Isn't It Ironic?! Facts So Ironic They Should Have Been In An Alanis Morissette Song
1. Gary Kremen, the founder of The Leading Online Dating Site for Singles & Personals : Match.com, lost his girlfriend to a man she met on The Leading Online Dating Site for Singles & Personals : Match.com
2. Otto Lilienthal, creator of the flying glider, died after a flight crash.
3. William Bullock, creator of the rotary printing press, died from injuries at the hands of his own machine.
4. Gunpowder was invented in the 9th century by the Chinese alchemists who were attempting to find an 'elixir of immortality.'
5. Union General John Sedgwick was shot and killed moments after standing from his trench and telling his men to stand because Confederate soldiers 'couldn't hit an elephant at this distance.'
6. Barry Manilows 1976 hit 'I Write The Songs,' was written by Bruce Johnson.
7. A man once drowned in a pool party that was celebrating a year with no drownings at a New Orleans Pool.
8. The fire hydrant is arguably one of the most important technologies in the realm of civil architecture, so whom should we thank for this saving grace? No one actually knows because the inventions patent was lost in a fire in 1836.
9. Lawyer Clement Vallandingham died in 1871 after accidentally shooting himself in the head with a pistol.
Vallandingham was defending a client on murder charges, by proving that the victim could have shot himself with his own pistol. In re-enacting the process, Vallandingham shot himself by mistake.
Vallandigham stated that he would demonstrate to the jury next day just how Tom Myers had accidentally shot himself while drawing a pistol as he tried to arise from the floor. Pretending he was Myers, Vallandigham took a pistol from the bureau and put it in his right trouser pocket, not realizing that he had taken the loaded one by mistake. Then he slowly pulled it out, cocking it as he drew it forth. When the muzzle cleared the pocket, he tried to place it in the exact position which he believed Myerss weapon would have assumed at the moment when it was discharged. There, thats the way Myers held it, Vallandigham said, only he was getting up, not standing erect. At that moment he pressed the trigger. There was a flash and the half-suppressed sound of a shot. My God, Ive shot myself! Vallandigham exclaimed in shocked dismay as he reeled toward the wall and tried to hold himself up.
10. Mothers like to tell children that playing too many video games will melt their brains. Actually, surgeons in the medical community who grew up playing video games make an average of 37% fewer mistakes than their video game illiterate colleagues.
11. The word school has always been synonymous for diligence, hard work, and the acquisition of knowledge… or has it? Actually, the word school comes from the ancient Greek word schol which means free or leisure time.
12. The most shoplifted book in America is The Bible.
13. The founder of Alcoholics Anonymous asked for whiskey on his deathbed. The nurse refused.
14. "Father of Traffic Safety" William Eno invented the stop sign, crosswalk, traffic circle, one-way street, and taxi stand— but never learned how to drive.
15. Polar bears are more likely to overheat than get too cold, and its not because of global warming.
The polar bear lives in one of the coldest climates ever, swims in some of the coldest water ever and so the polar bear has two different methods of protecting the heat that its body generates.
The first method is used for terrestrial life rather than its aquatic life, its fur is thick and hollow reflecting sunlight directed towards it, in fact its so thick that it protects almost all warmth from escaping its body.
While the polar bear swims, wet fur isnt exactly known for its insulation capabilities like cotton when it gets even slightly wet obliterates its insulation capabilities which is why its know to survivalists as the fabric of death, the polar bear instead uses is also thick blubber and fat layers which protect the polar bear from the outside ice cold water which could make a human unconscious in mere minutes.
The polar bears extremely effective insulation and heat deterioration from outside cold dont exactly make an excellent cooling system mixed with the fact that polar bears are slow moving creatures to preserve energy in the extreme climate that it survives in, so when it runs it gets hot , very quickly and can very soon overheat from chasing a seal before it reaches the hole in the ice in which it surfaced from when it comes up to sleep.
16. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia is one of the longest words in the English language. What does it mean? The phobia of long words.
17. Thomas Midgley, Jr. was an American engineer and chemist who was left severely disabled after contracting polio at age 51. He created a system of strings and pulleys to help others lift him from bed. He died of strangulation aged 55 when he became accidentally entangled in the ropes of his device.
18. In 1996, 315 entries in the Webster's English dictionary were misspelled.
19. The only member of ZZ Top that doesn't have a beard is called Frank Beard.
20. Charlie Chaplin once entered a Charlie Chaplin lookalike contest and didn't even make the finals.
21. St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was Welsh.
22. 1n 1975, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission had to recall 80,000 badges promoting toy safety. The badges had sharp edges, lead paint and had small clips that could be broken off and swallowed.
23. A University in Canada gave out condoms to promote safe sex to their students, with a message about safe sex stapled to their package. The staples pierced all the condoms, and none were usable.
24. There were no ponies involved in the Pony Express only horses.
25. Philip A. Contos, a motorcyclist who was riding in a protest against helmet laws, died after he flipped over his handlebars and hit his head on the pavement.
26. The lawyers who Donald Trump hired to defend him from the lawsuits by unpaid workers are suing him for unpaid bills.
27. Mithridates VI, the King of Pontus, was so paranoid of being poisoned that he took small doses of poison all his life to build immunity. When he was defeated by the Romans, he tried to kill himself with poison but couldnt because he was immune.
28. The pine tree planted in 2004 in memory of George Harrison, the lead guitarist of The Beatles, has died after being infested by beetles.
29. The makers of Piracy, its a crime advert used the music in it illegally. They did not have permission to use it in the DVDs.
