
Why is everyone saying "fail" all of a sudden? - nickb
http://slate.com/id/2202262
======
river_styx
It surely must be a sign of the apocalypse when we start seeing coverage of
4chan memes in mainstream media.

~~~
olefoo
We will know the tubocalypse has truly arrived when someone suggests that
"Congress should work like Digg"; and they get play in the mainstream media.

~~~
jhancock
Congress already works like Digg; except you acquire karma points by lining
someone's pocket ;)

------
dfranke
I'm not sure how "lose" got replaced with "fail", but hackers have been using
"win" in the same sense since long before 4chan came along. Also, using a
designated but unusual superlative -- "epic fail" -- is a common hacker speech
pattern, as with "die horribly" or "grok in fullness".

------
swombat
Entertaining article on the fail meme.

I sometimes wonder how "normal" people perceive this mass of variously geeky
people on the net who practically speak a different language by now. I
sometimes wonder how my parents would react if I sent them an email declaring
that "I pwn3d some n00bs".

~~~
hugh
Probably the same way that their reacted when they told them that mellowing
out was groovy. Or the way _their_ parents reacted when they told them that
the hep cats were jumpin'. Or the way _their_ parents reacted when told that
some bird was the bee's knees.

Shrugging and invisibly rolling one's eyes seems like appropriate.

~~~
smanek
_way that their reacted_

Noun fail!

------
mhartl
Everyone _said_ "FAIL" about three months ago. Get with the times, dude!

------
jmilton
Because everyone loves Schadenfreude.

------
louislouis
..because success just doesn't taste as sweet without it.

------
aswanson
Beause it's epic.

------
radley
FAIL

(writer overlooks "FTW" as meme partner...)

------
morphle2
SUCCES!

------
time_management
That article was over 9000. 4chan slang got 10/15'd.

~~~
markbao
You're doing it wrong.

;)

~~~
time_management
I'm sooooo confused!

------
qqq
fail

------
whacked_new
Answer to question FAIL.

