Bored Panda

Fans Grieve After Singer And YouTuber Lose Their Lives In Horrific Accident

Rocio Corsi — Sun, 14 Jun 2026 22:36:56 +0000

Fans are mourning the loss of singer and YouTuber Oliver Tree after reports identified him as one of six people who passed away in a devastating helicopter crash in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 14.

The 32-year-old musician, best known for hits including Life Goes On and Miss You, was reportedly traveling in one of two helicopters involved in a mid-air collision on Sunday.

As news of the crash spread, fans flooded social media with tributes.

“We lost a real one. He was planning to see him in Cleveland,” one fan wrote.

Authorities revealed that two helicopters had collided before crashing into a parking lot in Brazil

Image credits: olivertree/TikTok

According to reports, the crash happened in the Recreio dos Bandeirantes area of Rio de Janeiro.

Officials said two helicopters collided in mid-air before plunging into the parking lot of an electric vehicle dealership.

The impact sparked a large fire that engulfed at least 20 vehicles.

Images and videos from the scene showed mangled aircraft wreckage scattered among burned-out cars as thick black smoke rose into the sky.

Firefighters confirmed that six people lost their lives. The reports also revealed that all six victims were aboard the helicopters involved in the collision.

Image credits: www.tiktok.com

Among those identified were Tree, Argentine YouTuber Gasper Prim, filmmaker Lucas Vignale, music producer Lucas Brito Chaves, and pilots Alexandre Souza and Charles Marsillac.

Lieutenant Colonel Fabio Contreiras, a spokesperson for the fire service, said investigators were still working to determine exactly what happened.

“Parts of the aircraft are scattered hundreds of meters away, so the information we have is still very preliminary,” he told CNN Brazil.

“We really need to get the recordings and videos to understand exactly what happened.”

According to Contreiras, one helicopter crashed among the electric vehicles and caught fire, while the second aircraft came down roughly 330 feet away.

He noted that the crash site’s location may have prevented an even greater tragedy.

“Given the surrounding residences, the accident could have been far more tragic,” he said.

Image credits: Gaspi/YouTube

As footage from the crash circulated online, many people questioned the reports

PIEL DE GALLINA 💔

Esta es la última publicación de Lucas Vignale, hace tan solo 22 horas.

El talentoso director y cineasta argentino estaba en el helicóptero junto a Gaspi grabando contenido para Oliver Tree.

Recientemente había estrenado una película con Toto Ferro.

Que… pic.twitter.com/OzRxY9e5OY

— Por Decreto (@XDecretoOK) June 14, 2026

“Does anyone have any proof that this video is real?” one person asked, while another said, “These images are fakes.”

Others focused on the unusual nature of the accident.

“Damn, how the hell can a helicopter crash into another one? What a madness, you couldn’t even see one of those coming at you.”

“Two helicopters crashing can’t happen. One of them must have made a huge blunder,” another person wrote.

Many fans simply expressed heartbreak.

Image credits: Swiim/YouTube

“How sad that it was, may God have him,” one commenter wrote, while another added, “Rest easy.. horrible.”

“Sending love, prayers, and heartfelt condolences to everyone affected by this tragic accident. May those who lost their lives rest in peace,” one more person added.

Some also worried about people on the ground.

“Were there other victims? Because he fell right in the middle of the city. I hope everyone is okay, and I wish a lot of strength and comfort to the victim’s family at this difficult time.”

“Life is so short. Enjoy everything. Travel, eat, love, and share.”

Besides fans, fellow creators and friends also paid tribute to Oliver Tree

Image credits: batata_que_voa/X

Less than 24 hours before the crash, Tree had shared a video from Rio de Janeiro on Instagram alongside Brazilian creator Iae Break.

He captioned the post, “American for the 1st time in Brazil.”

After news of the crash emerged, Break shared photos with the singer and wrote in Portuguese:

“I can’t believe you guys are gone.”

Tributes also poured in from across the online entertainment world.

Image credits: Noticias Caracol/YouTube

Among the most emotional was a message from YouTuber and musician KSI.

“Can’t believe I’m actually having to type this. You’re 32, man. You should still be here. You still had so much life to live. So much music to make,” he wrote.

“So much content to make. You’re a legend and will always be a legend. Still doesn’t feel real. Genuinely feel sick. I love you, bro.”

His post included several photos of the pair together over the years.

Oliver Tree built a career unlike almost anyone else in the music industry

Image credits: Noticias Caracol/YouTube

🚨VEJA: Esse foi o vídeo que o cantor Oliver Tree postou no Brasil um dia antes de ser vítima de um acidente aéreo. pic.twitter.com/zto6UPETPi

— CHOQUEI (@choquei) June 14, 2026

Born Oliver Tree Nickell in Santa Cruz, California, the singer became known for combining music, comedy, internet culture, and elaborate characters throughout his career.

He first gained widespread attention after his song When I’m Down went viral, leading to a record deal with Atlantic Records in 2017.

His debut studio album, Ugly Is Beautiful, was released in 2020 and helped establish him as one of the internet’s most recognizable alternative artists.

Over the following years, he released Cowboy Tears (2022), Alone in a Crowd (2023), and Love You Madly Hate You Badly in April 2026.

Image credits: olivertree/TikTok

His songs Life Goes On and Miss You became global hits, while his music videos accumulated more than one billion combined views on YouTube.

Life Goes On alone earned more than 464 million views, while Miss You surpassed 382 million views.

Outside of music, Tree was also known for directing many of his own videos, creating viral internet content, and setting a Guinness World Record for the world’s largest kick scooter in 2020.

Image credits: olivertree/TikTok

At the time of his passing, he had recently launched what he called The World’s First World Tour, a global trek spanning seven continents and more than 70 shows across 30 countries.

The tour had begun just weeks earlier, making the loss even more difficult for fans who were looking forward to seeing him perform.

“What are the chances?”, fans left stunned after helicopters crash into each other

40 Moments That Made People Realize They Were Part Of A Cult

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:18:03 +0000

A few years ago, hundreds of people religiously followed their pastor into the woods, where they built a village. It had seemed like a no-brainer for many of them, who were offered parcels of land for less than $100. Little did they know they were being led astray...

429 bodies, including 191 children, would later be found by Kenyan police. Many had heeded the call to starve to death, after being told by their leader that the world was coming to an end, and that this was their golden ticket to heaven. A taxi driver turned self-proclaimed pastor went on trial last year, blamed for what's been dubbed one of the worst cult-related disasters in history.

There are cults all over the world; some experts say up to 10,000 in the U.S. alone. Some members never get out. Others die trying. But fortunately, there are many who manage to escape and live to tell the tale. Someone recently asked former cult members to share the exact moment they realized they were in a cult, and hundreds of eye-opening answers followed.

Bored Panda has put together a list of the top ones, to shine a light on these underground communities that thousands find themselves caught up in every year. We also managed to secure an in-depth interview with renowned cult specialist and forensic psychologist Dr. Steven Eichel. He took us deep into the world of cultic culture. You'll find that between the images.

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1

They don't want you to go to college because you will be led astray by Evolution.

I went to college and they taught me about cults.

A quiet coastal town in Kenya was left reeling when police made a gruesome discovery in the Shakahola forest near the Indian Ocean in 2023: Mass shallow graves containing hundreds of bodies, including men, women and children.

All had died sometime between January 2021 and September 2023, after being led into the forest by a man they respected and trusted, Paul Nthenge Mackenzie.

It would later emerge that Mackenzie, a former taxi driver, had pivoted to become a self-proclaimed pastor. He had a history of extremism and a slew of previous legal cases against him.

The pastor/cult leader had originally encouraged his followers to move to the Shakahola forest in preparation for the end of the world. He had offered them parcels of land for under $100 to entice them. Mackenzie reportedly partitioned the forest into different areas and gave them biblical names like Judea, Bethlehem and Nazareth.

A court would later hear that the self-proclaimed pastor had ordered his followers to starve themselves and their children so that they could get to heaven faster. This, he said, was their golden ticket to "meet Jesus." It's been dubbed one of the worst cult disasters ever.

#2

I remember reading the factual history of black people in the Mormon church, from their own website while attending said Church. And thinking to myself "Dang, if I were a black person I sure wouldn't want to be a member of this Church!".

In that moment, the cognitive dissonance finally broke through 33 years of indoctrination. Why would I want to be a member of a church with such a racist past? I couldn't think of a single reason that outweighed their WELL-DOCUMENTED history of white supremacy.

Dr. Steven Eichel is a forensic psychologist and renowned cult specialist. Bored Panda reached out to him to delve deeper into the underground world of cults and to find out how to spot them. "Most people have heard of religious cults, but there are political cults, therapy cults, marketing cults, and cults that blend all of these together," Eichel told us during an intriguing interview.

Interestingly, Eichel says that due to the confusion around the term "cult," most of experts in the field refer to these groups as "high-demand" or "high-control" groups. But in this article, we will stick to the term "cult."

The forensic psychologist added that cults vary tremendously in the content of their beliefs and rituals. "However, their processes are usually very similar and that's how we recognize cults. Not by their 'crazy' beliefs, but by how people are treated in the group, and by the psychosocial processes they use to recruit and keep members," said the expert.

He tells us that there are several "tell-tale" signs of a cult. Most are very secretive and will only allow certain information to be known by the recruit. Groups that alienate members from loved ones, families, and friends are another sign. "Lovebombing" (paying special attention to the new recruit, or even hinting at the possibility of romance and/or s*x) is an indicator, he adds.

"Personal growth or therapy cults often make recruits sign NDA and other nondisclosure documents, or make you promise to never reveal the group's 'special' techniques or beliefs," reveals Eichel. "In the worst cases, like NXIVM and Scientology, they collect 'collateral' (information that, if revealed, would cause harm to the person) to ensure that you do not violate their rules about nondisclosure."

#3

I had been asking a lot of questions. I ended up being pulled aside by a couple of deacons and wanted to talk to me about my questions. They were kind and nice, but eventually I ended up having a meal 1:1 with one of the church elders. We had a really interesting conversation on theology, frameworks of thought and ideology. Even philosophy. At one point when we started addressing the questions I had, he asked me if I knew what the first sin was? I gave the usual catechism answer of disobedience. He praised my answer and corrected me. He said the first sin was when they questioned God, as it lead to the notion that they might know better. That lead to disobedience.

Interesting answer, I supposed. But klaxon alarms started going off in my head. “Are you saying it is a sin to ask questions?”

“It can be, yes.”

That was the first real crack in the dam. It desconstructed not long after.

Eichel adds that asking for unusual donations of money and/or time can be a sign. "Most cults are apocalyptic in some way," says the specialist. "Time is always of the essence. So pressure to join or take classes or whatever 'as soon as possible!' is often present."

Unfortunately, many cult member don't realize this until it's too late, says Eichel, but there are usual "exit costs" that are eventually made known to the member. "That is, if they leave, all kinds of terrible things will happen to them (and/or loved ones)," he explained.

"In the Unification Church, leaving not only condemns you to h**l, but also condemns all your ancestors and the souls of all your future progeny," Eichel told Bored Panda. "Compare this to the average 'mainstream' political group or church. If you leave the church, you may get a few calls or a visit from the pastor, but it is unlikely you will be told your life is now doomed for eternity."

#4

When I met an agnostic who became a close friend and I realized they knew more about what it meant to love another person better than any Christian I’d ever known.

#5

I was 14 or 15 at church and we were learning about “god’s plan”- the whole shebang from behind the veil to after death. and i asked the teacher a question- i can’t even remember what it was- and she said “huh, that’s a great question!! i’ll talk to the bishop and see if you’re allowed to ask that!”

i could tell she didn’t mean to phrase it that way, but she didn’t correct herself either. i was [angry] though. i should be ALLOWED to ask whatever g*****n questions i want (and i expect you to have an answer of SOME kind), and if you don’t think i should be questioning something, i’m going to question everything. f*** you.

Eichel told Bored Panda that individuals vary tremendously with regard to how they respond to cultic influence. He says there are two broad categories of cult members, and they differ tremendously from each other.

Adults who are recruited into cults are known as "First Generation Adult" members or FGA for short. "Their lives and experiences are radically different from those who are born into cultic groups: Second Generation or Multiple Generation Adults (SGAs/MGAs)," he explains.

The expert says that coming out of a cult you were born into, that your family is in, is a very different process (and generally much more difficult) than it is for an adult who is recruited into a cult in college and then wants to leave 10 years later.

"The SGA will have a much more difficult time," the cult specialist tells us. "For example, one MGA left his cult at 18 and went to community college. In college, he was shamed for not knowing who Madonna was, or what rap and hip-hop are. He had no idea what Star Wars or Star Trek were about. He had never celebrated Christmas let alone 'demonic' holidays like Halloween. And, of course, he had no idea how to relate to college women."

#6

When I was at a band rehearsal and dropped to the floor all but screaming in pain from what turned out to be gallstones and instead of calling an ambulance for me they started praying over me, some in tongues. Literally physically restraining me to stop me as I struggled to get up to leave as one person suggested me wanting to leave meant i was possessed so they had to pray harder for me.

We asked Eichel to elaborate a bit more on how someone can recognize a cult. "The typical signs of a cultic group are: a highly charismatic leader, often with 'special' (e.g., divine) characteristics or abilities. In some cults, the leader is literally thought to be a god, or God," he revealed. "Cultic groups typically demand excessive commitments of time and money. They engage in intensive 'education' classes (sometimes disguised as 'Bible study') that are basically indoctrination classes."

The expert adds that cultic groups will tell you to avoid any information or informational venue that is critical of the group... and especially warn you not to talk to "apostates" that have left!

"Many cults cause estrangement or even total alienation from families of origin," he says. "They are deceptive in not being transparent about agendas, finances, the amount of coercion or control involved (e.g., you now have to give up your romantic and/or s*x life and only marry someone approved by the cult)."

