Jottings: A Thursday Morning Change Of Heart + Discerning The BS In Your Writing

/ Ally Bean

Is this not true?

I WAS GOING TO WRITE ABOUT something different today, something that had to do with people on social media, but I got up this morning, read what I wrote, and decided that while the words flowed I don’t want to talk about people.

As in how oddly many of them are behaving lately. As in desperate to get attention by any means, often dipping into the realm of contrived moral outrage.

As in mentally unwell.

And tedious.

Crazy and unhinged even.

And here’s the thing, because I usually have a thing when I make a snap decision, I’m aware that crazy stays the course unless there’s some medical intervention. And while I’m a problem solver at heart, I am not anyone’s psychologist, thus these people and how they behave aren’t truly of interest to me.

So why talk about ’em?

As the saying goes, energy flows where attention goes.

Thus I shall put my energy and attention, and by default your energy and attention, elsewhere, laughing together as we talk about the following fun thing rather than focusing on the dubious conduct of some people.

Yes I’m rising above the hoi polloi, avoiding that which might be considered gossip, leaning into my better nature.

You with me?

+ • 🔸 • +

IN ALL HONESTY I DON’T KNOW how I came to be aware of the BlaBlaMeter, a bullshit detection tool, but I’m glad I did.

It’s fun, in a snorts and giggles kind of way.

Here’s what you do: the website asks you to input at least five sentences of your writing as a sample, then it determines the percentage of bologna sandwich in your writing style.

Based on my five sentences taken from HERE, you can see that my writing style scores extremely low on the BS scale. I was told, and am taking pride in knowing that, my score was a mere 0.09% and that my “text shows no or marginal indications of ‘bullshit’-English.”

[An aside: Interestingly enough when I input five sentences from the one time I used ChatGPT to write THIS, the BlahBlahMeter judged that story to be 0.19% and to show a few indications of ‘bullshit’-English.]

Thus I’ll end this post by suggesting that if you are so moved, give the BlahBlahMeter a whirl using your own writing to see what happens.

Make of it what you will.

+ • 🔸 • +

241 thoughts on “Jottings: A Thursday Morning Change Of Heart + Discerning The BS In Your Writing”

    • Vicki, well you, of course, know it is true that we’re surrounded by unhinged people and sadly many people who need a little medical help don’t get it. The BS Meter is a hoot, if only in that it exists. Let me know what your results tell you!

      Liked by 2 people

      • I think I dodged a BS bullet…I grabbed some text from my most recent post and here’s what I got. I suspect this is low. I know I’ve got more BS “within”. Thanks for the fun, Ally! 😜
        Your text: 382 characters, 68 words
        Bullshit Index :0.07
        Your text shows no or marginal indications of ‘bullshit’-English.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. A BS meter? How fantastic is that! Our politicians should be required to speak into one (If there’s a spoken word version) every time they open their mouths! I’ll definitely be giving it a whirl.
    And, I love “crazy stays the course.” I have family experience with this and completely agree. Even with intervention, it’s still pretty determined about whatever course it’s following.
    Cheers.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Lynette, I like your idea of having politicians required to speak into an audio version of the BS Meter. That’s what fact checkers do, but not all the time, so think of the improvement regarding truthfulness.

      The thing is I see more and more people everywhere who are not thinking/behaving rationally and I’m tired of talking about them. Seems like we all have better things to focus on.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Crazy is as crazy does and I’m with you on avoiding the gossip and negatory stuff. You are smart to not fall into that trap.

    Of course, I immediately tested my last blog post and can, with pride, say my score was 0.03%.

    And I’m with you and Jane. I would love to have a spoken and portable blah blah meter because lemme tell you… there is a shit-ton of bullshit out there coming out willy-nilly from more than one mouth.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Dale, I knew you’d be with me on taking the high road. I’m tired of talking with and talking about how crazy people are right now.

      Good score on your writing. I have no frame of reference about what writing is considered 100% BS, but I doubt it’s going to be from anyone who reads this blog.

      You said it: “there is a shit-ton of bullshit out there coming out willy-nilly from more than one mouth.” Hear, hear!

      Liked by 1 person

      • So am I! I spend my time hiding people’s posts on FB! I had to flush one who was very aggressive about everything. I just don’t need that in my life.

