No matter how weird it might sound, fear can actually be a positive thing. It helps guide our understanding of the world. It informs us about potentially dangerous situations and protects us from pain and long-lasting harm. However, some people’s metaphorical danger and common sense radars aren’t working like they should. Their survival instincts seem to be malfunctioning and lead to, frankly, reckless behavior.

In a thoroughly entertaining thread, the r/AskReddit community shared the things that exist only “because of people’s stupidity.” Do you know those warnings that you shouldn’t iron your clothes while still wearing them? That’s exactly the kinds of things they mean. We’ve collected some of the most bonkers examples to share with you. Scroll down, check them out, and upvote the most ludicrous ones.

Bored Panda wanted to figure out why some people seem to lack common sense and behave in risky ways, so we reached out to Glenn Geher, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the State University of New York at New Paltz and a published author. He shed some light on our questions. You’ll find Dr. Geher’s insights as you read on.

#1

“Do not place child in shopping bag”

Image credits: McManARama

“Much of the research in psychology speaks to individual differences in psychological traits. Some people have fantastic long-term memory but cannot find their keys to save their lives—whereas others are just the opposite,” Dr. Geher, from the State University of New York at New Paltz, told Bored Panda via email.

“Some things that seem like ‘common sense’ to one person might seem like trigonometry to the next. This diversity in people’s psychological traits is, to my mind, a beautiful thing. But it also helps to explain why some people just don’t understand certain things that seem obvious to others,” the psychology professor explained to us.

Dr. Geher pointed out to us that people’s survival instincts in the past were related to things that are very different from what we can find in the modern world.

#2

Do not open door in flight

Edit: Neat, an award stating how helpful my comment is. Thank you, glad to help

Image credits: aftcg

#3

The tag on the iron that says “Do not iron clothes while wearing them.”

Image credits: flipping_birds

“Furthermore, when it comes to things like reading directions or eating food with the wrapping on, we are partly talking about processes that only exist in the modern world and that did not exist during the lion’s share of human evolutionary history—so there is a mismatch there,” he said.

“I would posit that when it comes to ‘common sense’ for things that matched our ancestral conditions (e.g., staying away from venomous snakes), people, on average tend to do a bit better than when dealing with stimuli from the modern world. In a sense, what helps us to survive now (e.g., strapping in when driving) is very different from what would have helped our ancestors survive under ancestral conditions (e.g., avoiding snakes and cliff edges),” the professor told Bored Panda.

#4

Warning labels telling you not to eat things that are not food.

Image credits: tylerss20

#5

The warning on strollers, “Do not collapse while infant is seated”

Image credits: MarkOfTheDragon12

#6

“Warning may contain nuts” warnings on packets of nuts

Image credits: ConnorA94

We were also interested to find out how someone might go about cultivating a greater sense of awareness with regard to improving their survival instincts if they’re lacking. Dr. Geher was kind enough to walk us through this.

“On one hand, generally, the human brain can actually be pretty malleable—so some of these things may be learnable. On the other hand, some things are just very difficult for some people to learn,” the psychology expert noted that even if someone might want to master ballroom dancing, that might be next to impossible no matter how hard they try.

“I’d say that people can step back, be cognizant, and learn some basic ways to improve interfacing with—and surviving in—the modern world. But only to an extent,” Dr. Geher said.

“At the end of the day, the story of human psychology is a true mixture of fixed attributes and malleable attributes—we all have both.”

#7

The labels on superman costumes that say ‘Wearing this does not enable you to fly’

Image credits: Musical_Toad557

#8

The anti-vax movement

Image credits: _Caramel-Kitty_

#9

Warning labels on electric appliances warning you not to use them in a bathtub.

Image credits: filthy_pikey

Common sense isn’t as common as you might think. It seems absolutely obvious to (hopefully) all of you reading this that you should remove the plastic wrapper before eating something. Or that you shouldn’t use electric appliances in a bath.

However, not everyone is aware of simple things like this. Some individuals might have had very stressful or extremely sheltered upbringings, so they haven’t learned about the risks of doing certain things.

If they had a troubled childhood, they might not have had authority figures in their life teaching them these all-important lessons. Meanwhile, if they were being mollycoddled all the time, they might not have any hands-on experience doing basic chores like ironing, mowing the lawn, cooking, and cleaning. What’s common sense to you and yours truly (hi!) might be rocket science to someone else.

#10

Multi-Level-Marketing (aka pyramid schemes)

Image credits: The78thDoctor

#11

The phrase, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.

Image credits: anon

#12

[This sign at the London Luton airport](https://ift.tt/k0i3rvA)

Image credits: Bran_Solo

On the other hand, some individuals can have warped perceptions of danger and morality. They might not understand how risky it is to touch the spinning blades of a lawn mower, for instance, but they want to see what happens anyway. 

Other people might take things far too literally. That means that unless something is expressly prohibited, they might not know to avoid doing it.

