Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
Chit Chat Thread 2.0
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Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
Fnord is the typographic representation of disinformation or irrelevant information intending to misdirect, with the implication of a worldwide conspiracy. The word was coined as a nonsensical term with religious undertones in the Discordian religious text Principia Discordia (1965) by Kerry Thornley and Greg Hill, but was popularized by The Illuminatus! Trilogy (1975) of satirical conspiracy fiction novels by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson.
Definition and usage
The Illuminatus! Trilogy
Main article: The Illuminatus! Trilogy
In these novels, the interjection "fnord" is given hypnotic power over the unenlightened. Under the Illuminati program, children, while still in grade school, are taught to be unable to consciously see the word "fnord". For the rest of their lives, every appearance of the word subconsciously generates a feeling of uneasiness and confusion, and prevents rational consideration of the subject. This results in a perpetual low-grade state of fear in the populace. This in turn perpetuates the need for Government, because without fear, people don't need Government.
In the Shea/Wilson construct, fnords are scattered liberally in the text of newspapers and magazines, causing fear and anxiety in those following current events. However, there are no fnords in the advertisements, encouraging a consumerist society. It is implied in the books that fnord is not the actual word used for this task, but merely a substitute, since most readers would be unable to see the actual word.
To see the fnords means to be unaffected by the supposed hypnotic power of the word or, more loosely, of other fighting words. A more common expression of the concept would be "to read between the lines." The phrase "I have seen the fnords" was famously graffitied on a railway bridge (known locally as Anarchy Bridge) between Earlsdon and Coventry (U.K.) city centre throughout the 1980s and 1990s, until the bridge was upgraded. The bridge and the phrase were mentioned in the novel A Touch of Love by Jonathan Coe. Fnord was also graffitied all over the state of Maine and New England.[1]
Discordianism
"Fnord" is a popular word with followers of Discordianism. Its use in the Principia Discordia predated the Illuminatus! trilogy by several years, although the relationship between these two books is still unclear. It is often used in Usenet and other computer circles to indicate a random or surreal sentence; coercive subtext, or anything jarringly out of context (intentionally or not), can be labelled "fnord".
Other subcultures
The term is also commonly used by hackers and programmers as a metasyntactic variable. It appears in the SubGenius Recruitment film Arise! and has been in use in the SubGenius newsgroup alt.slack.
A well-known fnord also occurs within the text of part of the High Energy Weapons Archive website [2]
Popular culture
In the online parody role playing game Kingdom of Loathing, when one acquires 23 of one item at a time, the word FNORD appears in white text after the game message. As the browser background is also white, it is invisible unless highlighted, adding to the joke of the "conspiracy".
GURPS material also uses the term, usually coupled with "You're not cleared for that!" E.g., http://www.sjgames.com/secret.html on their website.
In the Steve Jackson game Illuminati, a card for the Fnord Motor company (a reference to Ford Motors) is included. Also, in the game's first expansion set, a chip with the word "Fnord" written on it was included with instructions to "Hide this chip someplace your friends will never find it".
See also
Culture of fear
Fear, uncertainty and doubt
Definition and usage
The Illuminatus! Trilogy
Main article: The Illuminatus! Trilogy
In these novels, the interjection "fnord" is given hypnotic power over the unenlightened. Under the Illuminati program, children, while still in grade school, are taught to be unable to consciously see the word "fnord". For the rest of their lives, every appearance of the word subconsciously generates a feeling of uneasiness and confusion, and prevents rational consideration of the subject. This results in a perpetual low-grade state of fear in the populace. This in turn perpetuates the need for Government, because without fear, people don't need Government.
In the Shea/Wilson construct, fnords are scattered liberally in the text of newspapers and magazines, causing fear and anxiety in those following current events. However, there are no fnords in the advertisements, encouraging a consumerist society. It is implied in the books that fnord is not the actual word used for this task, but merely a substitute, since most readers would be unable to see the actual word.