Eichel cautions that any group that says it has the absolute and universal truth—whether that "truth" be evangelical Christianity, Wahabi Islam, or Revolutionary Marxism—should be suspect.

#7

I was at a religious university, which religion claimed they were "the only true church on the face of the earth". I had worked very hard to get into this university, and had absorbed all of the teachings and promises since the age of four, when my parents joined. I was also required to take a course each semester on the religion.

A few semesters in, I got curious regarding the claims of its founder. I wanted more details, wanted to read his own accounts of his experiences, unfiltered through the church's summaries. So off I went to the university library.

Unfortunately, the more I researched, the more cracks I found in his claims, in his life, in church history... until I realized he had been nothing but a con man, a liar, and the foundation of the church was rotten. As I kept looking, I also realized that everything above the foundation was rotten as well. It was all lies.

Finding this out broke my heart. Everything I had learned, everything that was expected of me in this life and the next was nothing but dust. American-Victorian dust. I couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again, and I couldn't spend my life pretending it was true.

And that's how I came to know that I had to leave the Mormon church. I couldn't do it that very moment. I had to disentangle my life and my psyche from the church, and that took a lot of years. Finding out the church isn't true was beginning a journey to recover from years of deceit and betrayal.

I wanted so desperately for it all to be true. But it's not, and the moment I found that out while sitting at a table in the Harold B. Lee Library at BYU, surrounded by books pulled from that very library's shelves, was the moment I knew I was a member of a cult.

If you put a list in front of you of the things that define a cult, the Mormon Church ticks every one of them.

#8

My father said, “I will never have an open mind because god says that’s how your brain falls out.”

Where the h**l does it say that?!

Also he is a bigot so… empathy is a sin to him.

According to a review article published in the Journal of Forensic Psychology, people join cults for many different reasons. "Some join a group because of the benefits that it seems to offer them, while others do so in order to fill in an existing gap, whether it pertains to family, friends or lack of resources," reads the paper. "Whereas anyone could find themselves attracted to cults, their beliefs and teachings, individuals in transitional states of their lives were found to be the most vulnerable."

Fathima Badurdeen is a sociologist and expert on the history of religious extremism in Kenya’s coastal region. She says that many of Mackenzie's followers would have been unfazed by his bizarre demands.

They come from an area where poverty, unemployment and substance use are rampant, she explained. Many were desperate to escape their circumstances. "This charismatic preacher had filled a void for them,” Badurdeen told a reporter.

#9

I'm a former Jehovah's Witness. I learned after I had left. I had a*****e parents that would regularly beat me over false accusations, and I was isolated enough that my interaction with other JWs were limited to Bible studies. I quietly became an atheist since all of my prayers fell on deaf ears.

Then my parents did something very illegal. They scammed money from other relatives that needed it for medication. This resulted in the death of my uncle who died in my house. I went to the JWs for help. I got a meeting with elders.

They told me to forget about it and that I'd find peace joining them.

The research paper notes that cults use different psychological techniques to gain control over the identity of the new member, create confusion, and create a new cult pseudo-personality. "Although not all cults are destructive in nature, research shows that the majority of individuals who leave such groups experience psychological challenges associated with integration into society."

We asked Eichel what steps someone can take to safely leave a cult... "Support, support, support!" stressed the expert. "Connect with people who will support your right to think independently, to have doubts, to question. Find an ex-member group online (there are literally hundreds). Attend an ICSA meeting or conference. If possible, hire an 'exit counselor or engage a therapist who is cult-aware (sadly, a small number)."

#10

When my grandmother told me that men can have four women but I can’t have four men.

That’s when I decided I do not want to be part of that.

To be fair, I was never really inside the cult. But this part made sure that I immediately lost my interest for ever becoming part of that cult.

#11

When they sat me in a circle of women and told me how bad of a simgle parent I was for not making all the meetings with a six month old. My scorpion blood ran hot and I made all of them cry individually with what I knew about them. Last meeting I ever attended.

Eichel adds that anyone leaving a cult is likely to need a lot of help after exiting. But the the amount can vary depending on whether they are First Generation Adults or SGAs/MGAs.

"The latter generally need far more intensive assistance," the expert said. "Money is almost always an issue... cults typically demand all or most financial resources be turned over to the group. Very few SGAs/MGAs leave with anything close to enough money to live on."

On top of this, many do not have marketable skills, says Eichel. "One of my former patients, who had been a Scientologist from his teen years into his forties, asked me 'What do I put down on a resume? That I'm good at fundraising and bilking people of their money? That's the only employment I ever had.' So in general, the support they need is: financial, social, and therapeutic."

#12

When the surprise junior high youth group activity meant hustling us all, boys and girls, into a room together to be shown an extremely graphic film of an abortion being performed. No context, no warning, just straight to the action. It was 1979 and most us CHILDREN had never even heard of abortion at that point in our lives. The church elders gave zero s***s about the trauma they were inflicting, they just wanted to push their agenda.

#13

It was through one of those New Age "Angelic Reiki Healing" businesses. I was going to this place for over a year for mental health issues.

The former "mentor" convinced me to go off of my antidepressants. I felt horrible and had daily s*****e ideations. In the next session, I told her that I'm going back on them, and she responded with, "They block you from your higher self."

I shortly left that place. f*** her and her toxic b******t. It fractured my identity and had to reclaim myself.

Eichel told Bored Panda the most important message he tries to convey is, "Do not only look at how the group presents itself (Oh! What pretty colors that Hindu cult uses in their ceremonies! And those Scientologists were so helpful during 9/11!), or even the beliefs. Rather, look at the PROCESSES it uses to recruit, influence, and control."

The expert says that learning about cults is really about learning about influence and relationships. "In courtrooms, I discuss the 'cultic relationship' rather than sticking only to discussing the cult, because members are taught to actively brainwash themselves, even when not in the presence of their leader or group," Eichel reveals.

#14

When I realized it wasn't normal to screen other kids religious views before deciding who I could be friends with. .

#15

When my partner was telling me about a cult memoir she was reading and I was like, "Oh, I remember that!"

Thought I just grew up normal Christian, but no, I grew up in a hard-core f****d up Evangelical church. Turns out that's not normal Christianity.

"Members are not 'passive zombies' as they were often described in the 1970s and 1980s," Eichel said, adding that there's significant research suggesting that the same psychological processes—deception, manipulation, and coercive control—are present in relationships marked by domestic or intimate partner abuse. "And most importantly, in many gangs and in human trafficking."

Despite all of this, it is possible to get out, as many of the brave people on this list have proven.

#16

When I was told that I needed to believe everything Mormon prophets had taught, including horribly racist and sexist teachings that I could not deny were completely wrong on so many levels (like the only way for God to forgive interracial marriage was to both k**l yourself and any kids had with your interracial partner).

And then when I pushed back I was told I needed to just have faith these same horrible prophets had been called of God and then was given terrible excuses for why they taught such obviously immoral and unethical things.

Being raised from birth in the Mormon cult I could excuse a lot of things, but some things were just so obviously horrible that I could not.

Then I learned later that using prayer as an objective truth finding system is a lie and does not work, and I was completely out, since those 'spiritual witnesses' were all that was keeping me in at that point.

#17

When I was told that confirmation was me choosing to become an adult in the church, I told them I wasn’t interested, and they said do it anyway or we’ll make you regret it.

#18

When I was a teenager, my church hosted a week long “seminar” on “basic life principles”. I remembered going to a week long event as a child and doing lots of coloring pages while my parents were in meetings, but didn’t know what it was. Turns out it was Bill Gothard and the Institute of Basic Life Principles. (See the Duggars and the doc Happy Shiny People). Suddenly being homeschooled, all the extreme physical punishment, “don’t ask questions, just trust and believe” and only being allowed to associate with church members made sense….

#19

I knew that I was in a cult when I was told:

> "This is the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased."

—Doctrine & Covenants 1:30

This was often shortened to "our church is the only one true church."

This was in the late '80s, and I was around 8 years old. Even at that age, I thought their claim was just too over the top.

Now my former cult says things like "Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, October 2013) and "Only read approved church sources."

I had to wait until I was 18 to escape. My entire family is still drinking the Kool-Aid.

#20

I was raised a Jehovas Witness and sadly I didn’t realize it was a cult until after I got out. They love to remind everyone all the time how it’s not a cult and always have an excuse for when people say “that’s exactly what a cult tells you” and yes that’s because it is one lol.

#21

Two moments for me: when my a****r lied to my face about something I knew happened and when I was talking to a therapist later.
The first moment made me realize my reality was a lie and had been orchestrated by my a****r. Even though I didn't have the language (yet) to understand the depth of what I went through, I knew it was bad.
When I was talking about my experiences with a therapist, she was the one to suggest I look into cult survivor stories because she believed I had been in one.
My middle school and high school friend group was structured like a cult, and fulfills enough of the characteristics to be classified as one. Not all cults are ooks and spooks, and some a****rs start incredibly young.

#22

When my partner and I got married and went through the Mormon Temple for the first time.

Did I question it growing up, h**l yeah. Spiritual polygamy really f****d me up. But sitting in what was to be the holiest place, the highest achievement and watching people do things like secret handshakes, chants and weird touching. It cracked my shelf.

#23

Most people don't leave a cult until the cult wrongs them or someone they love.

In my case they were very cruel to a friend of mine, so i was out.

#24

When the main pastor died and his son-in-law took over. He was not a pastor. He was a business man. It later came out he was very crooked. He’d already been in prison, that all the adults in the church claimed was a setup by the govt. he used the church to set up more MLM s**t selling everything from vitamins to green tea to his s****y photography. My brother and I pretty much stopped being a part of it after college but we couldn’t convince our parents to leave.

Even after the head of the church was found dead under really strange circumstances, and his kids went to prison (one went into hiding) they stayed as their whole social life was other members.

As much as I tried my mom just said they will face judgement before god and continued to do her mission work till her last dying day. It really makes me sad that my parents were very smart people and yet really dumb and sacrificed their entire lives for these crooks. .

#25

When, in a public sermon, one of the leaders rhetorically asked those leaving where they would go and what they would do with their lives if they didn't have the true church in it. It made me realize how much of my life had been shaped around serving an organization that only cared about keeping me there so I could continue giving it money. That and my recent discovery of some unsettling history the leadership had kept very quiet about. Where did I go and what did I do after leaving? Whatever I wanted to.

#26

"Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly followed our path. Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves. There are such unfortunates. They are not at fault; they seem to have been born that way. They are naturally incapable of grasping and developing a manner of living which demands rigorous honesty. Their chances are less than average."

As this was being read, I looked around the room at all of the stone faces. That's when I realized just how absurd it was.

#27

When I went through the Mormon temple ceremony and they started chanting in a circle 🙃 the temple clothes are also super culty.

#28

I was in a political cult for several years. The first crack appeared when I read about struggle sessions during the Cultural Revolution in China--it reminded me a lot of how the organization trained people to confront and tear down people with beliefs that diverged from the group's political values. Of course, the group I was in didn't use the physical violence/hair shaving, etc. that Maoist struggle sessions did, but all the vitriol, prepared agitation, and intentional humiliation was there.

Then I moved a few states over for work, and didn't really think about it for a while. A few years later, a friend posted about their bad experiences on the group on Facebook, and shortly after I learned about the BITE model from a deconstruction podcast. The organization I had been a part of checked every box. That was when the floodgates really opened. .

#29

I watched a TED talk from a woman who was raised in a cult in New Zealand. Her grandfather had founded it and it had very amish-esque principles, which differs from my own experience, but the line that stood out to me was when she was playing soccer with her peers and a boy, her friend, (class clown, often making jokes) made a joke the coach didn’t like so he beat him in front of everyone. While it happened, frozen and unable to help, she kept thinking “how is this love? How can this be godly love?” That phrase directly mirrored a “teaching” i’d been told all my life, even through abuse from my family. In my ex cult they liked to profess that every person was inspired by god and directed by him, and they prayed to receive “guidance”. But that abuse wasn’t love. Love wouldn’t hurt you like that.

Anyways, that was the moment it clicked. I researched cults and control tactics and the BITE model after that, and quickly fell into disillusionment with the religion. I’ve been out for five years now and I haven’t looked back.

#30

When they told me thinking for myself was “prideful.

#31

When everything anyone outside of the group believed was "demonic".

#32

Weirdly enough, the founder of my old cult (The Family International, formerly known as The Children of God) didn't shy away from the cult label. At least not internally.

So I guess I realized it when I was a kid, and I read something he wrote along the lines of, "Yes we're a cult. All religions are cults. Ours is just better."

The man was insane, and did a lot of f****d up things, but I kind of respect that candor, even now.

#33

I was raised Unitarian Universalist, which isn't actually a cult but a lot of fundamentalists call it one anyway. I remember learning that and just laughing because it was such a stupid idea. .

#34

I was a yoga teacher. I really really tried to be in the cult. I wanted to believe in god. I wanted to have people that would have my back. I wanted to be connected. I just couldn’t do it, it made me cringe and most yoga teachers are f*****g two faced a******s. People would just repeat things they heard with no thought as to the truthfulness to it. It makes me sad. I’m out.

The idea of cult though is interesting in the yoga world because it can be a spiritual cult, or it can be a Lululemon wearing rich white lady cult where everyone looks the same, acts the same, and your identity is wrapped up in how you look and your physical prowess. A lot of times men end up and the top of the power structure in yoga studios/ideologies, and then it’s a s*x cult. There’s a lot to unpack here.

I just wanted to be in touch with myself and the world and it was an avalanche of nonsense.

#35

After visiting their headquarters and being given a guided tour, that was just one closed door after another, and then being given the cold shoulder for not wanting to take a picture with the rest of the tour group (all strangers) then seeing some of the leaders of the organization lie under oath in court about child a***e.

#36

The low level teachers who new members interact with were sweet old hippies who genuinely wanted to teach meditation and help people. The first time I met the higher ups (who got all the money) I immediately pegged them as users and narcissists.

