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Drwillpowers t1_j25kaoo wrote

Reply to comment by Vita-Malz in How likely is it that Betelgeuse will supernova? by tempejkl

Because people can understand when someone asks a question, what they're really trying to learn is sometimes is not the question they stated.

I also had the exact same interpretation of this question. I figured the person wanted to know what the odds of a local star going supernova was, because literally if that happened, it could bleach the earth clean of life.

So this answer is not unreasonable, but even if OP doesn't care about it, it doesn't hurt anybody. It was interesting for me to read anyway.

Be nice to people online. They are actual humans just like you. This person was just trying to contribute something helpful to the conversation, they didn't need to be attacked.

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Vita-Malz t1_j25klxb wrote

How was my response an attack? How do you come to the conclusion that not answering the question at hand is the intelligent choice here? If I ask a question I want the question answered, not what you decide was my actual hidden question.

If OP wants to know what the odds of an extinction level event occuring was, or what it would be, he could have just as well asked exactly that.

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iCantPauseItsOnline t1_j25nv3g wrote

People take questions as attacks these days. Not just online, but in person as well.

It's part of America's attack on intelligence. It's socially unacceptable to question information someone just told you. They think it's okay to be upset, when instead it's critically important for us to share correct information.

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phunkydroid t1_j25nbzm wrote

Betelgeuse isn't close enough to be dangerous to life on Earth.

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Drwillpowers t1_j26f575 wrote

What is the exact distance to which we actually have to give a shit? I'm genuinely curious if you happen to know.

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tempejkl OP t1_j25uma4 wrote

I don’t think the response was an attack.

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