Why everyone hates Nickelback, plus 5 ways to be genuine.

It's science, people. They can't help it!

 Kayla Stewart
05.17.16

Some things might always be terrible for most of us.

Like cockroaches.

Cockroaches can already fly. Dancing skills aren't allowed.

Or being within five miles of the DMV.

Even animals hate the DMV. GIF from "Zootopia."

Or getting a root canal, which would make anyone's skin crawl.

Even this GIF is giving me internal pain.

And traffic jams? Yeah, not into those.

Traffic is terrible everywhere. Literally everywhere.

Also, a little band named Nickelback.

Nickelback, pretending to not know that everyone hates them. Image by Bas Czerwinski/AFP/Getty Images.

Wait, wait, wait. You mean to tell me that these incredible lyrics...

"Your mom don't know that you were missing / She'd be pissed if she could see the parts of you that I've been kissing"

...aren’t society's favorite?

Yeah. Those lyrics are kind of terrible.

But, in defense of Nickelback (kind of), it’s not totally their fault that a lot of people hate them.

In fact, there’s actually a scientific reason behind the hate.

From 2000 to 2014, University of Eastern Finland student Salli Anttonen peeled through layers of research, trying to discover just why those frosted hair tips and horrific guitar riffs weren't doing it for us.

No, just no. Photo by Michel Boutefeu/Getty Images.

What she found was pretty darn interesting.

Through her study, titled "Hypocritical bulls--t performed through gritted teeth: Authenticity discourses in Nickelback’s album reviews in Finnish media," Anttonen concluded that music critics and everyday listeners didn’t like Nickelback for a very specific reason.

Mostly, people hate Nickelback because they don't think the band seems "genuine enough."

"Nickelback is too much of everything to be enough of something," Anttonen wrote in her study, according to the BBC.

"They follow genre expectations too well, which is seen as empty imitation, but also not well enough, which is read as commercial tactics and as a lack of a stable and sincere identity."

“Look at this photograph / Every time I do it makes me laugh / How did our eyes get so red? / And what the hell is on Joey's head?”

She's got a point.

How genuine a person (or beloved Canadian band) seems can totally affect how likable they are.

In fact, Nickelback faces the same scrutiny that many of our public figures do.

Seriously, you guys aren't even trying. Photo by Getty Images.

During the 2008 and 2012 elections, transparency was one of the key areas that voters were looking at when choosing a candidate.

One of the biggest factors in Barack Obama's double victories was that many audiences were taken with his ability to relate to all kinds of people in a genuine way.

Being genuine is also something that candidates from both sides of the aisle have struggled with during this election.

So just what does it look like to be genuine (or ... not like Nickelback)?

According to science, genuine people say and do these five things:

1. Genuine people say what's on their minds.

According to Psychology Today, genuine humans take their time understanding their own opinions on life and they also have no issue sharing those opinions with others.

But here's the key: Genuine people don't expect or feel the need to convince others they're right. They share their opinions with others without railroading them into agreeing.

This is actually a GIF to make aviators come back in style. GIF from "Couch Commander" on YouTube.

2. You can spot a genuine person from a mile away.

As we've learned from Nickelback's struggles, we can usually recognize genuine people almost immediately.

How do we figure it out? According to psychologist Erin Heerey's study on being genuine, there are external signals. In fact, not all smiles are created equal: Some are clearly genuine, and others are just polite.

Don't be like this guy at brunch. GIF from "Saturday Night Live."

3. Genuine people create their own paths.

Genuine people are also able to take life realizations and turn them into goals, according to Psychology Today. By using their passions and having a sense of purpose, they're able to forge their own paths to get their goals, even with unknown outcomes.

Find your own path, lovely people! GIF from "The Hobbit."

4. Failure doesn't threaten the genuine.

Genuine people also view failure as a part of the journey, and thus they aren't afraid of it.

Instead of treating failure as the end-all, they see it as a source of learning, making the "safer" routes a bit less appealing. Instead of looking for exterior approval, they often find strength within, making them more likely to get up and try again.

If something like this hasn't happened to you yet, you haven't lived.

5. Genuine people admit their faults.

Is it too late now to say sorry? Not according to Justin Bieber, The Decemberists ... or multiple psychology studies. In fact, being able to admit and accept your faults, mistakes, and shortcomings makes you a more genuine person.

But genuine people also appear to have stable self-esteem, so they're better able to tolerate the curve balls of life, such as criticisms and failures.


All apologies should come with backup dancers. GIF from "Sorry" by Justin Bieber.

If you want to absolutely not be like Nickelback in real life, these tips are important.

And rest assured: Your hatred of Nickelback isn't just you, either...

Even these glasses don't make them cooler.

... it's actually science.

music science society appearances brain psychology behavior nickelback genuine genuineness authenticity music taste perceptions impressions
Family

Florida city forecloses on man's home after fining him $30,000 for not mowing his lawn.

Youtube

Should a man lose his home because the grass in his yard grew higher than 10 inches? The city of Dunedin, Florida seems to think so.

According to the Institute of Justice, which is representing Jim Ficken, he had a very good reason for not mowing his lawn – and tried to rectify the situation as best he could.

In 2014, Jim's mom became ill and he visited her often in South Carolina to help her out. When he was away, his grass grew too long and he was cited by a code office; he cut the grass and wasn't fined.

France has started forcing supermarkets to donate food instead of throwing it away.

But several years later, this one infraction would come back to haunt him after he left to take care of him's mom's affairs after she died. The arrangements he made to have his grass cut fell through (his friend who he asked to help him out passed away unexpectedly) and that set off a chain reaction that may result in him losing his home.