        Thank you 🙂 I’ll have to try this again with a post that I feel is less in my voice, just to see…

        Woot!!

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Here’s something interesting. I checked out the meter with two selections from The Task at Hand (0.04 and 0.02 respectively) and Lagniappe (0.15 and 0.27). The passages from Lagniappe involved flowers, scientific names, and such, while TTAH was simple narrative, as from the rodeo post. It made me wonder whether the ‘meter’ was skewed toward a grade level that’s said to be common in our population, and is less able to separate complexity from bs. Programming biases no doubt play a role.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Linda, I agree your findings are interesting. It well could be that the programming in the BS Meter is geared toward a lower grade level, not inclined to understand more academic writing. I have no details about how it comes to its conclusions just that the concept itself is one whose time has come. There’s way too much BS in our world.

      Liked by 2 people

  10. How interesting! I remember describing myself years ago as someone with a highly sensitive ‘bullshit meter’ (probably when being asked to write same…:-D). The tool gave me a .25 rating for some copy I’m working on for my website, so maybe I’ll tone it down. But on the other hand, when I entered some rather mundane text written for a client, it refused to analyze it, saying it was too short (when it was a few paras long). Go figure!

    Liked by 2 people

    • MELewis, I get what you’re saying. I often describe myself as a person with a finely calibrated BS meter. I come by it honestly, from my father! Your experiences with the BlahBlahMeter are interesting. I wonder why it rejected some writing while it analyzed the other? Perhaps it is feeling cranky today!

      Like

  11. Without getting too snarky, I’d suggest those who don’t have a natural discernment in these things should carry around a portable ‘BlahBlahMeter’ whenever listening/reading anything by a public persona…Like I said, trying to not be snarky or ‘persona’ specific.
    In the spirit of full disclosure, I just metered this comment and this is what it says FYI:
    Your text: 263 characters, 41 words
    Bullshit Index :0.33
    Your text shows indications of ‘bullshit’-English. It’s still ok for PR or advertising purposes, but more critical audiences may be skeptical.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Laura, your score and its description is the most interesting one to date. Thanks for doing that. I like what you wrote and am intrigued about how it qualifies as .33 BS. Perhaps I should be more skeptical? 🤨

      Liked by 2 people

      • Okay, because this might have some sort of AI in the program, I’m thinking it’s very literal. My use of the **words** snarky and BlahBlahMeter would imply BS perhaps…dunno.
        Or maybe the use of the word skeptical by the meter implies ‘mysterious’ as in I did allude to unmentioned ‘specific persona’…

        Liked by 1 person

        • Good analysis. I tend to agree that the system is set up to notice how literal the words are. The more abstract the word, the more it baffles the BS Meter. That’s make sense.

          Liked by 1 person

  12. If I carried around a BS Meter for people, I’m afraid the damn thing would break on the first day.

    I entered five sentences from my last blog post into the meter and got 0.4%. Great! But the more I added, the more the BS crept up. C’mon…I said I was NOT Paul Bunyan! Maybe if I’d made the opposite claim…

    Liked by 2 people

    • Mark, yep, if this device was available in an audio format, it’d be ringing like a Geiger counter all day long. Hence my current desire to avoid crazy people.

      I didn’t think to keep adding sentences after my initial 5. That’s clever. Who knew that the more you, NOT Paul Bunyan, write, the more bullshitty you become! Good job!

      Liked by 1 person

  13. You’re right, the BS meter was fun. I put the opening paragraphs of three blog posts in and it told me what I already knew—that I have a very low BS index. All three in the single digits.

    Liked by 2 people

  14. I’m going to have to try the BS meter. I’ll put in nonfiction and fiction and see what happens. I actually enjoy posts about people and their behavior. It makes me feel less alone when people call out narcissism, etc. and it’s nice to know they see it, too (and I am not the crazy one or possibly I am and I have merely found my crazy people).

    Liked by 2 people

    • AutumnAshbough, your approach to the BS Meter sounds like nerdy fun. As for the first part of this post, I’ve written many posts about how people behave so I get what you’re saying about how it helps you feel like you’re not alone. However lately I’m finding that people are getting nuttier every day and to focus on that isn’t doing me any good. I want to talk about sane people, contented people, the ones who seem to fall through the cracks on social media.

