I believe she reacted so because metrication makes her feel stupid. I have witnessed similar reactions to refutations of paranormal beliefs and of urban myths.
> From: Michael Palumbo <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Reply-To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Sun, 13 Jan 2008 11:29:55 -0500 > To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[email protected]> > Subject: [USMA:40034] Hostile reactions to "speaking metric". > > Has anyone else had something like this happen to them? > > Last week, my coworker's wife had a child, and we did the "guess the > gender and weight" contest that we always do in our office. > > I guessed an even 3000 grams, and was the closest; the baby was 2981 > grams. I had to translate the numbers for a few people, but no one > really minded that I submitted my answer in metric. > > Last night, I was recalling this story to my friend Megan while in the > car, and her reaction to it was *this* shy of violent. She began > screaming at me, telling me how much of a (insert various four letters > words here) I am for using a system that no one else understands. Her > basic points were, if I ascertained them correctly in between her ranting: > - "No one" understands the metric system, therefore it's off-putting for > me to use it. > - It's "extremely rude" to speak in a manner that people don't understand. > - It's "moronic" and stinks of me just trying to "be different and weird > for the sake of being different and weird". > > I told her that I wasn't going to listen to her insult me, dropped her > at her house, and left. > > I cannot, for the life of me, understand that type of reaction. My > office-mates, even when they don't directly understand it, have a pretty > good idea of what I'm talking about. Rather than try to learn something > new, Megan's reaction is what I fear may be typical of many people in > this country. Either you act like everyone else, or you'll be branded a > nut-case. Never mind that most of the world uses this system, never > mind that the foreigners in this country use it, never mind that the > doctor who delivered the baby used it, *I* am not supposed to because it > makes her think, and she can't handle that. > > Regards, > -Mike >
