h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Dating American Women - A4049093
Author: HisDaddy24 - U1550574

So, comments are required then? Okay... if I misinterpreted any parts of the guidelines, please pardon my ignorance. This is my first post, and I believed I followed all the rules.

Unfortunately this one falls down on a few key points, primarily this from PeerReview "Peer Review is not the place for entries that are unfinished, works in progress, rants, fiction, one-liners, jokes or personal theories that have no accepted basis in the 'real' world".

Peer Review is for entries which are intended for the Edited Guide - a collection of factual entries. What you've written might be more suitable for the UnderGuide or <./>ThePost</.>, both of which can be accessed through the Alternative Writing Workshop Writing-Alternative

HisDaddy24, if you're going to mention men's faults, I think you should remember the 'Golden Rule' - Men have just two faults, *everything they say and everything they do*.



Emmily

I'm sure you didn't mean any offence, HisDaddy, but as an American woman (albeit a young one!) I found this entry rather offensive. I would hardly say that 'all American women are insane' - this is a gross generalisation, as by far the majority of American women, if somewhat odd (their devotion to fashion in particular - though that's characteristic of women worldwide), are quite sane. Not to mention that it's not PC nowadays to refer to someone as insane, as that's come to be a rude term for someone who is mentally challenged. Unless someone is a serial killer, it seems that you shouldn't call them insane. But that's beside the point. My point is, more or less, that while I'm sure you didn't mean to make anyone upset, I do feel the need to speak for my fellow American women and say that we should be treated to a bit more general respect.

I'm confused. The whole "Whatever that means" after "in the real world" kinda doesn't make sense. There are people who are American women, and there are people who date. And there are people who date American women.

How does that not apply to the "real" world? I didn't rant about my experiences dating American women. In fact, I didn't even mention if I were American or not, a woman or not, nor someone/thing that would/did/has date(d)(ing) American women.

Please explain. I'm not trying to be hard, I just want to make valuable contributions which we all can appreciate, and enjoy together.

Tell me EMR -- *why* and *how* are you offended? Obviously you're on-target when you observe that I mean to offense, because I don't. BUT, I openly enjoy humor, especially when there are generalizations we all appreciate.

Everybody is broken. To be offended by that is to be blind to it. We all do dumb things. We all say dumb things. Yet, we're all not dumb. We all laugh about how we make mistakes, yet we're all not brazen and uncareful.

Douglas Adams enjoyed the complexities and the simplicities of life, and would have himself shared his own personal experiences here. Reading the Guide, in his words, is to read life from a personal perspective. If we can't start there, then where to we build our cornerstones that make our monuments?

Tell me, how would *you* personally have edited it to make it something you'd not just "accept," but enjoy?

HisDaddy, the way you phrase this entry, it seems like you're suggesting that while American women are insane, British or Canadian or Australian or other women are not. Now, I'm no great defender of my country - in fact, I think it sucks quite a lot of the time - but it sort of seems like I'm being told that I am insane, while my counterpart across the pond is not.

This is, really, beside the point, though. You see, I have to explain why the Edited Guide is not quite the right place for this entry. As Oojakapiv pointed out, entries need to be factual, not opinionated. That's not to say that you can't add humour and use your own style, but I think it's clear from this discussion that it's a point of debate whether or not all American women are insane. As such, this is an opinion, and does, I have to confess, not really belong in the Edited Guide.

<>

Well, I don't personally believe in the whole What Would Douglas Do? syndrome, but not only would DNA not have shared his personal opinions in the Edited Guide (see a couple EG entries he had a hand in, A649893 and A105788), the EG has evolved considerably from the early days when DNA was still here. Our mission is not to mimic DNA's style, or so I've been told before, but to inform without being dull and dry - to be the interesting counterpart to Wikipedia, if I may phrase it that way.

I'm sorry to put this so bluntly, but how is expressing your opinion that 'all American women are insane' really going to serve to inform people in a nonbiased way.

On the other hand, if you were to improve this entry, and maybe talk a little more seriously and even-handedly about how the procedures for dating Americans are different than those for dating in other parts of the world, and what steps are involved and that sort of thing, you would have an excellent entry for the Edited Guide. Again, that's not to say you can't use your own style and be amusing and that sort of thing. The entry just needs to be factually based.

On the other hand, if you just want to leave it the way it is, you could submit it to Writing-Alternative or <./>ThePost</.>, both of which take non-EG-suitable entries.

Gotcha -- points well-taken and understood. Thanks for taking the time to explain this to me.

*Whispers to HisDaddy24.*

(Just change it so that it says that all women are insane. Then it's factual and isn't discriminatory.)

Oh jeez

*Ducks and covers*

I would say this was an interesting entry, however it is not. It is well known and understood throughout the world that all women of all shapes, sizes, colors, beliefs, et cetera are about as looney as...well...women. Had you, perhaps, included some specific piece of evidence, an anecdote, or provided some important, or at least amusing, bit of information in you...hmmm, I hesitate to call it an entry, let's say your unfinished work...then perhaps you would have recieved more positive responses (well, let's not be too optimistic, you would at least have recieved fewer poor comments).
Oh well, better luck next time. Unless next time will be like this time, in which case I think everyone would prefer it if this was the best luck you had, simply because you never tried again.
But it'll be okay, remember, whatever happens, happens.

There, that's much more balanced. I still very much doubt if it'll get in, but at least it's balanced.....

AH, HD24! I see the source of your confusion. Rants are perfectly acceptable entries, but not acceptable as Edited Guide entries. Peer Review is only meant for those entries that wish to meet those rigorous Writing Guidelines and end up in the EG.

As a rant, this would not qualify. Perhaps in one of the alternative areas this could find a home. Rest assured that you can always keep it as a personal entry, unless it so offends that it gets squelched.

Now, Your basic point does not hold up, no matter how much it fits your personal experience.

Simply put;
IF:
ALL women are insane, that mental state would be the norm.

AND:
Insanity is the difference between one's mental state and normality.

THEN:
ALL the women would be sane by virtue of meeting the norm.

Hope this helps,

How can you possibly claim that calling roughly half of the world's population as "insane"? is balanced...

I for one, am not insane just a little nutty now then

My generealisation of men in Post #3 was obviously 'lost' on you Hisdaddy

The difference with my generalisation is; it's a quite a well known saying, and (most) men know it's said affectionately, with *raised eyebrows and a smile*

You just cannot offend all women by calling us insane!

Besides that, the Entry is called 'Dating women' but there is virtually nothing in it about dating women, and it is based on your opinions, which as has already been said, is not suitable for Peer Review.

Emmily

I'm going to stop posting and unsubscribe from this discussion, before I get a slap.

Why would a kind God allow such entries to be written?
Wait no, I'm an atheist. And I'm supposed to be nice to you...

The entry needs a lot more detail. Apart from that... er... good entry.

AA, I'm not certain that I understand your question. Do you not think that a kind God would allow free will?

Would you want God to smite you every time you typed something with which He did not approve?

Yes, I caught that you're an atheist. I have no problem with that; but your question remains out there, so I thought I'd ask.

HD24 I think you wrote a fairly good entry even though it does not belong here. I agree fully that all women are insane, but seeing that it is all of them then it is the norm. I agree that the only thing to do about their being crazy is find one that has a craziness that goes along with your own and makes you mind numbingly happy. it worked for me.

Right, if all women are crazy, then all men are crazy too.

Thanks FBDM! I actually think the same thing! I'm rather looking forward to meeting the insane woman who makes me giggle and sit fascinated watching her be her.

Doesn't make her less crazy, just makes me fall more in love.