      Liked by 2 people

        • Fascinating results from the BS Meter. Does that seem to make sense to you? As for not talking about people, I feel uncomfortable doing it at this point. If I have any questions about odd behaviors I’ll research online. After all we have the intertubes at our fingertips. 🤓

          Liked by 1 person

          • As to the bs….I think my post this morning was meant to provoke. Is provocation a line of bs? Maybe. But shouldn’t we try to write effectively with a distinct pov? As to the people writing…I will write about people. I think people are fascinating. I want to tell and read things about people doing awesome things. I also want to tell and read about people doing awful things. If we don’t expose what people are capable of, how does it get better. Also, if we stop talking about people, what’s the line to not caring about people? When do people become superfluous? We’ve already been outsourced to a certain degree. If we stop talking about people, why do we matter?

            Liked by 1 person

  19. I don’t write very much too often, but I tried the BS meter on next to the last post I wrote since I did write more than 5 sentences and received a 0.09 on the BS meter. I was just talking about our weather at the time. The funny thing is the wind had such high gusts that day I thought it might sound like BS so I took a screenshot of my weather app’s wind report for that day and included it in the post. It looks like I was right to think some might think I was BS’ing.😂

    Liked by 2 people

    • Deborah, oh that is fascinating, how you knew that your post might be perceived as having BS in it so you added an image as proof. That might be the most interesting insight into how a writer can know how what they’re writing will be perceived. Thanks for sharing that.

      Liked by 2 people

  21. Interesting little experiment this was… I popped in my last post with some curry related facts and personal opinion about said curry and got .04. I then chose to go back a bit and randomly chose 2 posts (still from my personal blog) that I once used as intros to my regular Heart of the Matter posts. Both were completely true and factual posts but written in a more story-telling manner if that makes sense. Scores were .18 and .16. I have no idea what these results mean, or if I really care at all!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Deb, well first off I agree with your last sentence. I’m not sure what any of these scores really mean either. I do wonder how it is that your storytelling style somehow seemed less truthful than your factual style. Fwiw, this is the opposite result of what another commenter found. For her the detailed factual post was dubbed high in BS while her usual chatty style was low. Maybe the BlahBlahMeter is playing mind games with us! 🤔

      Liked by 2 people

      • I think the BlahBlahMeter is too heavily invested in AI and cannot recognize that humans have the ability to change their writing style and voice according to many factors 😉

        Liked by 1 person

        • You could be right about the AI connection. Of course the score for my example of AI writing seemed spot on, but then maybe the BlahBlahMeter knows AI writing when it sees it and wants to give it a low BS score.  

          Liked by 1 person

  22. Fun!

    It’s so true – where our attention goes our energy flows. It’s so easy to focus on the wrong things or, at the very least, fail to focus on what IS good and lovely and hopeful and light. I’ve started only reading the news once a week because there is just so much hurt in the world right now. It feels so wrong to be “out of the loop” but honestly can’t the single best thing I do as a regular human with no political ties or giant philanthropic nest egg do is focus on loving those around me. Hopefully like a butterfly flapping its wing or a ripple spreading in water, it will move outward and spread some love and light.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Elisabeth, oh you’ve written a lovely comment that explains better than I did why I’m avoiding conversations about how crazy people are behaving. You said it: It’s so easy to focus on the wrong things or, at the very least, fail to focus on what IS good and lovely and hopeful and light.

      I just cannot deal with more manufactured outrage and hateful rhetoric from average people around me so I’m not going to invite it into my life. *Light* is my guide word for the year so I hope that I can be it, in the way you suggest.

      Liked by 1 person

  23. I put in some text from work at said .3 (“some indications of BS language”) and when I put in some text from my last blog post it said .07 (“no or marginal indication of BS”). That seems right to me.

