GrodsCorp

Teachers, sharks form unholy alliance

Wednesday 9 April 2008, 2:56 pm

Bridgit Gread

Categories: Education, Media

Tags: logicalfallacy, sharks, teachers

Usually when two unrelated events are juxtaposed nobody gives a toss - except tabloid reporters. To them, some chains-of-events are logically connected. Teachers go on strike… kids get day off school… kids go surfing… kid gets bitten by a shark and dies… teachers indirectly responsible. Otherwise why would just about every major media outlet mention the teachers’ strike within the first two or three pars of their stories? And then there’s this buffoonery in their online comments:

Let’s hope that the teachers who were on strike, and in particular the teachers who would normally have been teaching Brock and Peter today, suffer lifelong guilty consciences because of their ultimately deadly decision not to work today. It’s time teachers woke up to themselves, and realised that their petty strike actions can have potentially far-reaching and disastrous effects way beyond the reaches of the classrooms and innocent children they desert. Yet another nail in the coffin of teachers’ credibility? You bet. RIP Peter.
Posted by: ausGeoff of Frankston

Of course if it wasn’t teachers - and perhaps sharks - then it would barely rate a mention. Otherwise we should expect to see similar stretches of logic like:

McDonald’s outrage: kid hit by truck while crossing road for burger

…or…

Man dies from heart attack while jogging; family sues Adidas

…or…

Blogger electrocuted while reading GrodsCorp; Editor to blame

9 Comments

Almost Always Wrong (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 3:09 pm) #

the blokes from frankston.

I knew the “teachers kill boy with shark” wasnt far around the corner, when the insipid channel nine people mentioned why he was down on the beach.
keri (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 3:32 pm) #

I’m just surprised Family Fist doesn’t come out every time something like this happens and have a go at the parents for not having one of them at home to raise the children properly.
The Editor (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 3:37 pm) #

I feel a personal shame about this incident.

But seriously, my anger about this shit makes it difficult for me to stay rational while commenting on this post.

FUCKHEAD FUCKTARDS!
Ant Rogenous (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 3:46 pm) #

I burned my finger while preparing lunch on Easter Sunday. Fucken Jesus.
magic bellybutton (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 6:13 pm) #

Woman’s 35 year old daughter dies. Her fault for giving her life.
Mikey (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 6:36 pm) #

What a fuckstick. Ironically probably because he’s under educated.

That causational linkage is worse than Morrisette’s definition of irony.
Wah (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 8:48 pm) #

I just wrote something which included the word “cunt” a few times and accidently wiped it. I can’t be bothered rewriting it, I’m getting weary about such people. I can launch into a tirade, but alas I don’t have the energy.
Besides nothing I write will be as the strong as the intense longing I have right now for that Frankston bastard to suffer a slow agonising death.
Bridgit Gread (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 9:26 pm) #

I bet ‘ausGeoff of Frankston’ is really the NSW education minister.
Austin (Wednesday 9 April 2008, 9:30 pm) #

It seems that if an argument can be made, it will.

I have no problem with that. It’s more that other people seem to buy into non-sense arguments that really worries me.