Edit: One of you nailed it. I guess this experience is common with leaders of cults, other religions, politics, business...

#37

I backed away slowly because I learned things that made me question what I had been taught as fact, but maintained relationships with close friends and saw them outside of the community for a year or two. It wasn’t a religion but there’s a spiritual component to it so I wanted to be respectful of others’ beliefs though I knew it wasn’t for me anymore. This is something that isn’t frequently or unilaterally considered a cult (though many former members call it that) - but the behavior of certain groups of people in specific areas absolutely align with cult characteristics, and that culture had overtaken my particular community.

I thought I had enough in common with friends outside of this one thing that we could still connect. One person - a highly educated person who otherwise has strong critical thinking skills - asked with curiosity where I was coming from. After confirming that she actually wanted to hear because she probably wouldn’t like my response, I calmly and respectfully laid out all the things I know to be true that are in direct conflict with archaic and harmful dogma within this community. I reiterated that no longer participating is what I feel is right for me, but I’m not saying anyone else needs to do the same

This woman flipped her absolute s**t. She screeched loudly in a public space and got angry and defensive, calling me crazy and saying other disrespectful things. I’m sad for her, but too old and tired to deprogram anyone unwilling to consider reality, so got my stuff and walked away. I miss some of my friends but I don’t miss that community even the smallest bit.

#38

When they made us write down our fears about would make us act them out in the back forty. Don’t like being alone? You’re going to be left alone in a pit. Feel weak? Wonderful you need to do the obstacle course during hurricane Katrina. Kids were coming back with swamp feet.

That’s when I made the plan to leave. Someone in leadership found out. They told me I’d go to h**l if I left. They also told me when my mom got there I was to rip up the plane ticket and refuse to go with her. That was fun. Thanks Honor Academy.

#39

When my friend looked up my church on the internet, then sent me an article about how my church kidnapped and m******d people in its originating country.

#40

I told mom that I was SHing - she told me to pray about it because it was the devil working in me. And no, I didn't need therapy. I realized at that moment as a 14yo that God was more important to my mom than my wellbeing, and that's not normal.

You might also like: 48 times people realized their friends were horrible human beings

45 Things Former Employees Only Shared After Leaving Their Jobs

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:16:03 +0000

A company’s reputation is everything. If you have a respected and ethical brand, offer quality products and services, and have earned your customers’ trust, then you’ll likely succeed in business. On the flip side, any shady things that happen have the potential to undo everything that you’ve poured your heart, sweat, and tears into over the years.

The reality is that many companies have things they’d like to keep under wraps. We’re looking at an AskReddit thread where former employees finally blew the whistle on the very worst and most disgusting secrets they found out about their workplace. Scroll down to read about their awful experiences.

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1

I know this isn't that juicy but I used to work at an overnight camp (I had also gone there as a camper) and every morning we had a drawing where we put all the campers names into a hat and picked one out at random, and the kid that got picked got to spin the Wheel of Wonder and do silly stuff to the counselors like pour flour on them, or throw water balloons etc.

WELL as it turns out when I was old enough to be a counselor they let me in on the secret... all the papers inside the hat are blank

They pick a kid that seems to be having a hard time adjusting to camp life, or a kid who isn't very social and then pretend to pull their name out of the hat. In conclusion, MY CHILDHOOD WAS A LIE - I used to sit there every morning hoping and hoping that they would pull my name but I never won.

At least the kids that really needed it end up getting that extra attention though!!

#2

I worked for 2 years for LEGO, and have nothing but nice things to say about them. For the most part, everyone I encountered there was awesome.

#3

AMR - America's largest private ambulance company

Contracts with counties will specify response times that they need to meet to remain in compliance. Typical response windows are about 10 minutes in heavily populated areas and 14 minutes or more in more rural areas. This compliance usually needs to be maintained to 90% or higher for all 911 calls generated.

Several times this year we've been "too good" and been running compliance up at 98-99% for the month. AMR's response is to cut staffing hours to save labor/diesel costs. They are willing to be late at the end of a month because they know they'll still hit their monthly compliance requirement.

I personally think that's despicable. Even though MOST 911 calls are [nonsense] and not a medical emergency, somebody that needs a defibrillator RIGHT NOW could have a reduced chance at survival in the name of pleasing "corporate" and ultimately the shareholders.

According to the CFA Institute, your best course of action when “ethical challenges put your career and professional standards on the line,” is to gather and document your facts and questions. You should also check the issue escalation policy and then talk to your supervisor, and then your chief compliance officer.

At the same time, it’s important to question what you’ve witnessed while also not being accusatory or self-righteous. Meanwhile, if you’ve reported your suspicions but those activities continue or are excused, it might be time for you to leave.

If you report a problem internally and you’re fired in retaliation, you should strongly consider hiring an employment lawyer. They’ll help you determine whether you have a potential case against the company for unlawful termination.

#4

My mother, who was a school teacher in an inner city middle school, was "strongly discouraged" from failing any student for any reason. If you failed to many students, you would be sent to the worst school in the district. This policy actually broke about 2 years after she finished working, when a teacher's final grades were changed by a principal who didn't want to fail the students.

Similarly, an incident occurred where one of her co-workers was assaulted by a student and had to go to the hospital because the a*****t aggravated her heart condition. She was told that if she chose to press charges, or if she leaked the incident to the public, she would be transferred to the worst school in the district.

Welcome to American Public Schools.

#5

I worked at a pet store once. It was probably the worst job I had. Animals were generally well taken care of in our store but almost never touched or played with (unless the managers were gone). This pretty much makes any animal we sold pretty hostile to its new owner or unmanagable. It also sucked because when stupid kids would come in and want to hold animals, we all would groan on the inside, knowing we were probably gonna get bit. The kid was definately gonna get bitten too. Probably will also drop it in surprise and make us run around trying to catch it again. If the management had let us handle them a bit more we wouldn't have had kids freaking out over being bitten by a gerbil or a parakeet or people bringing the animal back when it wasn't instantly warm and receptive.

EDIT: I'd like to say though if you or someone you know thinking of buying/adopting a pet don't give up just because it doesn't take to you right away. They need love, support, training and time from you. Just because it isn't all loveydovey now doesn't mean it won't be if you treat it right. Just remember the places they come from, where they don't get affection very much. Its new to them.

#6

Worked at Chili's for about 6 months; got nothin' on them. I will tell you this: that place was squeaky clean as a m**********r at the end of every close. I worked at close to a dozen restaurants/coffee shops as a college student; nothing ever came close to their level of cleanliness. Very good quality control on the food, too. Sorry for the lame post; feel free to downvote me because I can't follow directions.

It’s a pretty big dilemma about what to do if you witness something unethical happening at work. You want to do the right thing, but it’s likely that you’re also scared of the consequences of speaking up.

On the one hand, you might have signed a bunch of NDAs, don’t want to rock the boat, feel hesitant to act, or you’re also scared to lose your job, career prospects, and financial stability. On the other hand, arguably, everyone has a moral duty to lead by example and push back against shady, immoral, and toxic behavior. And if you see something that may be illegal (not just unethical), there’s even more pressure on you to report it.

#7

Used to work at an ice cream store part time.

We made our waffle cones from scratch and at regular intervals. Not just because of the demand. The strong scent could be smelled from outside the building and draw people in. Also, people were more likely to buy waffle cones or increase their serving size when we were cooking up a fresh batch.

Good business strategy. And hey, made my clothes smell nice (I had a jacket that smelled like fresh waffle cones for 3 months after I left that place)

#8

I worked at a Walmart. This is the biggest secret I can share with the public:

Believe it or not, the floor associates have no control over how much of something is in stock.

#9

Google spies on you. A lot.

If you see something suspicious and unethical, some good rules of thumb are to:

Document everything, in detail, so you have evidence of unethical or illegal behavior;
Have a group of colleagues whom you can tackle the issue with together;
Speak to your labor union rep or a lawyer before you make any sudden movements;
Consider speaking to your manager or HR about the toxic behavior;
Take legal action or reach out to the authorities if you see something unlawful;
Meanwhile, think about looking for another job with a healthier workplace culture and better values.

#10

I worked at American Apparel for two years. During the time that I worked there, the company implemented a company-wide recruitment policy where any person applying for a position must be photographed (1 headshot, 1 body shot) The actual resumes were thrown in the garbage. These photos were then sent to a company email address where someone would either give a thumbs up or down to the photographs. Staff were encouraged to recruit instore and on the street and were given a $100 bonus for every person they got approved.

Before this was implemented, all existing staff were photographed (again, 1 headshot and 1 body shot) Anyone deemed to be physically unworthy was let go from the company. Of course this wasn't legal, however right before they started this process every employee had to sign a waiver form, that was pretty much a lot of legal gibberish, on the spot. I wanted to have a lawyer take a look at the form however I was told I had to sign it on the spot or I would be let go.

There was also a company intranet website which all employees where to check on a regular basis. This was Dov's main line of communication to all staff. The site would have pictures of girls from the stores where he would rip them apart for having too thin eyebrows, for having "ugly make-up" or bad tattoos and piercings. They were basically publicly shamed for not looking the way he wanted to. He would also post memos saying things like "HIRE MORE ASIANS"

Needless to say, I no longer work for the company and will never shop there again.

#11

I used to work at a Disney store. If you ever hear them mention a customer as a "customer" and not a "guest" it means they are suspected of shoplifting or something else bad.

#12

It's common for restaurants to fill Heinz ketchup bottles up with off-brand ketchup once the bottles are empty.

Off-brand ketchup haters, beware.

What are the very worst, most unethical things that you’ve seen happen at your old workplace, dear Pandas? Did you report what you saw or were you too afraid of the potential backlash against you?

What are some major red flags that a business might be super shady? If you feel up to sharing a bit about your career, you can tell us about your experiences in the comments below.

#13

I worked at a Hilton hotel where I had to stand for 8 hours straight and was given breaks only if the front desk wasn't busy. There always had to be one person at the front desk at all times. Florida law doesn't require breaks, but most companies do. Hilton does not.

If you book a hotel room on one of those travel websites (Expedia, Travelocity, etc.) you are guaranteed to get the worst rooms available. Sure, if the hotel is completely empty, you'll get a fine room. But if the hotel is half full, you'll be getting the s****y rooms because you paid the lowest price. None of those websites can guarantee room type or accommodations and I've [angry] people off MANY times because we didn't have the type of room they thought they booked.

Also shady stuff happens in hotels. Employees have "quickies" in vacant rooms, employees sleep in vacant rooms without telling housekeeping so they don't get in trouble (and it never gets cleaned).

Pro Tip: Be extra sweet and nice to the front desk people. They don't get paid enough to hear people b******g at them for other employee's mistakes. Also, it'll get you special treatment if you're having a problem.

#14

I used to work for toys"r"us and majority of the rare toys that people try to collect usually don't even hit the shelves because the workers already put them aside for themselves.

#15

I used to work at Petco. They had this 'spa upgrade' added to their grooming package. (included special scented shampoo, conditioner, and teeth brushing). By corporate, each store had to sell a certain number of spa packages to meet the quota or they'd be written up.

The manager at my store added it on to every dog, even if thd customer didn't ask for it. Suddenly a dog who's haircut should cost $50 now cost $70. We had many complaints and lost a log of customers.

#16

I worked at a Lowe's home improvement for a few months after college. Everything in the seasonal department has a huge profit margin, and as soon as it's slightly out of season the price will drop and haggling becomes available. More time elapsed since next season's stuff got in = more haggling off the sticker price.

* The outdoor furniture sold during the summer is crazy overpriced. Wait until they start to roll out the fall selection. Your choices will be more limited, but my managers used to give away $200 tables for $50 or less because they just wanted the floor space back for new stuff. This is even more true for decorations, like Halloween inflatables, Christmas lights and fake trees.

* Same thing goes for the seasonal power equipment. Deals can be acquired on leftover snowblowers, depending on who you're talking to. **Also, Lowe's almost always puts power equipment on sale right when they get it, usually 15-25%. For example, snowblower sale in October.** Beware, this may not work as well on expensive, low-stock items such as a log-splitter.

**Protip:** When buying something big, like a mower or an appliance, ask the salesman if the manager can get you a better deal. When this happened to me, my manager would check the margin on that item and give them 10-15% off right on the spot. This happened almost every time someone asked.

#17

I used to work at Starbucks. We were always hypervigilant for people who ordered a Tall Mocha and continually checked their phone - Starbucks secret shoppers always order a Tall Mocha and evaluate us based on time, quality of the drink, and whether or not we were pleasant and friendly. These secret shoppers would get us employee rewards if we did a good job.

If you want a d**n stinkin' good cup of chocolate flavored coffee with hilariously over-the-top customer service, you know what to do.

EDIT: Several people have brought up that Starbucks no longer does customer snapshots and instead, they do a printed receipt survey. I worked there from 2008 - 2011 and our store implemented it fully, but granted it was a smaller store in a smaller town. So I apologize if you order a Tall Mocha and you don't get legendary friendliness and abnormally fast service, this might be only at certain locations now.

#18

I used to work at the YMCA as a lifeguard, and we had a security camera at the indoor pool. Multiple coworkers were fired because they were "caught" texting on the job on that camera.
I became good friends with the boss, and he ended up telling me about how our security camera was useless because the lense was constantly fogged up so the footage showed nothing but blurry figures.

He had instead fired my coworkers based off rumors of texting or if he didn't like them.

#19

I used to work for the state I lived in. The biggest secret about working for the state is that civilization and society as we know it are a farcical construct that could be toppled with a light shove. I can't even begin to consider what kind of identity crises people at the federal level go through. I think Obama's hair went so gray so fast due to the burden of knowing that everything on the d**n world is constantly seconds away from bursting into flames.

#20

Six Flags theme parks have a problem with gangs. Management knows about this and will alter certain operations to deter crime on designated "g**g days".

#21

At Walmart the code for the intercom is #961. You are welcome and have fun.

