There Are No Stupid Questions

Have you ever prefaced a question you want to know but think is stupid or the answer is obvious with " I have a stupid question "? When I started to give the first dose of liquid amoxicillin to my kitty, I saw the inner foil seal had been removed. I called the vet and asked if I'd been given a bottle that had been opened and used. The receptionist explained that they add water to the powder in the container before giving it to the client. So it's a good thing I asked that question and didn't add water according to the directions I read on the label. It never hurts to ask even the simplest question.

What are your experiences with what might have seemed stupid or " everyone knows that "?

I've found that sometimes saying "this might be a stupid question" can put other people at ease, because they may be wondering the same things but are too afraid to ask.
I don't really think there are stupid questions if the question is sincere. How else are we supposed to learn something new? No one is born knowing how to do much else but cry and eat (and poop), we need to learn and ask as we go and people need to be nice about it and help. If they can't be nice, they need to just shut up and let someone else handle it.
(I'm no hypocrite and have said and done mean things I wish I could take back, we all have I think, but we live and learn. Then we ask questions on how to be nice, and the cycle repeats itself!)

I'd have to say there are some stupid questions. A coworker yesterday asked me the same question she's asked five times before (by email so I know it was five times). The redundancy of her question and inability to check her email before asking it for the sixth time in three months makes it stupid, IMO. However ... I'd rather she ask six times and do the task right.

In most cases I'd rather answer the stupid question then have someone assume. It's so much easier to do something the right way then fix it being done the wrong way. In non-task related areas it's still better for the knowledge to be shared them someone continue to operate on a misassumption.

I agree there are sometimes stupid questions, and I think the questioner knows that. I also participate on Quora (there are some heartwarming stories about cats), but there are some stupid questions. One was "Before Columbus discovered the Caribbean islands in 1492, where was the border with Mexico?" Another just today was "Considering the Native American timeline, what is a list of plants and rocks?" Sometimes I think these questions must be from trolls.

The stupidest questions I get are from people who get their historical timelines mixed up. Many years ago I was explaining to a coworker that the mansion across the bridge from Washington, DC, in Arlington National Cemetery was Robert E. Lee's home. She said, "I wonder why he would choose to live so close to the Northern side." Uh, maybe because he lived there before the war broke out?

I was told, long ago, that the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.

DreamerRose said:

I agree there are sometimes stupid questions, and I think the questioner knows that. I also participate on Quora (there are some heartwarming stories about cats), but there are some stupid questions. One was "Before Columbus discovered the Caribbean islands in 1492, where was the border with Mexico?" Another just today was "Considering the Native American timeline, what is a list of plants and rocks?" Sometimes I think these questions must be from trolls.

The stupidest questions I get are from people who get their historical timelines mixed up. Many years ago I was explaining to a coworker that the mansion across the bridge from Washington, DC, in Arlington National Cemetery was Robert E. Lee's home. She said, "I wonder why he would choose to live so close to the Northern side." Uh, maybe because he lived there before the war broke out?

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Those aren't stupid questions if the person asking really wanted to know and didn't know the answer.

Yes, they are stupid. There is a lack of logical thinking in formulating the questions, and there is no possible answer to questions like that.

I was picked on by my 3 brothers my entire life, so I often say "Sorry if this is a stupid question." They are still laughing at me over one "stupid" question I asked over 30 years ago.

Don't apologize. It's not a stupid question. They were bullying you. They would laugh at you no matter what you said.

DreamerRose said:

Yes, they are stupid. There is a lack of logical thinking in formulating the questions, and there is no possible answer to questions like that.

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Actually, there is.
There was no Mexico before Columbus came and then the Spainards conquered what we now call the Americas. Mexico had no border prior to Columbus' discovery and the takeover by Spain.
As far as what were rocks and plants called in Native American (I really don't know what you mean by 'timeline'). I don't know much of my native language, but I can tell you they weren't called 'plants and rocks'. Those are English words. What words were used depends on which Tribe you asked.
I only know a few words of mine, but the most important one is 'chee' (cat).

I forgot all of the second question. It was "Considering the Native American tribe timeline, what is a list of plants and rocks?"

This doesn't make any sense however you look at it. What do timelines have to do with plants and rocks?

And don't you think most people would know that Mexico came after Columbus?

DreamerRose said:

And don't you think most people would know that Mexico came after Columbus?

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You would think. But it depends on ones education. I know people who went to school 60+ years ago, who were not taught the history we know today. I also know young people (20+ years old) that don't know much about the Holocaust. It's just not taught today.

DreamerRose said:

It was "Considering the Native American tribe timeline, what is a list of plants and rocks?"

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This one still depends on which Tribe you ask and which local plants were available to be named.

DreamerRose said:

And don't you think most people would know that Mexico came after Columbus?

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My ex was homeschooled by ultra religious parents. There were a lot of holes in his knowledge that were from his parents omitting things because of religion or just him not wanting to learn it so they skipped the lesson. He probably couldn't tell you that Mexico came after Columbus.

I know my parents were very big on museums, historical sites and explaining the world. As adults, both my brother and I have been told we know a little bit about everything by various people. I know there was very little I learned in college that I hadn't at least heard about before; even if not in detail. While other people were completely shocked by things I took as basic knowledge. Shoot, just last night I had to break it to someone she didn't have a blood orange tree but rather a cara cara and navel fruit basket tree. Which lead to a whole discussion about grafting of orange trees.

NY cat man said:

I was told, long ago, that the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.

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I had a teacher in high school say that to me a long time ago. Whenever someone prefaces a question to me with "this may be stupid but..." I always repeat what he told me.