Shame! Shame, I say!

[FunkyDexter]

It is a bleak day for democracy in the UK. We can no longer sneer with a smug sense of superiority at the colonies when they nominate a shrieking lunatic to lead one of your major parties and a self serving careerist to lead the other.

Do I refer to the impending Brexit vote where ill informed citizens will be pulled hither and twain by a bunch of ill informed politicians? No. Nor do I refer to last nights pointless mayoral elections in which we raise to prominence a series of paper tigers with loud growls and no teeth.

No, today the dreams of democracy in the UK, having been raised up, are dashed upon the shores of ingratitude as the powers that be have callously disregarded the vox populi and named Boaty McBoatface RSS Sir David Attenborough.

Shame! Shame, I say!

[szlamany]

No Boaty?!?!?!

And that was going to be my write in for President in Novemeber!

[FunkyDexter]

And I still think you need to start a social media campaign for that. Heck, if the American people are disillusioned enough to vote for Trump, Boaty ought to be a lock in.

[Sitten Spynne]

Eh, I know this is a josh, but boy has the discourse around this sort of made me grouchy.

If you ask "the internet" to name something, you're going to get a joke response. Being alive is hard, and unless you're doing well it's kind of hard to find things worth laughing about. The concept of a scientific vessel having a joke name struck a lot of people as one of those things. I understand wanting scientific rigor and all, but if you want to establish that, then give the internet multiple choice, not a write-in. You'll get less votes. Less people will be excited. I think a lot of scientists forget that part of the reason Average Joe isn't interested in science is scientific rigor makes exciting things boring and tedious.

Seriously. Who'd you rather have teach you a random Physics lesson?

• Mr. Wizard
• Bill Nye the Science Guy
• The Honorable Professor Sir Reginald Stalwart III

Then of course there's the people lamenting that this is "a sign of the times" and Millenials and *toilet flushes*. Maybe if my elders were addressing problems instead of writing thinkpieces on why I'm so terrible, I wouldn't have to mop up their messes so much?

So I kind of started viewing the anti-Boaty side as that age-old "someone is having fun and I would rather them be as unhappy as I am" camp that's been plaguing humanity since fun was invented.

We need more Boaty McBoatface in our lives! Not that Attenborough doesn't deserve honors as well, but the people spoke.

[dilettante]

Not being 11 years old or a UK resident where this is the major issue of the day I had to go look this up.

After reading the details I'd have to agree though. Run a contest online to pick a name, get a clear winner by acclamation, and then you sleep in the bed you made for yourself. Unless you have some grounds to claim profanity, defamation, or trademark infringement in the name, what basis is there for rejection?

Besides there is quite a tradition of silliness over there anyway, right? Egad, just look at some of the place names! Here is one list:

http://www.anglotopia.net/ultimate-l...h-place-names/

[FunkyDexter]

Ha, I particularly liked Percy Passage, London. You can just sort of picture a smiley face at one end.

To be fair, Attenborough does deserve the honour. But Attenborough's always had a cheeky sense of humour himself so you can't help feeling he was probably voting boaty.

[fafalone]

I know you guys have this weird complex where you look up to us and try to be like us since we dominated you so hard back in the ole' revolution... but the direction we're heading now is actually pretty terrible and copying our habit of shredding civil liberties, electing horrible people, and giving minorities preferential treatment (equal is fine, preferential is not) is just going to destroy your country along with ours. And if that wasn't bad enough, now you've gone and starting copying our strategy of demanding input from the people then blatantly ignoring it and doing something to screw people instead. Bad Britain! Long Live Boaty McBoatface! --Love, The Colonies

[FunkyDexter]

I know you guys have this weird complex where you look up to us

errrrrr, no. Mostly we view you as an errant child that recently moved out home in a bit of a sulk. We're concerned that you haven't learned to cook for yourself yet, and you really should call more often but we're sure you'll make a success of yourself at some time in the future. After all, you've got our genes.

The concept of a scientific vessel having a joke name struck a lot of people as one of those things.

I don't think that's quite right. I think the pro-boatys knew that name was never going to make it onto the front of a ship and that's why we voted for it. We recognised the offer of a vote for exactly what it was, a sop to make us feel involved while not actually letting us affect anything meaningful. It was an attempt to pull our strings and the British public, for all our other failings, do not respond well to that. We also have a highly developed sense of the ridiculous and a strong tendency to tweak the nose of pomposity - so that's what we did. We exposed the vote for what it was.

[dilettante]

Nearly swallowed my gum.

Anxiously awaiting cooking lessons in the reknowned British Cuisine.

[homer13j]

Nearly swallowed my gum.

Anxiously awaiting cooking lessons in the reknowned British Cuisine.

[FunkyDexter]

Sadly I can't watch the video because I'm at work but I did see the title and, well, I can imagine. Poundland is not a good place to be buying your food.

There actually is a culinary tradition in the UK but you have to look to find it. Traditionally we do Pies, Puddings and Roasts but pies and puddings have largely fallen out of fashion. Look back through a few recipes from 50+ years ago, though, and you can find some very cool stuff.

And if you're willing to include dishes and traditions we imported from our empire, we have one of the richest traditions in the world.

[dilettante]

It's ChitChat so don't take it too seriously, right?

That Ashens guy is a decent UK YouTube comedian with a slant toward old video game platforms and pound shop crap.

I also like BigClive's stuff on YouTube. More aimed at electricians and related electronics (spends a ton of time on mains-powered LED fixtures and lamps from pound shops and eBay of late), but plenty of comedy there as well.

[FunkyDexter]

I take very little seriously in ChitChat. I'll have a watch of the vid when I get home this evening.

Actually, Homer's post does remind me of another British tradition where food's concerned - we like to give it horrible names as a joke. So we have Ladies Fingers, Toad in the Hole, Spotted Dick, Boiled Baby, Dorset Knobs, Baby's Heads... It's kinda the same mind set that leads us to suggest Boaty McBoatface as a good name for a ship.

[InvisibleDuncan]

I think a lot of scientists forget that part of the reason Average Joe isn't interested in science is scientific rigor makes exciting things boring and tedious.

To be fair to our scientists, they weren't the ones who vetoed it. Blame the politicians for that.

Egad, just look at some of the place names! Here is one list:

http://www.anglotopia.net/ultimate-l...h-place-names/

I'm a little disappointed that Lord Berkeley's Knob isn't on that list.

Oh, and here's another disappointing change:

[FunkyDexter]

That decision needs to be reversed...NOW! Start a petition! Free your Wibbly Wobblies!

[SJWhiteley]

I believe there are a few houses known as Llamedos; have they forced people to change that? I used to live in a house named that when I was a kid...