s there forever, much like Homer Simpson working at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.)

#22

His Post History Is Worse

His Post History Is Worse

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Dark Pearl
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Memes are literally a fab source of entertainment. They can be smart too! Some of them have tiny details to really make the puns pop, so...

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#23

I'm Relieved I Thought That Was Possible

I'm Relieved I Thought That Was Possible

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Being featured on the r/iamverysmart subreddit is all about being all bark but no bite: it’s a wall of shame for those who can’t back up their braininess with actual proof. Instead, they think that long words and synonyms will show everyone they’re the stars of the show (even though they’re clearly painting the props all the way backstage).

Interestingly, if you want to sound smarter and make a genuine impact on people (whether you’re applying to university, for a job, or just like the attention), communicating via text might not be the right way to go.

#26

Ah Yes, Speaking A Foreign Language With An Accent Makes You Dumb And Lazy

Ah Yes, Speaking A Foreign Language With An Accent Makes You Dumb And Lazy

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The Harvard Business Review wrote about a study where evaluators judged a person’s intelligence based on their pitches on why they should be hired. One part was videotaped while the other was transcribed (with flow-breaking sounds like ‘um’ removed, of course).

To sum up, the evaluators found those people who delivered their pitches in front of the camera and spoke aloud to be more intelligent than those who argued why they’re the best possible candidates in text form. Not only that, there was a greater emotional bond to the test subjects when they were seen on camera. Elle Woods’ videotaped pitch from ‘Legally Blonde’ to get into law school doesn’t sound silly anymore now, does it?

#29

Smarter Than Actual Scientists

Smarter Than Actual Scientists

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Konpat
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Pisses me off that some people don't fathom what major work and learned technique goes into scientific research, as opposed to laymen who just read up on stuff on the net. This has got to stop! Sure, scientists make mistakes, which are called out by other scientists, not by Mr and Mrs Tinfoilhat!

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#30

TV Bad, Books Good

TV Bad, Books Good

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River Webb
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

if someone tries to give you advice first make sure there ego isn't 10 times larger than their head. if it is then simply ignore them.

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But if you do have to communicate via text, it’s best not to overshoot: be in writing who you are in real life. (Having an incredibly loud inner monologue that loves reading aloud everything that you write certain helps you realize when you overstep into cringe-territory.)

That means sprinkling in some common phrases and simple words, not just purple prose and delicately-crafted word amalgamations to delight and please the readers.

#31

This Is My Landlord's Response To A Simple Text. No Previous Convo, Nothing. What You See Is What You Get

This Is My Landlord's Response To A Simple Text. No Previous Convo, Nothing. What You See Is What You Get

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When in doubt, always remember Joey Tribbiani from the hit TV show ‘Friends,’ and what happens when you substitute every single word with a complicated synonym just because you’re insecure about sounding ‘dumb.’ Be like Joey when he’s proud of who he is and doesn’t pretend. Or study hard, level up, and be like Ross Geller.

#34

You Cannot Simply Understand My Highly Complicated Thoughts

You Cannot Simply Understand My Highly Complicated Thoughts

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#36

Apparently, Trump, According To Trump, Has "Unmatched Wisdom"

Apparently, Trump, According To Trump, Has "Unmatched Wisdom"

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See Also on Bored Panda

Moderator Thumbs0fDestiny also revealed to Bored Panda how the subreddit has changed how it approves posts because of a few major slip-ups that led to people getting harassed. The last major shift they went through was moving the community to manual moderation. "Most of Reddit operates by allowing users to submit posts, then having a few automated checks in place to make sure that the post doesn't violate any major or obvious sub guidelines. For instance, does this post link to an outside source; is it a link that's been posted before; or does the post use a forbidden word in the title? Things like that are fairly easy for a bot to catch and save moderators a lot of time on menial verification tasks," they explained.

#37

Yep, I’m Sure That Is Why

Yep, I’m Sure That Is Why

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#38

Portraying Intelligent People “Wrong”

Portraying Intelligent People “Wrong”

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#39

My Friend Went As Pikachu And Posted It To Her Story. A Thirsty Dude Replied

My Friend Went As Pikachu And Posted It To Her Story. A Thirsty Dude Replied

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Now, if the post passes all of those checks, it then goes live on the board, and redditors can see and comment on it, as usual. "At that point, the sub moderation becomes a collaboration between the moderators and the community. Moderators are out there checking things out of course, but we're just regular users, too, so we don't see everything. We instead partially rely on user reports to let us know when there's a problem that needs to be addressed. This is obviously not a failproof way of operating but it does get the job done most of the time."

#40

The Brexit Guy Is Super Duper Extra Verysmart

The Brexit Guy Is Super Duper Extra Verysmart

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#41

Your Marketing Scheme Is No Match For My Calculus Skills

Your Marketing Scheme Is No Match For My Calculus Skills

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#42

Guy Is Convinced I Am A Girl (He Wishes) And Proceeds To Lecture Me On How He Knows

Guy Is Convinced I Am A Girl (He Wishes) And Proceeds To Lecture Me On How He Knows

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However, getting things right most of the time wasn't good enough to meet the moderators' standards for quality. They wanted to be right all the time when it came to posts not revealing any identifying information, as per the subreddit's very first rule. "There should, ideally, be no way for a user to see a post on our sub and use that post to find the person in that post. This means that all real names, phone numbers addresses, usernames, online community names, Twitter handles, etc. have to be redacted from the post before submitting it. There's no way a bot can guarantee that to happen. As such, we found ourselves in the position of having several posts live in the feed that contained that information which some people then used to track down and harass the VerySmart(TM) person."

#43

I’ll Stick To Baby Yoda Then

I’ll Stick To Baby Yoda Then

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#44

About A Computer Mouse, When Asked If It Could Perform A Particular Function

About A Computer Mouse, When Asked If It Could Perform A Particular Function

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RandomPandaGuy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If everything is possible, it means that it is possible for something to be impossible...

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#45

Good In Math = Better Human

Good In Math = Better Human

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A.J Milne
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You don't know what people are going through, and you cannot speak to people like that.

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Note: this post originally had 60 images. It’s been shortened to the top 45 images based on user votes.

Thumbs0fDestiny was very candid about the situation: they'd let down Reddit's standards, r/IAmVerySmart's standards, as well as society's standards. "So we had to put a stop to it. The only way to make sure that didn't happen was to put the sub on full lockdown. All new posts are automatically filtered into a moderation queue where they sit until a human volunteer checks them to be sure there aren't any rule violations. This change has mostly been behind the scenes and therefore largely noticed by the community except to say new posts now arrive on the sub in batches when a moderator is clearing the queue, where before they would trickle in one at a time. The change had the desired effect though. We've not received a single complaint about harassment from anyone since we instituted the new policy."

Which posts were your fave ones, dear Pandas? Do you plan on becoming a member of r/IAmVerySmart? Do you know anyone in person who tries way too hard to look smart? Share your thoughts and drop us a line or two in the comment section below.