    Liked by 1 person

  24. I am giggling and I wish I’d come up with the BlaBla Meter! What a great name!

    Can we attach this meter to our politicians? I mean, we already know it’s mostly BS, so let’s clue them in on it too! 🫣

    Liked by 2 people

  25. Ally, my experiment with this meter yielded interesting results. I entered sentences from three different subjects/posts. Scores were 0.32, 0.06, 0.16. I thought it was interesting the one writing sample I thought would score the lowest was actually the highest. As others have noted, if I had a meter to carry around and test the BS from people speaking to me I’d hope the thing had a solid warranty behind it…for it would surely explode from overload.💥

    Liked by 1 person

    • Bruce, that’s fascinating how your prediction was so far off from what the BlahBlahMeter said. I don’t know what that means exactly, and probably don’t have to know.

      Yep, you’re right about how if there was an audio version of this thing it’d explode from all it was exposed to. This is part of the reason why I’m so tired of talking about people. My internal BS monitor is exploding.

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dawn, the BlahBlahMeter is fun if only to see what it says about you. I thought it was worth goofing around with. And seemed like a kinder topic to talk about than people who manufacture outrage to get attention. 🙄

      Liked by 2 people

      • Agree. I took a paragraph out of my piece about my cousin’s death, got a .11 bs factor. Went back to 2007 when I wrote more and had no pictures, took a paragraph about going to NYC on a working spring break during grad school, got a .08. :)

        Like

        • Oh that is amazing. The subjects of your posts were so different as were your scores. I know that we all write about what interests us in the moment, but to see how that is perceived, either as straightforward or bullshitty, is fascinating.

          Liked by 1 person

  27. I’d love it if you used the BS meter to cause trouble on social media (cough Facebook cough). Start putting social media posts through the BS meter to see what percentages come up. Ooh, that sounds like so much fun!

    Off to put my blog posts in the BS meter…I had things to do today. Not anymore! 🤣

    Liked by 1 person

    • Kari, I thought about doing what you suggest using the BlahBlahMeter to parse social media posts, BUT decided that I’m tired enough of crazy wacko people without paying any more attention to them. I know they’re full of BS already.

      However when it comes to bloggers, this BS Meter is oodles of fun. Bloggers are a rational bunch. 😊

      Like

    • L. Marie, I’d say no truer words: ad writers and politicians need to be strong to test their writing on the BS meter. I haven’t stuck any ad copy into the meter but something written on a marketing website might make the thing explode. 😆

      Liked by 1 person

  31. The moral outrage people are more than tedious, they are dangerous because they manufacture anger and fear thus causing political repercussions. On the other hand, writing about them solves nothing either except to make us discouraged. I will try myself out on the BS meter; personally, I know I write from the heart (sometimes overwrought, but always sincere) so what it tells me will be interesting and fun. Is my heart full of BS? Possibly. 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    • YES! Margaret that’s exactly the head space I was in this morning. I’d written something then thought I don’t want to contribute to any more attention being directed toward moral outrage. Like you said: writing about them solves nothing… except to make us discouraged. I just won’t go there anymore.

      Looking forward to learning how much BS you have in your heart! 😄

      Like

  33. This is truly funny to me. I simply grabbed the first paragraph of my latest post, which, because it’s me, is largely silly. Here’s what it was:

    Frequently I’m partnered with the kid, whom I’ll call Billy. (Get it?) Even when I’m not the only female, I get matched with Billy. That’s not my favorite, since I’m unlikely to be attacked by a 6th grader, but I get it. I’m closest in size to him, since I, too am built like an 11-year-old boy.

    And yet I got a score of a perfect 0. I did NOT expect that!

    Fun little tool, AB!

    Liked by 2 people

  34. Well, don’t get me started on social media and the dumb things people say. As if no one know who they are and as if they have all the info. Ridiculous. “A friend used to tell me, If you see crazy coming, cross the street.” Good advice.

    I, too, would like to see a portable blahblah meter. Imagine the possibilities? So SO many people would have very little to say. 😉

    Liked by 2 people

    • Ernie, I knew you’d understand what I was getting at about NOT talking about tedious people who live to be morally outraged. I love your friend’s advice. It is sound.

      I hadn’t thought about how a portable BlahBlahMeter would encourage people to shut up. Oh I like that idea so much.

      Liked by 1 person

  35. Hi, Ally – Thank you for introuding us to the BlaBlaBla metter. I grabbed the latest thing that I wrote (a book review), copied it into the BBB tool and awaited my fate.
    The results:

    Your text: 411 characters, 79 words

    Bullshit Index :0.02

    Your text shows no or marginal indications of ‘bullshit’-English.