Edit 1: Ok just to clear up a few things. #961 is default intercom number. I have worked at 5 different Walmarts and at each this code could be used. One store had a different number (like #445) but #961 would still work. Every Walmart used to use the same code (#960) until someone decided to shout racist things over it lol. Then they changed the default by one number making it #961. Trust me....it works lol.

#22

I've actually wanted to get this out there cause it has really bothered me and its been a few years. I worked at Dollar Tree (terrible decision btw). The store had a charity drive for toys during Christmas. We would ask people at the end of their checkout if they wanted to donate a toy for active Military family's kids. The incentive for the cashier was to sell the most and you would win like $100 or something (I got second place so I don't remember). Anyway, we sold what had to be thousands (so we thought). It was easy since what's one extra dollar right? Well, whenever the customers bought a toy it went into a big bin at the front. However, after every day, this bin was unloaded and was recycled to be sold yet again, over and over. In other words there were only so many toys that they just sold over and over. I guess they figured that we sold so many, that every local kid would buried in toys but I will never forget it. It makes me sad and reluctant to donate unless I know it'll actually go somewhere. This wasn't the only thing that was sketchy either.

#23

Someone close with me works at Forever 21. They cannot ask or accuse you of stealing. They cannot do anything. Even if they see you put it in their bag they cant really do anything. Mall security wont handle it, and they dont do LP. They cannot contain you, or chase you, etc. They can just comment on that shirt thats in your pants would go nicely with a bracelet.

Edit: It's kind of disappointing with how many people are saying "so tempted" and "going to try this". I'm sorry, guess I'm one of the few people who still has morals. Probably the same people who think police are pigs when they get caught breaking the law. I hate people.

#24

I worked at Mitsubishi Nuclear Energy Systems in Arlington, VA as a Quality Assurance Engineer. It came to light that Japanese engineers without a Professional Engineer license in the US were falsifying signatures of American PEs on design documents for their new APWR-1700 to be built in Virginia and Texas.

I reported them to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, but since I had already resigned after they contually asked me to violate internal procedure and the customers contract (legally binding quality control specs), and no one who still worked there would corroborate, I recieved a pretty letter that pretty much said "there isn't enough proof to investigate."

TL:DR - nuclear reactor maker falsifies design documents, I report, nothing happens. Think Fukishima in your backyard since this will be on the fault line near Richmond.

#25

Working for Borders (I'm going to assume this policy holds with other bookstores as well), whenever we did inventory, we would strip the covers off old paperbacks and magazines that weren't supposed to be shelved anymore, and toss the reading material itself. We would then either scan in the covers' barcode, or mail them back for inventory purposes.

It hurt my soul, wasting all those books and magazines... =(.

#26

Every last bit of food made at Macaroni Grill is either frozen, canned, or out of a serving pouch. ABSOLUTELY. EVERYTHING.

#27

Worked at a facility which was an operation center for the Affordable Care Act.

All of the systems were connected so poorly that the Government systems were exposed, and the software was extremely vulnerable to exploit.

I wrote a threat assessment and turned it in to my floor manager. He passed it along and shortly after, one manager quit, one was fired, and my floor manager never spoke to me again.

Shortly after, we suffered an 'internal attack' and when systems were restored, I had access to deep company emails with military and other government officials, domestic and foreign, detailing weapons sales and transport. One of those countries was North Korea.

#28

This is no secret, but whenever an annoying customer asks if we have something in the back, we go take a break, come back out, and say "hey, sorry, we're all out"

#29

Former Starbucks barista here. I guess these are really more of ordering tips than unscrupulous secrets.

- there is an unlisted size: short (8 oz). This is most cafes' "small," but Starbucks shifted the sizes up a number of years ago (which is why "tall" and "grande" weren't weird names then), making the venti the largest. You can get any hot drink short.

- we have a number of flavor syrups that aren't listed on the menu, just ask what we have. Also, despite what many customers think, we have peppermint year round, so we can make peppermint mochas and peppermint white mochas any time of the year. Gingerbread and pumpkin spice *are* seasonal, but we may not run out of stock for quite a while, so if it's February there's still a chance.

- bring your own cup, save 10 cents. Might have to remind the cashier, we forget sometimes.

- you can get a drink "for here" and get it in ceramic/glass, feel fancy, waste less.

- edited to add: 50 cent refills on coffee, iced tea, or iced coffee (not espresso beverages)

- iced large drinks have extra everything, on account of being 24 and not 20 ounces - extra espresso shot, extra pump of syrup.

- it's honestly not that annoying that you have a very specific drink order. It breaks up the monotony, and it's nice not to be a vanilla latte robot. Sometimes people would ask for weird things that I'd make for myself later and end up liking! (protip: green tea latte with peppermint)

- You can get the matcha green tea as plain, non-milk tea. It's pretty cheap for matcha tea, too.

- adding a syrup to a drink always costs extra (unless the cashier likes you/doesn't care, which is frequent), unless it's already in that drink. i.e., a caramel frappuccino with extra caramel doesn't cost extra.

- that delicious caramel sauce is in fact real caramel. That plastic-tasting caramel syrup is not. Many people don't realize we have both - the caramel sauce is what decorates the cup of the caramel frappuccino and on the whipped cream, the caramel syrup is what flavors the actual frappuccino or a caramel latte.

- a caramel macchiato is a vanilla latte with caramel sauce, and least (Starbucks: "most") importantly, the espresso shot put on top of the steamed milk.

- infrequently ordered, but delicious drink: a marble macchiato. It's like a caramel macchiato but with half mocha syrup, half white mocha.

- if you want a legit cappuccino and you see jugs of milk on the counter, ask for them to use milk from the fridge. Milk needs to be cold to foam that well. Likewise, if you want a soy cappuccino, you can be a pain in the a*s and ask for soymilk from the fridge (they might not even have any in there), since soy will barely foam at room temperature, since the cartons are shelf-stable.

- if you have no idea what to order, ask us. Since we get free drinks you can count on us trying every single drink in every disgusting combination. Our favorite drink will probably be something excessively complicated we'll be happy to make for you.

- on that note, if you're like, green tea latte? disgusting or delicious? you can ask us to sample it. we'll make a whole drink and split it into sample cups. No big deal, our manager will probably like us better for promoting drinks anyways, and you don't have to spend money to find out raspberry mochas are gross and green tea is delicious.

- same thing for pastries. We'll sample it if you ask and we have enough (generally yes).

- if you really like a certain coffee we have but we don't have it brewing, you can ask for a french press version. French press generally tastes better anyway, and iirc it doesn't actually cost any more and you can order whatever size you normally would. We'll probably sample the rest of the pot anyway. However, this will take significantly longer since, for once, we actually have to brew the coffee ourselves.

- we often forget or get too busy, but we actually have giftwrap, especially around the holidays. Ask and we'll make that overpriced mug purty.

- I had a few customers with impossible or silly requests. (1) impossibly hot beverages - in excess of 210F. guys. srsly. (2) people who ask for extra hot cappuccinos and are disappointed by them still not being hot enough. This is how a cappuccino is - there's too much air/surface area for the foam layer to ever be hot. If you want hot, get a latte. (3) asking for less-hot milk from the pitchers we've already made. We can't serve milk that has gone below 135, you have to have us make a fresh batch. [is bad] for waste, better for you not puking.

- in terms of dairy allergy/vegan stuff, the caramel sauce, white chocolate syrup, and pumpkin spice syrup all contain dairy. The chai contains honey. The whipped cream is 100% legit heavy cream. The caramel syrup, mocha syrup, and other syrups are non-dairy. This stuff might not matter to the lactose intolerant, but to some it does. For the caffeine-sensitive, the mocha syrup does not actually have any coffee - it's chocolate sauce, and is just named that because it's what we use for mochas. The "creme-based" list of fraps is usually pretty short, but there are usually more caffeine-free options, just ask.

- edit: you can get an "old school" iced americano, which is espresso + all ice, instead of espresso + ice + then water to fill

- edit: you can get a café au lait, but it's called a misto (mee-sto). It's half brewed coffee, half steamed milk. Handy if you like lots of milk in your coffee and don't like making it room temperature with it.

- edit: if you want a little soymilk in your americano, iced coffee, or regular coffee, just ask for it at the bar. I've never seen anyone charge for it. Full cup of soymilk for a latte, yes, 1" for another drink, no one cares.

- edit: if you want chai but no sugar/honey, get a chai tea misto. It's half brewed tea (tazo stuff) and half steamed milk. Also costs less! You will have to wait a little longer, since there is actual tea brewing happening.

- edit: if you like honey, we have it at the bar and can make your drink with it. Works better with hot drinks.

- edit: We have two forms of vanilla - the syrup, and vanilla bean powder used for vanilla bean frappuccinos/caffe vanilla frappuccinos. You can get the powder in any drink, many people think it's tastier, and it has those magical vanilla bean speckles.

- finally: You are probably worried about being weird, inconvenient, and an a*****e. Starbucks customers are the nicest in my experience. I think it's because you're all worried about being a d**k. KEEP WORRYING, THANKS

Now for the unscrupulous part:

- in terms of cross-contamination, it's pretty bad. We had blender pitchers labeled "dairy" and "non-dairy," but no one cared. The metal pitchers and blender pitches are rinsed out with pressure, and continue to be used throughout the day. The steam wand on the espresso machine (used for heating milks) is cleaned with a rag that soaks in cleaning solution as well as using the steam to clean out the inside, but the cleaning solution is often pretty contaminated with all the milks (if you think about it, wiping off a little milk and then putting it back in the same liquid... even if you change it out frequently, cross contamination is almost immediate).

- The soymilk *does not* cost more than the dairy. What's more, is it's shelf-stable packaging, and so there's less waste than with dairy.

- Frappuccinos have the highest profit margin. Watch someone make the drink and it's apparent - it's mostly ice, generally more than the iced drinks (non-blended) gets. Not a real shake by a long shot, but... so delicious...

- those overpriced sandwiches below the pastry case get tossed every night. Yeah, we could take some home, but you always get tired of the food at work and none are particularly great, so yeah. Same goes for "morning" pastries mid-day in many Starbucks. Other pastries are given a shelf life of 2-3 days upon arrival, but generally some of those are always tossed too. Occasionally I had a whole, unopened package of something that was expired, though ideally this is minimized. These things go in the dumpster, and many people will understandably go dumpster diving for these - I mean, it's a trashbag full of slightly-dry pastries, some still shrink-wrapped. They purposely place the dumpsters somewhere more secluded to avoid this (they don't want to be liable), but apparently it can easily be figured out.

- we can & do guess what people will get before they order when we're bored. We have stereotypes, they hold pretty well. Except for that one skinny woman who got caramel frappuccinos. Breaking barriers, man.

#30

I used to work at an Apple store.
If you bring in a computer 3 times for the same issue, they will replace it with a brand new model.

#31

I used to work at a local movie theater that only costs $2. I don't know if other similar places do this, but the manager used to take out the used cups from the trashcans wash them out and use them again. Lesson i learned: Never buy a drink at a cheap movie theater.

Edit: I've decided to report them! I figured they would be caught and shut down by now, but the place is still open.

#32

Former fast food manager here. I don't know if this is a company-wide thing, but our regional McManager "strongly discouraged" us from firing anyone who had worked there more than six months, since they'd be eligible for unemployment. Instead, we were encouraged to make their lives into a living h**l until they (hopefully) gave up and quit.

#33

I've worked at a few major Canadian "alternative financial" businesses. One has a major parent company in the US with the same policies. So what I'm about to say applies to Money Mart, Cash Money, Speedy Cash, and Rapid Cash. And those are some pretty major companies, so I feel confident that this is industry-wide.

There is no authorization system. Absolutely none. We talk it up like we have to put all this information in the computer and send it all off to head office for an approval, but there is no such system. Every decision is made by a living breathing employee right there in the store you're in. We talk about this system to protect ourselves, to keep the crazies away--those guys who will be [angry] that we declined their check and wait outside to ambush us when our shift is over (which, btw, all kinds of other security procedures in place for that, so don't go to crazytown).

Handing me a check that looks like it was written in the same pen as your signature on the back? "My system is just asking me to verify this, I'll be right back." No it isn't. I think you're trying to hand me a stolen check.

Handing me a low-sequence check (e.g. check number 0003) from a numbered company? My first thought is it's a fake business, unreliable, unestablished--I'm probably not going to cash it. "Oh I'm really really sorry, but my authorization system is down right now. Can you come back tomorrow?" (So I can run a search to see when the company was registered, who it's registered to, and so forth).

You want 70% of your net pay on your very first payday loan? "Hm, I mean, I'll try, but my system only usually approves 30-40% on a first loan... let me try... hmm... yeah, says I can only give you $200. I might be able to get you a little more if you have any references verifiable in the phone book, do you know anyone with a land line?" (Note: Money Mart is unique in that the system ACTUALLY caps you at a max of 20-30% on the first loan, but the rep at the window can still offer below that if they don't trust you.)

Sending $2000 to Nigeria with some generic test question about what their favorite color is? "Sorry, my Western Union system is down." B***h, that thing never goes down. You're just too stupid to realize it doesn't make sense for a nice 2-bedroom apartment in downtown cityville to be $300 a month with a huge deposit and a landlord in a foreign country who will call his buddy to let you look around just as soon as he gets your security deposit that there's no way to get back once you give him that lovely little 10-digit number on the receipt.

We blame the system because it protects us, because it keeps us safe, because it's hard for you to argue or bicker with us when you don't believe we have any say in it. But we do.

The only time the person you're dealing with face-to-face isn't the sole person making the decision is if they're a newer employee and they haven't been deemed able to be trusted with the amount of money you're dealing with (e.g. someone who's been working for us for less than 6 months needs to get actual approval from a real other person for a $4000 check).