To see the fnords means to be unaffected by the supposed hypnotic power of the word or, more loosely, of other fighting words. A more common expression of the concept would be "to read between the lines." The phrase "I have seen the fnords" was famously graffitied on a railway bridge (known locally as Anarchy Bridge) between Earlsdon and Coventry (U.K.) city centre throughout the 1980s and 1990s, until the bridge was upgraded. The bridge and the phrase were mentioned in the novel A Touch of Love by Jonathan Coe. Fnord was also graffitied all over the state of Maine and New England.[1]
Discordianism
"Fnord" is a popular word with followers of Discordianism. Its use in the Principia Discordia predated the Illuminatus! trilogy by several years, although the relationship between these two books is still unclear. It is often used in Usenet and other computer circles to indicate a random or surreal sentence; coercive subtext, or anything jarringly out of context (intentionally or not), can be labelled "fnord".
Other subcultures
The term is also commonly used by hackers and programmers as a metasyntactic variable. It appears in the SubGenius Recruitment film Arise! and has been in use in the SubGenius newsgroup alt.slack.
A well-known fnord also occurs within the text of part of the High Energy Weapons Archive website [2]
Popular culture
In the online parody role playing game Kingdom of Loathing, when one acquires 23 of one item at a time, the word FNORD appears in white text after the game message. As the browser background is also white, it is invisible unless highlighted, adding to the joke of the "conspiracy".
GURPS material also uses the term, usually coupled with "You're not cleared for that!" E.g., http://www.sjgames.com/secret.html on their website.
In the Steve Jackson game Illuminati, a card for the Fnord Motor company (a reference to Ford Motors) is included. Also, in the game's first expansion set, a chip with the word "Fnord" written on it was included with instructions to "Hide this chip someplace your friends will never find it".
See also
Culture of fear
Fear, uncertainty and doubt
Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
CK
buried but breathing
- AKA
- CK, 2D, wanker
crack
Donator
@ V: Idiot is a word derived from the Greek ἰδιώτης, idiōtēs ("person lacking professional skill," "a private citizen," "individual"), from ἴδιος, idios ("private," "one's own").[1] In Latin the word idiota ("ordinary person, layman") preceded the Late Latin meaning "uneducated or ignorant person."[2] Its modern meaning and form dates back to Middle English around the year 1300, from the Old French idiote ("uneducated or ignorant person"). The related word idiocy dates to 1487 and may have been analogously modeled on the words prophet[3] and prophecy.[4][5] The word has cognates in many other languages.
See also:
* Archaic terms for mental retardation
* Ignorance
* Stupidity
See also:
* Archaic terms for mental retardation
* Ignorance
* Stupidity
Too bad.
Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
do you remember mumbles acf history with that shit? That was when mumble was normal.
Yeah I miss it tbh.
NO U.
CK
buried but breathing
- AKA
- CK, 2D, wanker
maybe if we ask him to use old memes again maybe he'll turn back to shanks. D:
Ryushikaze
Deus Admiral Parsimonious, PHD, DDS, MD, JD, OBE
- AKA
- Tim, Ryu
Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
Too bad there's nary a female on the planet willing to do the deed.
CK
buried but breathing
- AKA
- CK, 2D, wanker
this too but his old memes were second to none.
Ryushikaze
Deus Admiral Parsimonious, PHD, DDS, MD, JD, OBE
- AKA
- Tim, Ryu
Quick, find a green skinned Alien woman! They'll sleep with anyone!
No, really. They will. They consider it polite.
Ⓐaron
Factiō Rēpūblicāna dēlenda est.
- AKA
- The Man, V
I need to meet one of them. Preferably several.
CK
buried but breathing
- AKA
- CK, 2D, wanker
Anal probing lul?
Ryushikaze
Deus Admiral Parsimonious, PHD, DDS, MD, JD, OBE
- AKA
- Tim, Ryu
Change your name to Zephram Cochrane. Invent warp drive. Relax with various coloured skin women.
Yes, they enjoy that too.
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