    Zero or marginal BS! I was very happy with that!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Donna, well done. Of course anyone’s score is a good one if they feel the score accurately explains their writing style. It’s when the expectation and the reality don’t jive that seems to cause some consternation. Judging by some comments.  

      Liked by 1 person

  37. My last blog post got a .15. “Your text shows only a few indications of bullshit English.” It would be interesting to know what those indications are!

    The moral outrage on social media is exhausting. I like your way of thinking about it! “Energy flows where attention goes” is a good quote for so many situations!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Michelle, I agree, I’d like to know what those BS indications are, too. The BS Meter is holding back vital information.

      Yes, you’re right, I am exhausted by moral outrage and tedious crazy people who seem to get all the attention. That’s why I deleted what I was going to talk about, I’d rather laugh with mellow people who know exactly how much BS they’re putting out there. 😁

      Liked by 2 people

    • Matt, you may have nailed it. I wonder if that’s the variable that influences whether the BlahBlahMeter dubs you BS-free, full of it, or somewhere in-between. Good observation.

      Liked by 1 person

  40. Crazy is a great way to describe the people crawling all over social media with a cause to press. I ignore them as much as possible. Even worse are the people on out town forums who can turn Cub Scout soda can collections into a red/blue flaming argument.

    I posted some text from two of my books. Acceptable BS index (0.1 and below). I’m good with that.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Dan, you said it. I was all ready to publish something along those lines in reference to someone on social media, then I stopped myself. I’m just not buying into talking about moral outrage anymore, crazy is as crazy does.

      Your BS score is wonderful. Congratulations. Of course I’m assuming that you want a low score, aren’t I?

      Liked by 1 person

    • Nicole, that’s exactly the conclusion I came to this morning. I don’t want to see or engage with people spouting off about perceived injustices, so I won’t write about them. I’d much rather focus on the sane people, the kind people, the ones who know what color the sky is today.

      Liked by 1 person

  43. Rising above the BS – good on you, Ally! Let’s start a revolution! I mean everyone needs to vent occasionally, but not when it commandeers communication. Media- I am looking at you! I will give the BS meter a go. What fun!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Amanda, thanks for your support. I know what you mean about venting and that I accept/understand, but there’s this unbalanced emotional behavior [manipulation?] wherein someone makes a dramatic big deal about something this is small in the scheme of things. And these people, egged on by the media, seem to dominate every social media I engage with. Enjoy the BlahBlahMeter.

      Liked by 2 people

    • Suzanne, hallelujah! I have a finely calibrated BS detector courtesy of my father who had southern roots. I’m with you, keep it real, keep it sane, keep it polite and we’ll have no trouble. Which is why I refuse to talk about nutcases espousing contrived moral outrage.

      Liked by 3 people

  46. Okay. I got .08. I’m not sure what they’re looking for. It’s hard to write something clear and honest and at the same time something people may be interested in reading. Does one contradict the other? Do people prefer shouted slogans? Does anyone want to read about the things that interest me?

    Liked by 2 people

    • Nicki, I take your point. I wondered the same thing. If I write very straightforward without flourishes would anyone care? I know I was taught that you have to meet people where they are so if BS hooks someone and you lead them somewhere good is that a bad thing? No answers, but that’s how my mind processed the results and implications of the BS Meter.

      Like

  47. I don’t see how the rhetoric this year on social media is going to do anything but deteriorate. I wish there was a bottom and once we hit it, people would finally see that love and acceptance is the ONLY way we can survive. I’m sure my writing would be full of BS – I write fiction and I have an odd sense of humor.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Jan, I fear you’re right. The level of unpleasant discourse, the manufactured moral outrage, seems to be escalating. I was going to hit publish on my thoughts about it, but stopped myself. How could talking about people who lack common sense help anything or anyone? It couldn’t thus I’ll avoid talking about the nutters.