Similarly, they may have problems with understanding the consequences of their actions. They might focus only on short-term issues and rewards, completely ignoring the long-term.

#13

All those drug commercials that tell you not to take said drug if you’re allergic to it.

Image credits: InfernalCape

#14

Fruit roll boxes that warn “Remove plastic wrap before eating”

Image credits: faragorn

#15

The law in Pennsylvania that *specifically* states that you can not barter infant children

Image credits: MostlyFuckedUp

However, at other times, fear dominates people’s lives. Instead of being a reaction to real threats, it rises up as a response to imagined dangers. If left unchecked, it can go out of control and cause a lot of unneeded stress.

If you’re feeling excessive, irrational fear and it’s disrupting your daily life, you may need to talk to a health professional. They’ll be able to figure out what’s going on. You might be dealing with some sort of anxiety disorder, have a serious medical condition, or may be dealing with a phobia. In the latter case, you may want to seek a mental health specialist’s help. They can help reframe your fears so that they’re no longer disrupting your day-to-day routine.

The important thing to remember is that these people are professionals. They’ve got plenty of experience. They won’t judge you. It’s not a weakness to ask for a helping hand or some advice when you need it. 

#16

The warning sticker on lawn mowers telling you not to touch the blades while they are in motion.

Image credits: anon

#17

Panic buying

Image credits: mooli1978

#18

https://ift.tt/KrfcmRj This was in front of a catholic school I did some work on. This is not the only tree in the area, it’s not even the only tree in front of a parking space. How did this sign come to be? The world may never know

Image credits: Mok0bo

#19

The f*****g message on my in dash display on my Honda Fit.

YES I KNOW I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OPERATION OF THIS MOTOR VEHICLE.

Imagine the car not telling me that every time I start it, me getting in an accident, and suing Honda for NOT telling me that I’m responsible for the car I’m driving?

Image credits: ChuckawaspSlanders

#20

Racism.

#21

California’s Prop 65.

It says everything sold in California must have a label warning consumers that the product is made with ingredients/components known by the state of California to cause birth defects or cancer. Unless the seller can prove that the item does not contain such components. However, nobody can actually say if anything causes cancer or not. So if you sell something in California, you must either pay a laboratory to test everything in your product, then provide reports stating that each element does not cause cancer. OR you can buy a 1 cent sticker and slap it on your packaging. As a result everything sold in California, EVERYTHING, has that sticker on it. Because why wouldn’t you just slap the sticker on?

We voted for this.

Image credits: ClownfishSoup

#22

The ban on Kinder eggs in the US.

Are people really stupid enough to swallow those eggs whole? Even if they didn’t know about the toy, you can’t possibly want to deepthroat a f*****g egg, can you?

Image credits: I_hate_traveling

#23

Darwin Awards?

Edit for Gold: Thank you kind Redditor!

Image credits: Darktal0n75

#24

I worked at Cabela’s for years and they carry a product called “The Butt Out” and its a tool a hunter would use to remove the a**s from a deer. On the back of the packaging in the bottom corner is a warning stating “Not for sexual use”

Image credits: TheSchoeMaker

#25

In the user manual for RVs it specifies that the driver must remain in the drivers seat at all times when the RV is in motion because someone thought that cruise control was auto pilot and went to take a shower while on the freeway and crashed.

If I remember right, part of their argument against the company was that the manual did not say he had to remain in the drivers seat when cruise control was being used…

Image credits: TimeMasterBob

#26

Easily preventable diseases.

Image credits: Alex_Sylvian

#27

Traffic jams. Except for in outlying cases it’s literally only bc people are too dumb to be efficient

#28

There was a washing machine I saw in Thailand and it said please do not put children in here

#29

Meetings that could have been emails

#30

Influencers

#31

Most people

Image credits: PurpleFirebolt

#32

My birth certificate.

Image credits: rsmith295

#33

The Tide Pod challenge

Image credits: i_fuckin_luv_it_mate

#34

Kardashians’ Fame

Image credits: Viks101

#35

Label on Swiss chainsaw, do not attempt to stop chain with hands and genitals

#36

OSHA

#37

Bullying

#38

religion

#39

The sticker on curling irons that say “for external use only”

#40

The debate of whether or not video games cause violence

#41

The belief that brown cows give chocolate milk

#42

Penicillin, because someone didn’t bother to clean the culture dish.

Image credits: drempire

#43

Flat earth theory.

#44

Tabloid newspapers

#45

July and August having 31 days back to back like that extra day would’ve ended with February
But some people just want to watch the world burn

#46

“Do not eat” label on silica gel packets. Like does it actually look like food to anyone?

#47

The lottery

#48

Measles

#49

Televangelists.

#50

Loot boxes (for purchase) in video games, especially games that required initial purchase just to play them.

#51

Toilet roll and hand sanitiser shortages.

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