this post was submitted on 21 Dec 2023
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No Stupid Questions

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Such as "money can't buy happiness" or "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger". Generally a false adage or something like that. All I could think of was "fallacious bumper sticker" which just sounds stupid.

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[–] Bonehead@kbin.social 28 points 10 months ago (2 children)

"Blood is thicker than water."

Usually said to convince someone that you should be there to help family regardless of what that family did to you. Unfortunately the full saying is "The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb", meaning the ties you form with friends can be stronger than the family you you born into.

[–] zipkag@lemmy.world 11 points 10 months ago

This is probably not true. The concept of this phrase but referring to family is probably a modern confusion. There is no clear evidence it means it was really referencing ties to friends. Although I wish it did. Here's some further reading from others also looking for a clearer reference.

https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/147902/is-the-alleged-original-meaning-of-the-phrase-blood-is-thicker-than-water-real

[–] amio@kbin.social 21 points 10 months ago (1 children)

"Fallacy" works. These are also adages, clichés, platitudes and folk wisdom, but neither really means "falsehood" per se. However, many of them just rationalize whatever: the money one is factually incorrect and exemplifies "sour grapes", silver linings is not a bad idea but also not necessarily true, any number of things will not kill you but make you wish they had, etc.

[–] lemmefixdat4u@lemmy.world 3 points 10 months ago

Whoever came up with the "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" adage never met a person with locked-in syndrome. That's where you're totally paralyzed but also totally conscious. There have been patients where the doctors thought they were in a persistent coma, but they were actually going crazy trapped in their own skulls.

[–] Spendrill@lemm.ee 18 points 10 months ago

A Canard (French for duck) refers to something often believed to be true but isn't.

[–] scarabic@lemmy.world 16 points 10 months ago

“Canard.”

noun 1. an unfounded rumor or story. "the old canard that LA is a cultural wasteland"

[–] HeathenPope@lemmy.world 14 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

These fall under the category of "Half-baked Idea". This includes any idea that obviously hasn't been thought all the way through. Half-baked ideas can range from the absurd (e.g. "The Earth is flat."), to the benignly optimistic (e.g. "Everything works out for the best.")

[–] diegantobass@lemmy.world 12 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A proverb.

Because your examples are actual proverbs, that might be considered true or not, depending on who says it when.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I dunno. Something being a proverb doesn't make it inherently false, which is what we're trying to define I guess

[–] Klear@sh.itjust.works -2 points 10 months ago

The examples OP provided are not inherently false because they are proverbs.

[–] Lafari@lemmy.world 11 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (6 children)

For example someone says "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" and you might say "that's a questionable phrase." or "I doubt the validity of that platitude". But is there something specific to label it as, i.e. "That's a [insert word]"

[–] Deestan@lemmy.world 17 points 10 months ago

"Myth" is a word I'd end that sentence with.

[–] Garbanzo@lemmy.world 17 points 10 months ago

If you're not trying to be polite, "That's bullshit" works perfectly.

[–] Tinfoiledhat@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Colbert's "truthiness" comes to mind

[–] agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works 3 points 10 months ago

Misconception?

[–] scarabic@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago
[–] Steve 8 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

I like Fallacious Bumper Sticker! I'm absolutely using that going forward. It's better than Pithy Folk Ignorance that I used to use.

[–] CADmonkey@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago

I dunno, I kinda like Pithy Folk Ignorance.

[–] The_Mike_Drop@lemmy.world 7 points 10 months ago
[–] Mango@lemmy.world 7 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

Adage

How has nobody said this yet? Some guy actually said idiom.

[–] qarbone@lemmy.world 5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Because an adage isn't necessarily untrue, like the OP is asking.

[–] Mango@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago

Arguably, not necessarily. Adages are not truisms.

[–] 9point6@lemmy.world 6 points 10 months ago (1 children)
[–] XiELEd@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago

I'll call it that way.

[–] betterdeadthanreddit@lemmy.world 6 points 10 months ago

Bullshitism.

[–] Knitwear@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Platitude

ish

[–] Siegfried@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Baloney

In the actual deep south we say "fruta", "frula", "saraza"

[–] Lophostemon@aussie.zone 3 points 10 months ago
[–] beeng@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)
[–] AA5B@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago

Id go with this one, because the examples given could also be argued to be true

[–] pinkdrunkenelephants@lemmy.world 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Thought-terminating cliche

[–] Kittenstix@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago

Wait like the concept of thought terminating clichés or things like "God is mysterious and we don't know His thoughts"?

[–] mateomaui@reddthat.com 3 points 10 months ago

false premise?

[–] Nemo@midwest.social 2 points 10 months ago

Others have said "canard" which is almost certainly the best term; and "old wives' tale" which is the same but for an anecdote or advice rather than pithy saying.

I think "aphorism" also fits the bill for a proverb if dubious legitimacy.

[–] Identity3000@lemmy.world 2 points 10 months ago

Maybe a "specious claim" or "folk wisdom" or "empty rhetoric"?

The word I would normally gravitate to is a "truism", however that's not really used to describe something that is necessarily false... just something that sounds insightful, but doesn't have any meaningful depth (e.g. "every cloud has a silver lining").

[–] Landmammals@lemmy.world 1 points 10 months ago
[–] ConnieoH@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 10 months ago
[–] manderson1701@infosec.pub 1 points 10 months ago
[–] OhStopYellingAtMe@lemmy.world 0 points 10 months ago