      The BS Meter has proven to have unique perspectives on everyone’s writing. Who knows your odd sense of humor might be what it considers entirely BS-free? 😉

      Like

  50. I want to see you making a pitch on Shark Tank for the BlahBlahMeter. Yeah, I’m pretty done with moral outrage. I am a sports nut, but I can’t watch sports talk shows anymore. The hosts regularly say something outrageous, feigning indignity. Certainly, political shows are good at this too. I think my BS meter broke a long time ago.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Pete, it’d be fun to see how anyone pitched an audio version of the BlahBlahMeter to the Shark Tank judges. I like that idea, makes me smile. Z-D says the same thing about the sports talk shows that he used to find interesting. I don’t know what it is with faux indignation but it is having its moment in our world and I’m not here for it.

      Liked by 1 person

  51. Well this was a fun exercise Ally. I dutifully took five sentences from Sunday’s post and I am happy to report I am boring and BS-free since I got this result when info was crunched:

    Your text: 446 characters, 83 words
    Bullshit Index :0.1
    Your text shows only a few indications of ‘bullshit’-English.

    Liked by 2 people

  52. We’re in the building up to election phase over here in the UK too, so those little Hobbit houses in New Zealand are looking really good once more.

    The BlahBlah meter looks like fun – I shall keep it bookmarked to make sure I don’t stray *too* far.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Deb, yep, I get what you’re saying. I cannot go live in a Hobbit house but I can refuse to send any energy toward all these nutters who are shouting about their contrived moral outrage. The higher road, I shall stay on it.

      The BlahBlahMeter is both intriguing and pointless. If nothing else it gives you a perspective about how other people may be thinking about what you write.

      Liked by 2 people

  53. I tried the writing meter and scored a .25. Very interesting. I wrote five sentences like a note to a friend and I guess I was too nice. 🙂 Being too nice is not seen often these days on social media. I find it telling how truly hurtful and ugly people can be for no good reason. It’s like the news these days, I’m choosing to avoid quite a bit of it.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Judy, interesting what you wrote and how the BS Meter judged it. I do know what you mean about being perceived as too nice, though. When I decided to not write about the crazy person filled with moral outrage, I realized that I didn’t want to contribute, even tangentially, to her ugliness by shining any light in her direction. I’m with you, I’m avoiding anything that pulls us all down.

      Liked by 1 person

  55. I’m not very good at clicking on links in posts. Seems too off-task like I might get lost in the black hole of the Internet, even when I trust and admire the source. But today I’m on vacation and so I clicked on the BlaBla Meter and entered a post. It returned a .06 and since I was talking about my beloved dad, I loved that score.

    Then it struck me that what might be more interesting is to check out the BlaBla meter for a comment. So I entered this one. Got a .08 – so now you know – I’m not BSing you when I say that I’m always entertained by your posts, Ally!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Wynne, thanks for taking the time to checkout the link and for letting me know your score. It’s been endlessly fascinating to learn if the BS Meter score pleases, or displeases, a commenter. It’s not the score itself as much as whether it meets your expectations.

      I do like knowing that you’re truthful when you comment here. I love that you used this comment to prove it. Very clever, my dear! 🥰

      Liked by 1 person

  56. Pingback: Friday’s Super Short Stories! | Nuggets of Gold

  57. BlahBlahMeter…hmm. It sounds entertaining if nothing else. I still struggle with the editor stats in Word that determine the readability and reading grade level of a document. I suppose a tool is a tool and you can use it or approach everything with a hammer. I may pop over to the BBM sometime and check out how much I’m BSing myself that I’m a decent writer.. 🤔

    Liked by 2 people

    • Micheal, I don’t use Word so I don’t have anything telling me what grade level I’m at. All WP does is tell me how many words I’ve used, which I find useful in that I’m constantly editing what I write. The BS Meter is simple enough but also, based on what commenters have said, not always spot on. None of us have figured out for sure what it calls BS. 🤷‍♀️

      Liked by 2 people

        • I’d like to know the answer to that, too. And I wonder how age plays into readability. Some words that you and I would use might seem foreign to younger folks and vice versa. How does the system adjust for that? [rhetorical questions]

          Liked by 1 person

  58. Ally, you are going to LOL at this.

    I entered three of my posts in the BS meter with the following results: 0.1, 0.11, 0.18.