#34

Working at Target [is bad] balls. At least that was the case when I was there. The best way to describe it would be like watching one of those movies where there's a family that seems perfect. One day the main characters goes over for dinner and has to use the restroom and they find a locked door in the hallway and they hear a strange noise. Whatever's behind that locked door is the result of working for Target. It's soul-draining and spirit-crushing and every time I go into one I'm equally as relieved to no longer be working there as I am afraid some powerful force from the back room might [be bad] me back inside. *shudder*.

#35

Former Casino employee here. Avoid slot machines near the exits and cashiers. They are designed to pay out poorly.

#36

Even though there are very specific rules regarding the amount of hours a commercial truck driver can be on the road, and if you ask the employer they'll always say that the driver is told to always follow those rules, I was always encouraged to work over houred by falsifying my log book. Those drivers that followed the letter of the law were given significantly less work and made WAY less money (the difference was close to $20,000/year.)

#37

As a former cart pusher at walmart, one thing i always noticed was how they pushed all of their employees, i mean "associates" , to 39.5 hours a week so that they wouldn't get full benefits. That and the 10% discount card only worked on taxed items.

Edit: Thanks for all the responses. For those that asked, NY state considers 40 hours to be full time, back in '09. Also the tax in my area was 8%, so the discount was pretty much nonexistent. I have since moved on to another job.

#38

The managers at Public Storage steal from units going up for auction, thinking that no one will ever know...until one of the customers buys their stuff out of auction at the last minute.

#39

Back when I used to work at McDonalds we would get shipment time to time for buns, fries, etc. Every time shipment came the manager had to sign and check that everything was there but my manager would always mark certain things missing and hide them in the store so that she can get a few extra boxes for free. I have no idea how she got away with it for so long but it's been a couple years since and she is still there so I guess it worked for her.

#40

EVERYTHING AT PANERA IS FROZEN (pretty much). Phew. That felt great.

#41

Former Office Depot "Technician" reporting in.

You bring your computer in for a $100 virus clean up - we hook it up to the network and let some guy overseas fix it. Most of the tech employees know about as much about computers as the average 45-year-old shopper.

Edit: a lot of people have messaged me stating that the techs on the other end of the network connection were not, in fact, over seas. I apologize to all of you, that was unfair. I never had any interaction with you guys except through the little chat box. My store manager told me we outsource over seas, and when I saw how some of you type in that box, I didn't doubt him

Edit 2: I also never meant to imply that the real technicians didn't know what they were doing. I was simply showing the incompetency of the actual employee.

#42

I was a butcher for a while.

Cutting myself did not mean that I should stop working or wear gloves.

#43

Those security cameras? Nope. Not real.

This is really pretty common.

#44

Was at Kohl's for 5 years, supervisor for 3. Not sure if these are all true of all Kohls, but definitely were at mine.

* We were encouraged to sign everyone up for a credit card, despite age, language barriers, etc. I absolutely hated signing people up for those cards, especially only because they wanted to see if they could get a discount. I would give them the discount regardless if they were approved or not. (If I didn't sign enough people up, I would get warnings). The APR on them was 27%!

* The jewelry cases were all opened with one key and pretty flimsy even then. With a hard jerk, you could easily open them. Also, a lot of the diamonds that were under 1/4 carat were fake.

* If you were returning something without a receipt and were getting a "corporate refund", that meant that you were, 95% of the time, returning stolen merchandise. (We would tell them they'd get a check in the mail) The other 5% were if it was extremely old merchandise (like, 3+ years old). A few people got the hint, those that didn't were in for a sore surprise when they would never get a check.

* You could easily let a friend know your associate number, go to Kohls, say you work at a different store, give the number, and get the associate discount, 15%.

* If it was returned and wasn't noticeably damaged, it went right back out on the floor, no matter how long the person had it.

* Inventory was always off, probably by about +/-5 units per item

I'm sure there's tons more I can think of, but it's been awhile.

#45

If you shop at a grocery store that sells whole rotisserie chickens, the chicken you're buying probably isn't older than about 3 hours (that was when we had to pull ours.) However if you buy a chicken pot pie or a BBQ chicken pizza, it's hard to say exactly how long ago that chicken was cooked. Why? Because the chicken that we pulled after it sat for 3 hours, we pulled off the skin and tore the meat off the bones and then threw the meat in a big container in the prep fridge. So your Safeway chicken pot pie is made out of rotisserie chickens that no one bought.

EDIT: As 500 people flooding my inbox have noted, this is as it should be.

You might also like: 51 toxic phrases employees have actually heard from their bosses

39 Bizarre Cars That Were Actually Listed For Sale

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:14:02 +0000

One can buy almost everything under the sun on resale platforms, and cars are no exception. But those who have purchased an automobile secondhand know that it’s an interesting journey full of the weirdest, strangest, and arguably coolest vehicles the automotive world has ever seen.

Below, we gathered many such instances for you to enjoy. To find them, all you have to do is scroll down!

While you're at it, don't forget to check out a conversation with motoring journalist Juliet McGuire, car flipper and content creator Lucky McNamara, automotive expert Amelia Dalgaard aka Motorhead Mama, and car coach Lauren Fix, who kindly agreed to share their insights on buying cars secondhand.

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1

#2

#3

When we asked the automotive world experts if buying a car secondhand is a good idea, they all enthusiastically agreed for many various reasons.

"Buying a used car is a great way to save money. Purchasing a CPO (certified pre-owned) is the wisest choice, depending on your budget. You get the warranty and leave the depreciation to the first owner," says car coach Lauren Fix.

#4

#5

#6

"Buying used can save you thousands—cars lose value fast in the first few years, so someone else takes that hit for you," seconds car flipper and content creator Lucky McNamara. "If you know what to look for, a used car can be just as reliable as new. Plus, your money goes further—you can often get a higher-end model for the price of a basic new one."

However, buying a car secondhand can cost you more if you're not careful, notes motoring journalist Juliet McGuire.

#7

#8

#9

Therefore, according to automotive expert Amelia Dalgaard, aka Motorhead Mama the biggest signs to look out for when looking to buy a car secondhand are the following:

Ensure the vehicle has been well maintained (CarFax and maintenance reports are good, but if you can bring it to a mechanic, even better).
Ensure it hasn’t been damaged in a fire, flood, or accident.
Ensure the car you’re buying is indeed that vehicle—check the VIN.

#10

#11

#12

"Start with the basics: accident history, odometer tampering, rust, title status, and whether the seller seems sketchy or avoids questions. I always check the CarFax and look for inconsistencies like a “low miles” car with worn-out pedals or steering wheel. Also, if it’s a crazy good deal, there’s usually a reason," adds McNamara.

"Make sure that what is being sold to you is, in fact, what you think it is. A big one is a car being in an accident, and it being hidden from you. You can always tell if you look carefully at the paintwork. Any discoloration or uneven tones usually means the car has been in an accident," McGuire additionally warns.

#13

#14

#15

Meanwhile, Fix suggests having someone with knowledge and experience check out the car before buying it.

"Buying a used car online or from a lot, means that you should be smart and have a certified mechanic check out the car. Typically, the warranty is passed and they have higher mileage. Beware of flood-damaged cars, they can be dangerous to your health, have no warranty, and safety features will not work properly."

#16

#17

#18

Lastly, we couldn't let the automotive experts go without asking them to share about the weirdest car listings they've ever seen. Surely, they've got to have witnessed lots of them.

"Oh man, this list is so long," Dalgaard says, confirming our suspicions.

"But the weirdest are the people who 'KNOW WHAT THEY’VE GOT' and want 'NO LOW BALL OFFERS', especially when I know that what they think they have is a fraud. Usually, that comes in the form of a 3-series BMW trying to pass itself off as an M3 with a badge from eBay," she jokes.

#19

#20

#21

"Divorce listings are the weirdest. A frustrated ex-partner can sell a car for much less than it's worth. Damage the vehicle and then try to sell it for cash. These are always amusing," shares Fix.

"One seller uploaded photos of a car fully wrapped in fake grass," McNamara recalls. "I thought it was a prank, but it was real. He claimed it was “eco-conscious,” but the interior had turf too. Imagine mowing your car."

#22

#23

#24

Finally, the last piece of advice that these experts wanted to leave our readers with is that you can't always be too careful.

"Do your homework - get an inspection on a used car and never buy on impulse," Fix advises.

"I think perhaps the best thing someone can do is utilize a service that inspects a used car for you (if you are not an expert yourself). You can never be too sure with cars, and they are such an expense that you really should want to be sure about what it is you are actually buying," says McGuire.

#25

#26

#27

"Don’t be afraid to ask ALL of the questions. If they give you a hard time, walk away. You’re the one with the money and the power," suggests Dalgaard.

At the same time, somehow you have to be careful and quick so you're able to score the best deals.

"If you’re shopping used, speed is your secret weapon. The best deals go fast, within hours, so you have to be ready to move when you find one. And don’t be afraid to negotiate. You’d be surprised how much wiggle room there often is," recommends McNamara.

#28

#29

#30

#31

#32

#33

#34

#35

#36

#37

#38

#39

You might also like: 40 smart inventions that failed because no one understood them

45 Dark Confessions That Were Delivered In Surprisingly Casual Ways

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:15:04 +0000

Listening to people reveal their secrets can often be a fun, amusing activity. After all, there’s a reason why kids love playing truth or dare! But if someone is willing to reveal the darkest parts of themself without being prompted at all, you might not actually want to hear what they have to say.

Redditors have recently been recalling the most disturbing and unsettling confessions they’ve casually heard other people share. From admitting things that could land these individuals in prison to spilling dark secrets that could tear their families apart, we’ll warn you right now that some of these replies are not easy to read. But they might make you feel a little bit better about the skeletons you have in your own closet!

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1

One of my mom's friends, a tiny and friendly old man, once gave me a job at the cleaning service company where he worked. I was 18 and it was easy money, he was chatty and helpful, and over lunch he started talking about how he didn't hear so well out of one ear.

He then just throws out there that he was tortured by electricity and ear drum slaps in his home country (a Latin American country under a military regime in those days) until he passed out, and he then came to his senses in a mass grave.

He reckoned they thought him dead and dumped him, and he woke up, crawled among the bodies and found his way home.

A tiny, friendly old man survived the kind of s**t the word "h**l" barely can describe with accuracy, the kind of thing that would reduce me to a drunken, s******l wreck, and decided to tell Death to f*** off while he lived the best life he could.

It redefined the word "tough" for me. It's not the hard muscular alpha-male type dudes, it's the people who've seen the Devil and still continue on enjoying life, BECAUSE they've seen him and know what an alternative might be.

#2

I am a wheelchair user and was stopped by a homeless woman in Vegas who was very distraught about me crossing the street. She claimed she’d seen another wheelchair user get run over and k**led on that particular road and that I should always travel with someone abled for visibility purposes. She got hysterical at that point and I excused myself, promising to be careful. I was unsettled.

I googled the incident later. Her mug shot came up in the search. She was the driver.

#3

My grandmother was born in 1918 in Germany. She survived heavy bombings in WW2.

Our family never talked much about the bad things. If they talked about the war, it's was mostly light hearted anecdotes.

I was around 9 when we were watching a documentary with my parents and grandma. It was about the bombings and when the term firestorm came up we kids were curious. My parents startet explaining how a big fire can draw so much air that it creates a strong wind that pushes the flames even further.

My grandma suddenly got that 1000 yard stare and casually said "I have seen people burn like torches".

We said "What?!" and grandma snapped out if it and said "What?".

I guess it had to come out, but she didn't even realise saying it.

To find out how this conversation started in the first place, we got in touch with Reddit user TrustyMadman. He was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda and share what inspired him to start this thread.

"We've all been told that secrets, etc. are akin to entering a pact. When in reality, most of these need to be spoken aloud to protect the speaker and/or others of mistreatment," the author shared. "[Some] should be kept as family secrets, as no one needs to air their laundry publicly. But everyone in the family needs to speak to each other bluntly and matter of factly."

#4

Was at a club one time with a group of work friends. One dude grew up super religious and it was his first time really drinking. He tearfully confessed he was gay and probably forgot the next day. I still follow his socials and he’s still deep in the closet.

#5

I used to work for a store that puts the stuffing in teddy bears. One day I was outside wheeling around a cute one to try and bring customers in and get reactions from kids and I smiled and said hi to an older lady. She stopped, we had a conversation and she said “this is the only conversation I’ve had with a human being in over a week.” And went on her way. I was devastated for her and I still think about it a lot.

#6

Many years ago, I was a young police officer in London. Posted to station officer one night, an old lady walks in to report a theft from her garden. I took basic details from her, including her family name and commented that it sounded very French. She had a faint accent, so it made sense, and she said that she was originally from a village in northern France.

The lady went silent and then said how much I looked like the father of a childhood friend. In a casual tone she then recounted how after the N***s invaded her town in WW2, the townspeople joined in the arrests and k**lings of the Jewish residents. She hid in a drain for a day and a half, listening to screams and gunfire crept out after 2 nights and escaped to Switzerland, where she lived on the streets for 5 years before coming to live in the UK.

She then looked up at me and said, " I don't suppose you'll find my hanging baskets, will you ?".

We also asked the OP if he had ever heard anyone casually throw out a shocking confession. "I've had multiple people disclose a variety of things to me personally over the years," he noted. "Being in the military for almost 24 years now, I've heard everything from minor and highly fragile family situations. Being senior leadership, I've become one of those people that anyone can talk to, and I love being able to help out."

However, TrustyMadman says it's important to determine whether he's talking to the victim or the person who made a mistake. "If it's the victim, there are multiple resources for everyone and I can walk them through it," he continued. "I've done this many times. If they are one of the a**holes that did something stupid, I will ensure all matters illegal or borderline illegal are reported."

#7

An old friend of mine confessed once that he hates women having a say in whom their partner is, and that it would have been much better if we can just take whoever we want. It goes without saying that he was an incel, but a pretty chill one up to that point. He said it so casually that it took me a while to register it.

The next day we had a fight and he blocked me for telling him he is deranged for saying he would r*pe women if not for the law. It's been a year since then, and thank God, he is still single.