The 69-year-old retiree now faces a $29,833.50 fine plus interest. Watch the video to find out just what Jim is having to deal with.

Mow Your Lawn or Lose Your House! www.youtube.com

florida dunedin lawn mowing jim ficken
Cities

Michelle Obama named 'most admired woman in the world,' because of course she is.

The world can't get enough Michelle.

Jimmy Kimmel Live/YouTube

The world officially loves Michelle Obama.

The former first lady has overtaken the number one spot in a poll of the world's most admired women. Conducted by online research firm YouGov, the study uses international polling tools to survey people in countries around the world about who they most admire.

In the men's category, Bill Gates took the top spot, followed by Barack Obama and Jackie Chan.

In the women's category, Michelle Obama came first, followed by Oprah Winfrey and Angelina Jolie. Obama pushed Jolie out of the number one spot she claimed last year.

Unsurprising, really, because what's not to love about Michelle Obama? She is smart, kind, funny, accomplished, a great dancer, a devoted wife and mother, and an all-around, genuinely good person.

She has remained dignified and strong in the face of rabid masses of so-called Americans who spent eight years and beyond insisting that she's a man disguised as a woman. She's endured non-stop racist memes and terrifying threats to her family. She has received far more than her fair share of cruelty, and always takes the high road. She's the one who coined, "When they go low, we go high," after all.

She came from humble beginnings and remains down to earth despite becoming a familiar face around the world. She's not much older than me, but I still want to be like Michelle Obama when I grow up.

Her memoir, Becoming, may end up being the best-selling memoir of all time, having already sold 10 million copies—a clear sign that people can't get enough Michelle, because there's no such thing as too much Michelle.

Don't like Michelle Obama? Don't care. Those of us who love her will fly our MO flags high and without apology, paying no mind to folks with cold, dead hearts who don't know a gem of a human being when they see one. There is nothing any hater can say or do to make us admire this undeniably admirable woman any less.

When it seems like the world has lost its mind—which is how it feels most days these days—I'm just going to keep coming back to this study as evidence that hope for humanity is not lost.

Here. Enjoy some real-life Michelle on Jimmy Kimmel. (GAH. WHY IS SHE SO CUTE AND AWESOME. I can't even handle it.)

Michelle & Barack Obama are Boring Now www.youtube.com

michelle obama michelle obama birthday obama barack obama
Most Shared

France has started forcing supermarkets to donate food instead of throwing it away.

via EarthFix / Flickr

What will future generations never believe that we tolerated in 2019?

Dolphin and orca captivity, for sure. They'll probably shake their heads at how people died because they couldn't afford healthcare. And, they'll be completely mystified at the amount of food some people waste while others go starving.

According to Biological Diversity, "An estimated 40 percent of the food produced in the United States is wasted every year, costing households, businesses and farms about $218 billion annually."

There are so many things wrong with this.

First of all it's a waste of money for the households who throw out good food. Second, it's a waste of all of the resources that went into growing the food, including the animals who gave their lives for the meal. Third, there's something very wrong with throwing out food when one in eight Americans struggle with hunger.

Supermarkets are just as guilty of this unnecessary waste as consumers. About 10% of all food waste are supermarket products thrown out before they've reached their expiration date.

Three years ago, France took big steps to combat food waste by making a law that bans grocery stores from throwing away edible food.According to the new ordinance, stores can be fined for up to $4,500 for each infraction.

Previously, the French threw out 7.1 million tons of food. Sixty-seven percent of which was tossed by consumers, 15% by restaurants, and 11% by grocery stores.

This has created a network of over 5,000 charities that accept the food from supermarkets and donate them to charity. The law also struck down agreements between supermarkets and manufacturers that prohibited the stores from donating food to charities.

"There was one food manufacturer that was not authorized to donate the sandwiches it made for a particular supermarket brand. But now, we get 30,000 sandwiches a month from them — sandwiches that used to be thrown away," Jacques Bailet, head of the French network of food banks known as Banques Alimentaires, told NPR.

It's expected that similar laws may spread through Europe, but people are a lot less confident at it happening in the United States. The USDA believes that the biggest barrier to such a program would be cost to the charities and or supermarkets.

"The logistics of getting safe, wholesome, edible food from anywhere to people that can use it is really difficult," the organization said according to Gizmodo. "If you're having to set up a really expensive system to recover marginal amounts of food, that's not good for anybody."

Plus, the idea may seem a little too "socialist" for the average American's appetite.

"The French version is quite socialist, but I would say in a great way because you're providing a way where they [supermarkets] have to do the beneficial things not only for the environment, but from an ethical standpoint of getting healthy food to those who need it and minimizing some of the harmful greenhouse gas emissions that come when food ends up in a landfill," Jonathan Bloom, the author of American Wasteland, told NPR.

However, just because something may be socialist doesn't mean it's wrong. The greater wrong is the insane waste of money, damage to the environment, and devastation caused by hunger that can easily be avoided.

Planet

Single dad asks his daughters for fashion advice before a date and strangers on social media responded with some helpful suggestions.

The world is dark and full of terrors, but every once in a while it graces us with something to warm our icy-cold hearts. And that is what we have today, with a single dad who went viral on Twitter after his daughter posted the photos he sent her when trying to pick out and outfit for his date. You love to see it.




After seeing these heartwarming pics, people on Twitter started suggesting this adorable man date their moms. It was essentially a mom and date matchmaking frenzy.

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