    Then I entered a post wherein Gibbs and Hoshi were having a converstion. The result: 0.03

    This may mean Gibbs and Hoshi has a better grasp of the English language and its use than I do. And now I’m a bit depressed and searching for an online English basics course. 😉

    Liked by 2 people

  59. Ally, do you think we could get our politicians to try this out?!😀 It might silence them … I know, a dream! I’m intrigued by the device though and will give it a go! As for the craziness reckon you mean the mad run-up to your elections?! Here in the UK we only have three weeks notice and that is bad enough! Deep breathe, my friend! Wishing you a lovely weekend! xx

    Liked by 2 people

    • Annika, I’d enjoy seeing politicians held accountable for what they say in real time. In front of the world. HOWEVER the BlahBlahMeter is only for the written word, mine, yours, whoever.

      The craziness I’m talking about is ordinary people who spout off about alleged manufactured injustices, hoping to get attention and sympathy from other people. It is trying and ubiquitous behavior that wears on my good nature. 🤨

      Happy Weekend to you, too.

      Liked by 1 person

  60. Of course, I had to try it. I had some insomnia, so I thought what the heck. Copy and pasted from a 4 different blog posts and inserted them. Anywhere from 0.9 to 0.15 so not a huge amount of B. S. I am with all the other commentors and want a audio version for politicians with a really loud buzzer that rings when they hit 10% B.S.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Bernie, I’m glad you tried the BS Meter and am fascinated to read your scores. You’re fairly consistent in your writing which is a good thing. I’d like the audio version too, for politicians and for those people who are inclined to manufacture moral outrage over little things. Politicians know they’re full of it, but the morally outraged might not be so self-aware! 😉

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        • Bernie that was a typo that I’ve fixed. I’m not morally outraged, I’m just tired of the people who pull that crap and get attention for it. They’re crazy and as such I intend to ignore them. My energy is going elsewhere.

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  61. I forgot to come back and respond! This was interesting. I kept going backwards and trying different blog posts and I ranged from .04 to .15. It frustrated me that it didn’t really tell me what was different. I guess neither of those are very high percentages and what am I doing worrying about what an AI thinks of my writing. Gee, this is a whole new area to be neurotic about!

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    • Zazzy, thanks for coming back to tell me your scores. You did well in the sense of not writing BS, but like you said I, too, would like to know more about the reasoning that underpins the different scores. I’m laughing at the idea of being neurotic about your BS score! Perhaps I’m too emotionally balanced but I’d say it just doesn’t matter what the BlahBlahMeter says about you. 😁

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        • Good point. I wonder about that, too. It’s not like I think it’s programmed to work in my favor, but it hadn’t occurred to me that it might be playing on my insecurities, if I had any about how my writing appears to other people.

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  62. I tried the meter, and my score was 0.18, despite the post I used being entirely factual, so who knows how it is scored! I am not offended though, as I do like to throw in extra words sometimes (for example, I might say “will be giving you a call” rather than “will call you”) so I am not sure if it takes that into consideration or not. Thanks for the fun experiment!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Kyria, that’s interesting about what you input and how it was scored. Another commenter had the same thing happen when she used a fact-based post. Her theory was that the BS Meter is looking at your writing based on reading level comprehension, so anything more academic is considered BS while anything simplistic isn’t.

      I throw in extra words, too. It’s how I gently walk people to the point I am making. No need to bash ’em over the head with too much directness. Glad you had fun with this.

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    • Barbara, I adore Calvin and Hobbes, too. I still laugh out loud when I think of some of the punchlines in those comics. Your BS score is a low one, which assuming you don’t want your writing to be filled with BS, is great. 😉

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  64. I still think Calvin and Hobbes was one of the best comic strips ever! As for the BS in my writing, I think I’m happier not knowing how I’d score. Honestly, one person’s meaningful is another person’s BS!

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  68. Somehow I missed this post last week, but think I may be tapping into some similar feelings about the social media world. It’s making me feel weary, which is always a sign that I need to give it a break. 