#8

I was talking to a very good friend of my now deceased father.

He said that many years ago he talked my father out of murdering my mom. He believed she was cheating on him, even stalked her on the way to college with a gun in the car. She wasn't cheating, also they already had kids at the time. I'm 100% sure what he told me is true.

Got chills thinking what my life would have been, had this occured. My mom is the greatest person I know by a mile, I'm glad she's still here.

#9

When the first Harry Potter movie was released in 2001, my ex boyfriend at the time told me while we were sitting in the theatre that he had a crush on Hermione (Emma Watson) in the movie. She was 10. He was 25 at the time. I was pretty stunned at his casual comment about being attracted to a child. Anyways a few years later it came out that he had sexually a****d a young girl from the family who took him in when his mum kicked him out. He was 16, she was under 10 I think. So yeah, glaring red flags.

Next, we asked the author what he thought of the replies to his post. "I've read each of the thousands posts, diving into the unique ones," he shared. "They were mostly very well written, and I thank everyone who contributed."

#10

I was talking to a close freind when out of the blue he mentioned that a few months back (at the time) he nearly committed s*****e. I enjoy talking and being social. That hit me to my core, and I became non-verbal. I love that man and it hurt that I didn't know how badly he was feeling.

I talked to him more on this, at first he was hesitant, but he is okay now. I got him the help he needs.

#11

Met a guy, first date. 10 minutes into it, he tells me that he recently k****d a cat with his bare hands, but can‘t remember most of it.

#12

My now-ex-husband mentioned that when he was in high school he beat up a disabled kid. EX husband.

Finally, TrustyMadman left us with some wise words. "If you have something that you've been carrying and it's eating you alive, you need to talk and get resolution," he says. "Whether you're the guilty party or not, I've been told repeatedly that feeling is permanent until you do. After you realize this fact, the rest is self-inflicted purgatory."

#13

Not a direct confession, but a coworker told me about a lawsuit he was involved in that sounded interesting, so I googled it to see if I could find the court case. Instead I found an article where he had gotten caught and arrested for filming minors.

#14

I once heard someone casually say, “oh yeah, i’ve been watching my neighbor sleep for months now it’s like my hobby.”.

#15

Playing a boardgame with a friend who had become a d**g d****r

Told me that there was a night where someone had ripped him off and he and his friends went after him leading to a car chase. The other car hit a bystander and left the victim paraplegic.

He felt really guilty about it, would obsessively watch news reports of the incident over and over again.

I found out he had died of alcohol poisoning about a year later.

#16

My mom picked me up so we could get food on my birthday a few years ago and randomly brought up an instance when me and her went to disney for a cheering competition I was in where the only thing I asked for on the whole trip aside from food was this round minnie mouse plushie filled with those soft styrofoam like beads. It was so squishy and soft so I took it to my mom and asked if I could have it. She had said no so I just assumed parent saying no because they don't want me to have it.

She casually drops *why* I wound up getting it on the last day of the trip. My bio dad and her were still married at the time and he *drained their join bank account on strippers at a local [private club]*. Her friend who was with us who's daughter was also on the team had to cover dinner for us that night and I didn't know. She had to call the next morning and ask her job to give her a 3 day advance on her paycheck as we weren't leaving until saturday morning so that was gonna be like 3 1/2 days without food for the day as our stay package only included breakfast at the resort.

I already hated my bio dad by this point and I just couldn't believe he would be so f*****g reckless. I believed he would do it but not that he would put me and my mom without food for 3+ days. The j*****s... I still have that plushie by the way its in my closet my bio dad tho? No contact.

#17

My dad once told me about one of his college buddies who loved doing nitrous oxide so much that he tied a bag of it around his head and asphyxiated. He said this in a joking way and chuckled until I pointed out that it was likely a s*****e then his face dropped like he hadn't ever thought of it.

#18

A really good friend of mine had been out of contact traveling the country, hitchhiking, sleeping on random people's couches, camping out in the desert, etc. for around a year, and so when he came back we all got together to hang out, and it basically turned into a small party. At some point he just casually drops that he has a court date coming up, and explains it was because his ex is suing him over the fact that he beat his infant daughter nearly to death sometime before he left. He then just tried to continue on with the party like nothing happened.

I don't think I ever heard of anyone who was there hanging out with him again after that.

#19

A good friend of mine told me how when he was 7 he went to pee and apparently got a little on the floor….His dad made him lay in front of the toilet and he [angry] on him to teach him not to miss the toilet. He said this very casually.

It’s sad to know that definitely wasn’t the only lesson his dad taught him. And that he said it like it was normal for that to happen.

#20

I once sold weed to a coworker I didn't know all that well after our night shift. He stopped by my house and we smoked a little and he says his ex wife doesn't seem to want to get back together. Then says really casually he's not sure if it has to do with the fact he tried to drown her in their bathtub when they were married. He said he didn't think he held under water all that long! So why won't she take me back?

#21

My buddy casually dropped that his kid wasnt his. Its his wife's dealers. But I guess they are good now, so whatever.

#22

An old fandom friend told me about her stepmom who she absolutely hated. Apparently her dad had problems with her as well. One morning the woman just abruptly disappeared out of their lives forever and the only thing she took with her was the mattress.

#23

One time my mom was pouring her heart out bc ig she was feeling particularly emotional that day, and she just causually said "and yknow what? I AM racist. I just keep it discreet, but really, why shouldnt I be racist?" And like.... ma'am, moments ago you were talking about how you feel like you failed as a mother. Whats going on.

#24

Met a cute guy on a dating app in person for the first time. Dude nonchalantly admitted he has served time for domestic violence but it was totally his ex's fault according to him 🙄 I blocked him as soon as I got home. I actually am a DV survivor and my a****r is serving a sentence for attempted [end] of his girlfriend. 🙄 I don't joke when it comes to DV and it feels like society in a way still kind of does....

#25

South African here, and recent events reminded me of this story.
In a mixed group setting, chatting with a fairly new friend in the group, who's grandfather owned a LOT of land in the interior (think roughly between Bloemfontein and Colesberg area, for my fellow Saffas). Some of it was active farmland, a small amount was game, but most was unused. We were chatting about the hunting trips they took, farm life, etc, and he casually drops a "humorous" story about how they found out that some of the farm workers families were considering making a case for a small ancestral land claim on an unused part of the land.
When the grandfather found out, he rustled up some of the family and immediately went out and bulldozed all the old graves they could find, to remove any evidence of prior residence.
We all stood there in shocked silence for what felt like an eternity, and I can still vividly recall the moment even now more than 10 years later.

Worst part: he was genuinely confused as to why people started lecturing him about why that was so wrong. 😔.

#26

I was talking to a guy a year after we got out of high school. His father was an LA Metro cop. He told me casually that he and his buddy would put on suits, take his dad’s Crown Victoria, badge and gun, and “hassle” [escorts] in Hollywood. He said hassle but I think he meant “get free services.”

When I saw him at the 10 year reunion (the only one I attended) he had become an LA Metro cop, but was getting a divorce, was on his 3rd police force, and was being sued by 3 people. He said they were suing the depts but were also suing him personally and he didn’t think he would be a cop for much longer. I didn’t ask for details. He told me all this in 30 seconds. Then he said “So what have you been up to?”

Edit: This guy also held our high school record for bench press (460?). He would snort all kinds of c*****e and do a single rep for the record.

Edit 2: I talked to a friend who said this guy was impersonating cops since the 11th grade. They would also pistol-whip pimps and d**g dealers and steal d***s.

#27

So I used to work nights at a hotel. One week, I was scheduled for the latter half and missed that we had been housing a family friend of the GM. This family friend is an elderly lady, at least early 80s. She comes down to the front desk at midnight looking for a bottle of water and sticks around until about 3 AM just talking general old person stuff, stories, etc., and I'm listening and replying nicely since it was an otherwise dead night.

Then she drops why she's there. She was deemed not mentally fit to be unsupervised and tried to go out of state with her friends against her husband's (the designated supervisor) permission, so she ran off anyway leading to cops having to find her so her kids decided to house her at the hotel for a bit. She then goes on to tell me she hates her husband because of all the trauma he caused their son up to and including making him work a dangerous logging job that he was severely injured at during his early 20s and all the associated stories with that. To cap it off, she tells me she's supposed to have medications brought to her, but her kids had not brought them to her yet, and it had been 3 days.

She tells me one of he medications is LITHIUM, among an assortment of antipsychotics and old person meds. Lady tells me she is on it because she hated him so much she tried to run him over and got institutionalized for a few weeks over it. I feign having to go do some work activities in the back to get out of the conversation, but she asks if she can be swapped rooms due to wanting a better view but I pass that buck to the manager in the next shift because we don't usually do that for that reason.

Flash forward to the next morning while I'm training a new breakfast worker... This lady has a psychotic breakdown and is hanging out in the dining area in only a bath towel. This is an entire other story, but I felt necessary to include.

#28

Cab driver casually telling me how he found his minor neighbor attractive and how one day, when her parents left for a while, he invited her over to his house and proceeded to touch her in sexual ways.

I was 13 and alone in the cab, so on top of confessing a crime it also scared the s**t out of me.

#29

I used to sell cable.

You would not believe some of the s**t 70+ year old-old people will f*****g confess to you.

I asked an older woman once what streaming services she used cause I was trying to recommend her an internet speed.

She takes a deep sighing breath and casually goes 'my father used to sneak into mine and my sisters room at night. Mother told us to be proper girls and not air our dirty laundry to the neighborhood.'

I was just staring and all I could think to say was 'so. . . .Netflix? Hulu?'.

#30

Friend told me at school that they had new puppies at the farm but the dad drowned all but two of them. It was normal for him growing up to do that.

#31

Not so much a confession as an offer. I had been single for a long time, and wasn't really fussed about it, I wasn't in the right headspace for dating. Anyway, I went to see an old friend I hadn't seen in years, and during a discussion about dating, he just up and offers to let me sleep with his girlfriend for money. I thought he was joking initially. He was not joking, and his girlfriend was not present, nor did she have any say in this proposed arrangement. She wasn't a s*x worker or anything, just a regular woman.

We did not remain friends. A lot more came out about his a*****e and manipulative behaviour towards her over time. No idea what happened to either of them in the end, but I do know she eventually left him with support from her friends and family.

#32

Me and a 2 friends of mine were on vacation in Amsterdam. We sat in a lounge in a coffee shop and were smoking when a dude came in. He was a very chill guy, he was from the UK has moved to the Netherlands a while ago. It was just us 4 in that lounge, smoking, and having casual conversation. We were talking about motorcycles and stuff like that.

Then my friend asked him why he moved to the Netherlands. He started talking and settled into that two thousand yard stare the more he told us. He had a house in the UK, and some night, a dude broke in. While he was at home. He got up, got into a fight with the burglar, and managed to knock him out. He tied him up and called the police.

But the police didn't show up. He thought they just didn't believe him. He called multiple times. At some point it had been over 1 hour, and the burglar was still t*****p in his house. So he throw him out into the garden and poured gasoline over him. He lit a lighter. Then he called the police again, held the phone to the burglars face, and started screaming "HELP ME HE'S GOING TO K**L ME! HE'S GOING TO BURN ME ALIVE!".

Then police arrived. They arrested them both, and both were sent to prison. After he was released, he started a new life in the Netherlands. And you could tell that story was real by the look on his face and how silent everthing became when he started talking. We were just sitting in silence for a minute after he told us that story, and he just started at the wall, saying nothing.

Afterwards he snapped back and we had a somewhat normal conversation again. But bot gonna lie, we were nervous as s**t when he told us that story.

#33

Asked my best friend what he had done for the day and he casually tells me about how he robbed a McDonald’s……..😭 Mind you we were in high school and the way he casually breezed past it and explained his entire day?!?! Like sir PLEASE let’s back up a bit, you did WHAT??????😭😭😭😭😭😭.

#34

My kindergarten age daughter was invited to a pool party with her classmates. I was chatting with a few moms when one of the moms mentioned that she was sad because she's had to get rid of her great dane because he was too aggressive. In the most casual story telling way possible, she told us that the woman from the Great Dane rescue hadn't really seemed to believe her (the mom) about how aggressive the dog was until he tore her (the dog rescue woman's) ARM OFF. .

#35

I think I caused a freezing moment, I brought up as a joke on a night out how s******l I can get and how thinking about it is so normal in my head (thinking this was just normal) my friend was so shocked and took time to talk to me for a good solid hour.
Ever since the boys always ask me how I am and have even surprised me with a visit to come see me (they live far from me).

#36

There was this dude I hung out with once in a while for maybe six months before we just fell off eachothers radar. My wife and I got along with him and his family fine, we just didn't mesh into friendship very well.

A few years later he shows up just looking to talk to a friendly face. I've had bad times before, so I invite him in, and ask how he's been.

Turns out he's stressed out because his wife had an injury and told him to find romance elsewhere to unwind. (The injury was unusual but they were swingers) He thought it was a good idea to text his 12 year old stepdaughter and her 13 year old friend about it.

He lays it all out like he did it from his point of view, and at the end drops the one sentence "I told her she couldn't buy a new movie so she stole my phone and sent all these texts to her and her friends phones to get back at me!"

Then he says he's taking the plea deal and going to jail for 5 years, we don't say anything remotely supportive, and he just leaves. So now he's on a registry for life, because even he didn't beleive it when he said his stepdaughter set him up.

We moved before he got out 5 years later. It wasn't the only reason, but started the "maybe we shouldn't live here in 5 years" talk.

#37

One of my best friends from college was a few years older than the rest of us. When we pressed him as to why, he would tell us that he partied way too hard with his frat brothers and basically was tossed out on academic probation.

I'm hanging out with him a decade later and I'm not sure how the topic came up but he went into a little more detail. He partied so much that he knocked up a girl when he was a freshman. Ultimately, the mom wanted nothing to do with him and his parents pulled him from college to straighten out. When we met him was when he had cleaned up his act and was doing his best to avoid his frat brothers.