30. People get divorced for all sorts of reasons, but whats the silliest? That award probably goes to a Bosnian couple that officially split in 2007 after the couple discovered that the secret online affairs they were both having happened to be with each other.
31. China has banned the word "censorship".
32. In the state of Alabama it is illegal to drive while wearing a blindfold.
33. Leo Fender, inventor of the telecaster and Stratocaster who also lead his moniker to the famous guitar brand, could not play the guitar.
34. Another musical irony! Vangelis is one of the most important composers in all of cinema, having pioneered the electronic scores that defined such movies like Blade Runner and The Bounty and having won an Oscar for the score for Chariots of Fire. And after all those years and all that music written, he still cant read a note of music.
35. The ten-gallon hat is just one name for the classic cowboy. Despite its name, the average ten-gallon can only hold about three-fourths of a gallon of liquid.
Woman Was Fired For Refusing To Wear A Bra At Work—And Now She's Suing
Christina Schell, from Alberta, Canada, stopped wearing bras three years ago citing health reasons.
While Schell did not specify the health reasons, she did state she finds them to be "horrible."
But after her refusal to sign or adhere to a new enforced dress code policy to wear a bra or tank top under her work shirt at a golf course grill where she worked, Schell was promptly fired.
Now, the 25-year-old has filed a human rights violation against the Osoyoos Golf Club, Osoyoos, in British Columbia, Canada.
Schell said:
"I don't think any other human being should be able to dictate another person's undergarments."
When she asked the general manager, Doug Robb, why she had to comply, the manager told her the mandate was for her protection.
Robb allegedly said:
"I know what happens in golf clubs when alcohol's involved."
After losing her job, she brought the case to the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal and told them the club's dress code was discriminatory because the rule didn't apply towards male employees.
Schell told CBC:
"It's gender-based and that's why it's a human rights issue. I have nipples and so do the men."
David Brown, an employment lawyer in Kelowna, BC, said gender-specific dress codes could be viewed as discriminatory under the BC Human Rights Code.
He stated:
"It's an interesting question as to whether or not an employer can dictate the underwear that women can wear, but they don't say anything about the underwear that men can wear, and does that create an adverse impact on the individual?"
Brown added:
"If this policy is found to be discrimination, the next question is does the employer have a bonafide occupational requirement to essentially impose this on the individual?"
"I'm kind of scratching my head as to what that occupational requirement would be."
@GlobalBC The policy is sexist the peopl supporting it are sexist. Hope she wins her complaint— Lori bell (@Lori bell) 1529692660.0
@Shelby_Thom @WoodfordCHNL @GlobalOkanagan @GlobalBC Then men should have to wear either a tank top or undershirt— caffene fiend (@caffene fiend) 1529624161.0
@SoldByBrock @Shelby_Thom @GlobalOkanagan @GlobalBC What does common courtesy have to do with wearing a bra? Breast… https://t.co/ZVI2xDdpgf— M Shumway (@M Shumway) 1529843759.0
As for the tank top option, due to working under oftentimes extreme heat serving tables outsides, Schell did not want to wear another layer of clothes just because of her gender.
Schell said:
"It was absurd. Why do you get to dictate what's underneath my clothes?"
Employment lawyer Nadia Zaman told CBC that the club can enforce a gender-specific policy as they deem necessary as long as the establishment can prove it is for the occupational safety of its workers.
But the attorney questioned if forcing female employees to wear a bra was applicable in this case.
Zaman stated:
"If they simply require that female employees wear a bra but then they don't have a similar requirement for males, and they can't really justify that … then there is a risk that their policy's going to be deemed to be discriminatory."
Under British Columbia's discrimination law, it is illegal for employers:
'to discriminate against any individual because of his race, color, religion, sex, or national origin'.
@GlobalBC @globalnews Logistically bras or the absence of does not impact health or work performance. That is my v… https://t.co/65cLHBMowf— Louisette Lanteigne (@Louisette Lanteigne) 1529769211.0
McDonald's employee Kate Gosek, 19, agrees with Schell in that the dress code is "unnecessary." She too was harassed by her employers at a McDonald's in Selkirk, Manitoba, over refusing to wear a bra.
"She just told me that I should put on a bra because, McDonald's—we are a polite restaurant and no one needs to see that."
Schell's case sparked plenty of debates on Twitter.
@DunnMan77 @GlobalBC It's just discriminatory, woman shouldn't have to wear bras if they don't want to. As well as… https://t.co/RXhRVWUuNy— Mary Johnson (@Mary Johnson) 1529685276.0
@DunnMan77 @GlobalBC Men do not have to wear underpants if they don't want to. As of right now there are no laws to… https://t.co/l8FuPVybWo— Mary Johnson (@Mary Johnson) 1529686418.0
@GlobalBC Women have the right not to be forced to wear a bra Shaving & makeup also is a choice. If you want to do… https://t.co/Ybkj6PLDnD— Lozan (@Lozan) 1529686156.0
@Lozan72 @GlobalBC I would completely understand her and your argument if we were talking about a potential law to… https://t.co/trRyNAubn4— Chris George (@Chris George) 1529690293.0
@GlobalBC This story frustrates me. There's no dress code equivalent for men? Well if I saw the outline of a male s… https://t.co/5YbAvXKRcO— Molly Max (@Molly Max) 1529705327.0
Schell is not alone in her disdain for bras.
@GlobalBC I personally HATE wearing a #bra absolutely hate it with passion and unashamed to admit it. I HATE BEING… https://t.co/GEi3LtxIDa— Lozan (@Lozan) 1529686305.0
Schell is still waiting to hear from the Human Rights Commission about her claim.
H/T - GettyImages, Twitter, Indy100, CBC