    As for the BS tool:  Interesting. I got scores that ranged from .3 to .01, using about 5 samples from a recent post. I think the kind of writing has a big influence on the score; more straight-forward narration seemed to score lower than writing I might classify as analysis or exposition. I guess I can feel pretty OK about a general low level of BS in my writing. 🙂

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    • Rita, weary… yes. I am tired of seeing manufactured outrage, and was all set to write about a specific example of it, then thought NO! I’m not going to take the bait, I can do better, write about more useful things. Like a BlahBlahMeter! 😉

      Your experiences with your writing seem to be consistent with what other commenters have said. Betsy who got a perfect score, as in no BS at all, used a simple piece of writing, while Linda who used a piece of writing talking in scientific terms about flowers, got a higher BS score. Complexity = BS? Maybe that’s how the algorithm sees it.

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      • Yeah, I’m seeing too much that I would classify as performative–which maybe is another way of saying inauthentic. The stated purpose doesn’t seem to align with what feels like the purpose. And I don’t have any time or energy I want to give to that.

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        • Yes, performative! That’s what’s going on and I’m not there for it. I may be quirky, but I am authentically quirky. I don’t perform any emotion which is probably the bottom line of why these people bother me. Get real.

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  70. Interesting. I got this:
    Your text: 696 characters, 127 words
    Bullshit Index :0.25
    Your text shows some indications of ‘bullshit’-English, but is still within an acceptable range.

    I took a few lines from my last post. You think the meter knows something about me that I don’t know? 😉

    Liked by 2 people

    • The Travel Architect, oh this is perfect! Thanks for telling the BlahBlahMeter what you really think of it. I’d love to know the *why* of its scoring criteria, but alas it chooses to remain mute on that point. Maybe it fears that what it says would be considered bullshit?

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  72. Hi Ally, Powerful thoughts, words, emotions…I ‘get it.’ Once in awhile I have ‘had it’ with the unhinged and unnecessary negativity, despite trying to distance myself. Much more fun to snort and giggle. I will return to the BlahBlahMeter…since now I will see it everywhere…until now, a new concept to me. So far, I am a little puzzled as to who is in charge of determining the BS scale…one medical specialist versus another highly intelligent medical specialist can result in opposite diagnosis…therefore, are there BS specialists (aka BlahBlahMeter experts) that may differ in their results…something tells me my above sentences have already placed me in the lower percentile….XO

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    • Erica/Erika, you’re right in that I try to keep my distance from the unhinged people, but occasionally someone will be in my social media feed which is what happened with the situation I ultimately didn’t write about. They were outraged over nothing so why give them the time of day?

      I don’t know who programs the BlahBlahMeter nor what variables they’re looking for in written communication. Commenters who tried it have guessed various things: 1) the more complex your sentence structure the higher your BS score; OR 2) the more pretentious or multisyllabic your word choices the higher your BS score. I dunno, just shared it here because it made me laugh out loud when I stumbled over it. I mean, we all know some people are full of it so why not score them on it!

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  73. I’m with you Ally in wanting to say something and knowing it’s best to not do so. The news media covers all of those bases. Lest we must resist joining in on the antics of an election year. The last 4 years I’ve hidden that my ‘word’ was bullsh*t…somehow it keeps on lingering around, slipping out more times than perhaps it should. However, it rarely makes an appearance in my blogging efforts. 😆

    That’s a fun site. I took the bait and dropped in the first 5 sentences of my most recent post and my score was .06. I guess I’m telling the truth about my battles with Ms. Snarken. 🤣

    Well done blogging about what you wanted to blog about while recovering delightfully to entertain us your fans! 

    Liked by 2 people

    • Shelley, I knew you’d understand this situation. I read in social media what was said, wrote a piece about what was wrong with what was being said, then thought better of it. I don’t want to shine any light on anyone whose behavior is mentally unwell. There are too many great people doing good things that deserve the attention more. ‘Ya know?

      Your BS Meter score is good if’n your goal is to not write BS. Me thinks some people really do want to put BS out there. 😉

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  74. Is it gossip if it’s fact? 🤣🤣🤣 My husband and I have differing views on this, as well as my belief that men are just as much gossips as women, if not more.

    Let’s put that in the BS meter!

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    • Bijoux, that’s a good question! I don’t know if it is gossip if it is a fact. Facts can be corroborated by outside sources, but would telling it to other people turn it into gossip? Like if a friend had a facelift [fact] but you told everyone when she didn’t want them to know [gossip]…

      And yes men are gossips! 😉

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