He has a daughter out there somewhere that he's never met. He was so casual about it and it snapped me out of my drunk stupor in an instant.

#38

I (50F) let the condo maintenance man in to replace my thermostat. I’ve met him before & he was always nice & quick with repairs. It was the start of summer & he asked if my kids & I had any vacation plans. I reciprocated the question & we were just making small talk. Out of nowhere he casually says he m******d his brother. [why?]?? I completely froze, then mumbled oh just as he was putting the faceplate on. He didn’t follow up that statement & I didn’t ask for details. He quickly said bye & walked out. I moved shortly after.

#39

My wife’s grandmother was a very eccentric woman who lived in a massive house. With no furniture, except for a bed on the floor, all her time went to her art. Which was everywhere. She lived in Alabama after ww2. After the war she was employed in the WASP a woman’s Air Force service pilot. While she didn’t fly, she did monitor radars and told us casually over dinner one evening that she had been sworn not to divulge information, but their main job was to track UFO’s activity over the Gulf of Mexico. She said she tracked 12 personally. But knows the team tracked way more than that.

#40

I was talking to a state Senator and he was casually telling me, in front of a few other guys about how he would cheat on his wife behind the school we were close to.

#41

Vietnam vet friend of my father's went on a road trip with us. Great guy. Funny. He told us some funny stories about the war. One of them was a war crime. Ha ha. I was 7 or so, so I didn't catch it at the time.

#42

Wife’s mom casually dropped privately to me during dinner she and her friends use to smoke pot behind the bleachers at football games.

Now I know this doesn’t seem that odd to most people, but both her parents are very straight edge and conservatives. They acted like the world was falling apart when my state decriminalized pot.

And it was so out of the blue as well and only I heard it. I think we were just talking about football in general or something.

#43

My mom telling me she drank while pregnant with me. I was stuttering and sputtering so much in the seconds that followed that she said she was joking. But like, I don’t want to go into the details, she wasn’t joking. She also told my older brother in front of me, that she hasn’t gone longer than a week without smoking since she was pregnant with him.

#44

At a party a few years ago, a straight (male) friend was pretty drunk and just randomly mentioned that he sucked a d**k when he was a teenager but didn't like it. Then continued on with the previous conversation as if nothing strange was said.

A guy sucking a d**k isn't really crazy, but the context and abruptness of it was really bizarre.

#45

Someone told me once that they ran over a deer and then threw it through some guys window. I asked, laughing, "why'd you do that?" to which he replied, "he owed me money."

We were very close face to face, and there was like an intense energy exchange and eye contact with us in that moment.

Then we went right back to what we were doing, which was a party with other people in my backyard.

You might also like: 48 times people realized their friends were horrible human beings

Mind-Blowing Simulation Reveals What 36 Hours Of Fasting Really Does To Your Body

Rocio Corsi — Sun, 14 Jun 2026 19:56:33 +0000

Health influencers and nutrition experts have championed a wide range of weight-loss approaches over the years — from the ketogenic diet and liquid-only cleanses to restrictive calorie intake — yet few have achieved the level of mainstream popularity that intermittent fasting enjoys today.

Praised by some as a simple and effective health strategy, the discussion around the practice is never-ending, with one of the most asked questions being: how exactly does it work?

As curiosity around fasting continues to rise, a simulation video from the YouTube channel Wellness Wise takes viewers through the physiological changes that unfold inside the body when it goes 36 hours without food.

The animation offers a detailed look at how the body adapts as it shifts through different metabolic stages before reaching a point where it relies more heavily on stored fat for energy, a process often associated with fat loss.

A simulation video broke down the metabolic shifts that occur when the body is deprived of food for 36 hours

Image credits: pvproductions/Freepik (Not the actual image)

Wellness Wise has 198K subscribers on YouTube. Their simulation video showcasing the workings of intermittent fasting runs for 56 minutes.

It was posted a year ago and has amassed 28M views as of this writing.

The visuals in the footage are graphic, depicting highly realistic human organs and other internal structures.

“What happens to your body when you fast for 36 hours?” the narrator of the video asks before following up with detailed information.

The video claims that four hours after eating, digestion slows, insulin levels drop, and the body begins using stored energy to function.

Image credits: Wellness Wise/YouTube

Around 8 hours in, it shifts to glycogen (carbohydrate) stores for fuel.

By 12 hours, fat burning begins as the body moves toward ketosis, a natural metabolic state in which it uses stored fat for energy.

After 16 hours, a natural cellular cleanup process called autophagy begins. At 24 hours, repair processes and insulin sensitivity improve. By 30 hours, growth hormone rises, helping preserve muscle.

Ultimately, at 36 hours, autophagy peaks, supporting cell renewal and metabolic reset.

Image credits: olenchic/Pixabay (Not the actual image)

Rishi Sunak, the former UK prime minister, was known for undertaking a 36-hour fast, with a source close to him telling the Sunday Times in 2024 that he consumed only water, tea, or black coffee from 5 pm on a Sunday to 5 am on a Tuesday.

Adam Collins, associate professor of nutrition at the University of Surrey, corroborated that fasting for 36 hours offers significant weight-loss benefits and strengthens “metabolic flexibility” — the body’s ability to switch between fuels.

Intermittent fasting, however, is not 100% safe.

A US-based diet and mental health service provider, The Emily Program, outlined several side effects of the practice.

The severity of the side effects may vary and may not apply to all who try intermittent fasting

Image credits: drobotdean/Freepik (Not the actual image)

Excessive hunger pangs, fatigue, low energy, headaches, dizziness, digestive issues, irritability, mood changes, bad breath, and sleep disturbances are among the most commonly reported side effects of prolonged periods without food.

More concerning potential risks include impacts on reproductive health, as well as nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition.

Image credits: qimono/Pixabay (Not the actual image)

There also isn’t an extensive amount of data regarding intermittent fasting.

The Emily Program states: “Current human research is very limited in size and duration, in part because this diet fad is not sustainable.

James Betts, a professor of metabolic physiology at the University of Bath, echoed this sentiment, despite the growing number of supporters who endorse it.

Image credits: Wellness Wise/YouTube

Speaking to The Guardian, he said, “There are a lot of proposed benefits to running on fats. But a lot of the research hasn’t really been borne out in human beings, so we don’t see dramatic benefits, certainly not in the short term.”

Intermittent fasting may, in some cases, contribute to the onset of eating disorders

Image credits: Wellness Wise/YouTube

A December 2022 study by Kyle T. Ganson, assistant professor at the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, and his associates explored the association between intermittent fasting and disordered eating among 2,762 Canadian adolescents and young adults.

They surveyed participants on their use of intermittent fasting over the previous 12 months.

Per the study, women showed the strongest associations between intermittent fasting and disordered eating, whereas men showed a significantly weaker correlation.

Image credits: Maksim Goncharenok/Pexels (Not the actual image)

Intermittent fasters, according to The Emily Program, are hard on themselves for breaking their fast too early or eating too late.

Depriving oneself of food for an extended period of time can also lead a person to feel out of control when the eating window arrives, the organization states.

Not achieving expected results within a short time frame can further push a person to eat less while promoting low self-esteem and body image issues.

“Moderation is the best choice”, netizens conclude about weight loss

114 Natural And Scientific Wonders That Are Hard To Believe

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 07:57:02 +0000

When we think of the wonders our universe has to offer, our minds instantly drift to the heavy hitters: the Grand Canyon, the Northern Lights, or ancient cathedrals. These spectacles easily leave us speechless, and that’s the profound power of nature and architecture.

But true wonder also includes the goosebump-inducing awe we feel when we witness human ingenuity — like the Wright brothers defying gravity, or an ancient cave painting of a handprint.

To remind you that we are part of a massive, living ecosystem, we’ve shortlisted the most mind-blowing posts from r/DiscoverEarth, a community tracking the spectacles of space, nature, and history.

Prepare to see the world, and your place in it, in a completely new light.

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1 There Are Only About 1,500 Andean Cats Left In The Wild

#2 Trimeresurus Insularis, A Venomous Viper Native To Indonesia

Ever stood at the edge of an active volcano, or watched a massive pod of orcas cut through the dark surface of an icy ocean? Or simply spent the night under a vast canopy of stars, waiting for a meteor shower to light up the sky?

You must've felt your chest tighten, and your jaw drop — this mental pause is called awe.

For centuries, science ignored it. If you couldn’t weigh it or put it in a test tube, it belonged to poets and philosophers.

But about twenty years ago, UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner decided to actually measure what happens when reality blows our minds.

His research led him to discover that awe physically rewires our brain on the spot.

#3 Pink-Necked Green Pigeons Are Common In Southeast Asia

#4 A Bush Pig Cooling Off In A Mud Puddle

#5 Lithops Are South African Plants That Have Evolved To Look Like Stones

When you experience something so vast it breaks your mental scale, your brain’s Default Mode Network (DMN) — the chatter center responsible for your ego, anxieties, and internal monologue — instantly shuts up.

Experts call this the “small self” phenomenon. Your brain stops obsessing over text messages and bills because it realizes it’s part of a massive and interconnected system.

“That was this big surprise in this research, is how ordinary awe can be. It’s everywhere, right? So it’s the flowers blooming and the moral beauty of people, and some pattern of light on the sidewalk,” said Keltner, who carried out the research.

“I think one of the broader lessons that awe provides for us is, you know, these ideas of separate self. Like, ‘oh, I’m different from other people.’ Which is true, but we’re also synced up with other people. ‘I’m different from nature.’ That’s true. But we’re also part of an ecosystem,” he added.

#6 The Glasswing Butterfly. One Of The Most Delicately Beautiful Creatures To Exist

#7 The Water Beading Off The Waterproof Feathers On A Loon

#8 🔥close Up Of A Dragonfly🔥

The physical perks of being amazed are just as real.

Research shows that awe actively calms your nervous system. It dramatically lowers interleukin-6 (IL-6), a biomarker of inflammation. High levels of IL-6 are linked to depression and heart disease, meaning a heavy dose of wonder is quite literally medicine for your body.

Your heart rate slows, breathing deepens, and the body enters a state of deep repair when you experience awe. At the same time, you might feel chills run down your spine or arms, but in a good way.

Experts tracked this down to a specific nerve pathway. Awe triggers a massive spike in vagal tone, which is the activity of your vagus nerve. This nerve acts as the body’s primary brake button for stress.

#9 The Great Eared Nightjar, Looks Like A Little Dragon

#10 Nice To Meet You, I'm Octopus

#11 The First Flower Ever Grown Entirely In Space

A brief look at stunning nature photography or a short walk through a park alters your nervous system for the rest of the day.

“Even small moments of awe and calm accumulate and can be comparable to longer periods of sustained relaxation,” neuroscientist Virginia Sturm at the University of California told National Geographic.

In 2021, her study tracking older adults found that those who took weekly “awe walks” reported a massive boost in daily happiness. Compared to regular walkers, their stress and anxiety levels came down dramatically.

#12 Lace Bugs Looks Like Their Wings Are Made Of Stained Glass

#13 If Our Eyes Were Able To See Magnetic Fields, This Is More Or Less How Jupiter’s Magnetosphere Would Appear In The Night Sky

#14 Sometimes Nature Is So Cool It Takes Your Breath Away. I Feel That Way About Octopus. This Really Is Such An Amazing Animal

A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that experiencing awe can actually turn you into a better human.

In the experiments, researchers showed participants different kinds of videos. Some watched intense footage of active volcanoes and natural disasters. Others watched beautiful and slow-motion close-ups of colored water drops bouncing and splashing.

Even though the videos were totally different, the result was the exact same. After watching them, people became measurably kinder, more empathetic, and much more willing to help out a complete stranger.

#15 Baby Sloth!!

#16 The Sweet Track Is A 5830-Year-Old Neolithic Timber Walkway, Located In The Somerset Levels In England And Discovered In 1970. It Was Originally Part Of A Network Of Tracks Built To Provide A Dry Path Across The Marshy Ground

#17 Hummingbirds Are So Tiny That This One Built A Nest And Laid Its Eggs On Top Of A Peach

Scientists believe you don’t need to hike Patagonia to unlock these feelings.

While some people are just naturally wired to feel wonder more deeply, anyone can train themselves to find it. It is entirely possible to build daily micro-habits that trigger awe right where you are.

Even better, you don’t have to go at it alone — awe actually peaks when we share it.

#18 🔥 Mandarin Fish

#19 🔥 Blue Jay Feathers Close Up

A 2019 study at the University of Amsterdam put people through fMRI brain scanners and had them watch simple videos of awe-inspiring nature.

Even on a flat digital screen, watching footage of the vast cosmos or deep oceans caused the brain’s ego-driven Default Mode Network to instantly drop its activity.

“When people experience awe, they really want to share that experience with other people, suggesting that it has this particularly viral component to it,” said Paul Piff, an assistant professor of psychology and social behavior at UC Irvine.

#20 The Golden Chrysalises Of The Tithorea Tarricina Butterfly

#21 A Short-Eared Owl Battles A Northern Harrier. Photo By Kathy Mcculloch Wade In Skagit County, Washington

#22 This Beautiful Creature Is A Wooly Monkey, And There Only About 1000 Of Them

We need this perspective now more than ever. In this highly digitized, fast-paced world, leaning into things that feel beautifully overwhelming can instantly ground you.

So, consider this your sign to step away from the noise. Go outside, look up, capture the most awe-inspiring thing you can find today, and share it with the world. Your brain will thank you.

#23 This Is Mission Golden-Eyed Tree Frog Or Amazon Milk Frog. It Was First Discovered Along The Maracanã River In Brazil

#24 Endangered Mexican Alligator Lizard. They’re Arboreal 🌳, And Look A Bit Like A Baby Dragon 🐉

#25 This Interesting Plant Is Native To Australia

#26 This Is A Tree That Got Hit By Lightning And It Exposed It’s Vascular System. Nature Is So Complex

#27 Whale Sharks Look Like Submerged Galaxies

#28 Meet The “Bagworm Caterpillar”. It Collects And Saws Little Sticks To Construct Elaborate Spiral Log Cabins To Live In. They Build Their Homes Out Of Silk, Sand, Soil, And Plant Materials

#29 A Coconut Octopus Peeking Out From His Shell Home

#30 Newly Discovered Species Found In Madagascar In 2021! Nano Chameleon (Brookesia Nana)

#31 Bioluminescent Ghost Mushrooms In Australia

#32 The Common Seadragon. This Guy Was Found In Waikiki, Hawaii

#33 There’s A Moth Bigger Than Your Hand, With A Wingspan Of 1 Foot. A Few Have Been Sighted In The UK

#34 The Comet Moth (Madagascar Moon Moth)

#35 An Incredible Shot Of A Sharpear Enope Squid 🦑

#36 Diamond Squid Rarely Disappoint When Encountered. Blackwater Off Kona, Hawaii. Size About 1.5+ Inches

#37 A Spectacular Wide Shot Of Saturn Captured By NASA’s Groundbreaking Cassini Spacecraft!

#38 A Jellyfish Called The ‘Psychedelic Medusa’

#39 Have You Ever Seen A Dragon Moray Eel

#40 This Ascidian Is Not From Avatar Or Outer Space. This Is A Real-Life Creature From The Ocean Floor In Tulamben, Bali

#41 🦭

#42 The Spotted Eagle Ray Looks Like Some Kind Of Ancient Ocean Spirit

#43 Ribbon Eel

#44 This Incredible Variety Of Sea Slugs Found Around Misaki, Japan

#45 Orchid Mantis

#46 Ercolania Caerulea, A Nudibranch Who Carries Galaxies On Its Back

#47 A Wildlife Photographer Captured A Super Rare White Risso's Dolphin Off The Coast Of California

#48 A Photo Of Pluto – 24 Years Apart (1994-2018)

#49 Found A Bunch Of Tiny Grasshoppers While I Was Surveying A Corn Field. They're So Cute!

#50 Sleeping Squirrels In Their Nest On Someone's Window Ledge

#51 An Otherworldly Photo Of A Bush

#52 Very Cool Pic Of Myxomycetes Slime Mould In A Water Droplet

#53 ‘Nudibranch’ Means ‘Naked Gills’ And Refers To The Branchial Plumes On Their Backs

#54 Last Pic Of Earth Taken By NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft Before It Went On A Death Dive Into Saturn

#55 🔥 The Blue Dragon River In Portugal 🐉

#56 Art In Nature

#57 🔥 A Rare Pink Manta Ray

#58 The Fractal Growth Pattern Of An Ammonite Septum

#59 A Hermit Crab With A Glass Shell

#60 Longhorn Cowfish

#61 These Are Neurons Trying To Connect. Your Memories, Your Dreams, Everything You Know About The Universe Is Thanks To These Little Guys And How They Interact

#62 A New Species Of Bioluminescent Earthworm Has Been Discovered In Japan

#63 Look At This Moth From The Genus Phalera

#64 I Hope To See A Swimming Feather Star In Person One Day

#65 You Share A Planet With This Alien Creature! The Hammerhead Flatworm

#66 I’m Not Sure What I Expected A Puffer Fish Skeleton To Look Like But I Don’t Think This Was It

#67 A High Resolution Composite Image Of Solar Eclipse

#68 Sea Of Japan Where Snow And Beach And Sea Meet

#69 Closeup Of A Wolf Spider's Face

#70 New Crab Species Recently Discovered Off The Coast Of Australia Called "Lamarckdromia Beagle", The Ylook Like Little Underwater Fuzzballs

#71 An Emperor Angelfish, With No Filter

#72 Curves Of A Giant Clam #coralmorphologic

#73 That’s Not A Bad Pixel. That’s Mercury

#74 A Tunnel In Brazil Dug By The Extinct Giant Sloth

#75 Blue Sea Dragons Are Basically Real-Life Pokémon

#76 A Comparison Showing The Jaws Of An Ancient Megalodon Shark (That Lived Approximately 23 To 3.6 Million Years Ago), Compared To A Modern Day Reef Shark

#77 Muscle Tissue Through An Electron Microscope

#78 Imam Mosque, Isfahan, Iran

#79 The Ultimate Blackwater Find. Deep Water Cusk Eel Species. Palm Beach, Florida

#80 Lime Cross-Section

#81 Saturn’s Rings And One Of Its Moons, Dione (Cassini)

#82 A Long Arm Octopus, Photographed In Hawaii

#83 Ancient Kraken - Weighing Over A Tonne With A Shell Up To 3.5m In Diameter, Parapuzosia Seppenradensis Is The Largest Invertebrate To Have Ever Lived

#84 The Veiled Virgin By Giovanni Strazza (Created In 1850s). The Veil Gives The Appearance Of Being Translucent, But In Fact, It Is Carved Of Marble

#85 Spectators At The Fagradalsfjall Eruption, Getting As Close As They Can To Lava Without Getting Singed 🔥

#86 Meet The Skeleton Panda Sea Squirts, Also Known As Ascidians 💀🐼

#87 Earth At Night Viewed From Space

#88 Elm Scribblings: Carved By Creatures Who Live Beneath The Bark, Revealed Only When Storm Eunice Brought Their World Crashing Down. 🌳😊

#89 A Never Before Seen Species Of Cusk Eel

#90 The Zebra Shark (Stegostoma Tigrinum) Is The Closest Living Relative To The Whale Shark (Rhincodon Typus)

#91 This Gigantic Deep Sea Sponge Is The Size Of A Small Bus

#92 Glowing Blue Spider Is Among The Dozens Of New Discoveries Uncovered During An Expedition To Angola's Lisma Plateau

#93 Vinicunca (Rainbow Mountain) In Peru

#94 Tapir Frog (Synapturanus Danta). A New Species Of Tapir Frog Found In The Putumayo Basin In Peru. They’ve Become Known As The Real Life Chocolate Frog From Harry Potter!

#95 You’ve Seen A Hammerhead Shark Before. But Have You Seen A Winghead Shark?

#96 Starfish Walk Using Hundreds Of Tiny Tube Feet On The Underside Of Their Arms, As Seen In This Fascinating Timelapse By Juliette Horn At The Frost Museum Of Science

#97 Curiosity Has Send A Breathtakingly Beautiful Panorama Back To Earth

#98 Beautiful Markings On This White Sturgeon (Acipenser Transmontanus)

#99 Cuttlefish

#100 An Incredible Shot Showing The Raw Power Of Lightning Striking A Tree At The Exact Moment The Picture Is Taken

#101 Beautiful Colours Of Galathea Pilosa, A Species Of Squat Lobster

#102 The Brilliantly Colored Purple Firefish. Bali, Indonesia

#103 A Magnificent Moment Captured Between A Freediver And A Southern Right Whale And Calf, In Skeleton Bay, Tasmania

#104 The Biggest Volcano In Our Solar System, Olympus Mons On Mars (H27km, W648km)

#105 Comparison Between Hubble And James Webb's Look At The Cartwheel Galaxy

#106 One Of The Most Oddball Animals In History. Diplocaulus, An Amphibian From The Carboniferous-Permian

#107 At 661 Pounds, This Giant Freshwater Stingray (Urogymnus Polyepis) Just Dethroned The Mekong Giant Catfish To Become The World's Largest Freshwater Fish!

#108 Sample From A Small Forrest Pond

#109 Never Seen A Red Velvet Mite? Well Now You Have

#110 On May 18, 1980, Richard Lasher Shot This Epic Photo Of The Eruption Of Mount St. Helens. Lasher Was Forced To Abandon His Pinto And Flee The Giant Plume Of Ash On His Motorcycle. Lasher Survived, His Pinto Did Not

#111 Under The Plant

#112 Parasitic Fungus (Akanthomyces Sp) Which Has Infected A Moth

#113 Sailfish Have Been Clocked At Speeds In Excess Of 68mph/112km, Some Experts Consider The Sailfish The Fastest Fish In The World's Oceans

#114 If The Earth Was Roughly The Size Of Pluto

You might also like: Germany Is A Whole Different World, And These 49 Photos Are Here To Prove It

7 World Cup Scandals So Disturbing They Forced Football To Change Its Own Rules

Rocio Corsi — Sun, 14 Jun 2026 19:30:11 +0000

The FIFA World Cup has given football fans some of the sport's greatest moments, but not every headline has been about what happened on the pitch.

Over the years, the tournament has been surrounded by shocking controversies, heartbreaking tragedies, corruption allegations, refereeing disputes, and scandals involving some of the biggest names in football.

Many of these incidents sparked worldwide debate and led to major changes in how the game is governed.

Here’s a look at some of the biggest FIFA World Cup scandals that changed football forever.

#1 Andrés Escobar, 1994

The 1994 FIFA World Cup produced one of the most tragic stories football has ever seen.

Colombia arrived at the tournament as one of the favorites after an impressive qualifying campaign that included a famous 5-0 win over Argentina.

Expectations were enormous, and defender Andrés Escobar was one of the team's most respected figures.

Nicknamed "The Gentleman of Football," Escobar was admired for his calm personality, clean style of play, and leadership both on and off the pitch.

Everything changed during Colombia's group-stage match against the United States on June 22, 1994.

While trying to stop a dangerous cross from American midfielder John Harkes, Escobar accidentally deflected the ball into his own net.

Colombia eventually lost 2-1, a result that played a major role in their early elimination from the tournament.

After the World Cup, Escobar returned home to Medellín despite advice to stay abroad. In a newspaper column published shortly before his d*ath, he urged Colombians to remain positive, writing, "See you soon, because life does not end here."

Just days later, on the night of July 1, Escobar went out with friends in Medellín.

According to investigators, he became involved in an argument with a group linked to known dr*g traffickers.

In the early hours of July 2, while sitting in his car in a nightclub parking lot, Escobar was confronted by armed men. He was sh*t six times. Witnesses later reported that the gunman shouted "Goal!" after each sh*t, a chilling reference to the own goal that had made headlines around the world.

Escobar passed away shortly afterward in hospital at the age of 27.

The m*rder shocked Colombia and the football world.

More than 120,000 people attended his funeral. Humberto Castro Muñoz, a bodyguard connected to powerful dr*g traffickers, later confessed to the ki*ling and was convicted.

However, many questions about who ultimately ordered the m*rder have never been fully answered.

Escobar's d*ath exposed the dangerous relationship between football, gambling, and organized crime in Colombia during the era of so-called "narco-football," when dr*g money heavily influenced clubs and the sport itself.

The tragedy forced football authorities to confront a problem that had long been ignored.

More than 30 years later, Andrés Escobar remains a symbol of sportsmanship and one of the most heartbreaking figures in World Cup history.

#2 The 2002 World Cup Scandal

The 2002 FIFA World Cup produced one of the most controversial runs in the tournament's history.

South Korea, co-hosting the competition alongside Japan, reached the semi-finals for the first time ever.

While their achievement remains one of the biggest success stories in Asian football, the matches that helped them get there are still debated more than two decades later.

The controversy began in the Round of 16 against Italy.

South Korea defeated the Italians 2-1 after extra time, but much of the discussion afterward centered on referee Byron Moreno of Ecuador.

Italy believed several major decisions went against them. Francesco Totti was shown a second yellow card for what Moreno ruled was a dive, despite replays appearing to show contact.

Later, Damiano Tommasi had a golden-goal winner ruled out for offside, a decision many observers considered incorrect.

The reaction in Italy was furious.

Legendary commentator Bruno Pizzul called it "complete robbery," while sports journalist Giorgio Tosatti wrote in Corriere della Sera that Italy had been eliminated from "a dirty World Cup where referees and linesmen are used as hitmen."

Even years later, many Italian fans remained convinced that the match had been unfairly officiated.

The controversy only grew in the quarter-finals when South Korea faced Spain.

Two Spanish goals were disallowed during the match, with both decisions heavily criticized afterward.

South Korea eventually advanced on penalties, but Spanish newspapers described the game as "the biggest refereeing scandal in history."

According to reports at the time, FIFA received 400,000 protest emails after the match, overwhelming its systems.

Questions also emerged about potential conflicts of interest.

South Korea's football chief Chung M*ng-joon was serving as a FIFA vice-president during the tournament, leading to speculation and criticism, although no formal investigation ever proved wrongdoing.

The controversy surrounding Byron Moreno did not end in Korea.

Just months after the World Cup, he was suspended by Ecuador's football authorities following another highly disputed match.

Years later, in 2010, he was arrested at New York's JFK Airport after authorities discovered he*oin hidden on his body. He later pleaded guilty and served time in prison.

The fallout from the 2002 tournament had a lasting impact on football.

FIFA faced heavy criticism over referee selection and match officiating.

In the years that followed, referee appointments became more closely scrutinized, background checks were strengthened, and pressure grew for technology to assist officials.

While VAR would not arrive until much later, many of the arguments for video review can be traced back to the controversies of South Korea's remarkable and deeply disputed run to the semi-finals.

#3 Zidane's Headbutt

The 2006 FIFA World Cup final was supposed to be the perfect ending to one of football's greatest careers.

Zinedine Zidane had already announced that he would retire after the tournament, and the France captain was once again at the center of the action as his team faced Italy in Berlin.

Just seven minutes into the match, Zidane gave France the lead with a daring Panenka penalty that clipped the underside of the crossbar before crossing the line.

Italy responded through Marco Materazzi, who powered home a header from a corner to make it 1-1. As the match moved into extra time, the two players continued battling throughout the field.

Then came one of the most shocking moments in football history.

In the 110th minute, Zidane and Materazzi exchanged words while jogging away from the penalty area.

Without warning, Zidane stopped, turned around, and drove his head into Materazzi's chest, sending the Italian defender crashing to the ground.

Referee Horacio Elizondo did not initially see the incident, but after consulting his assistants and fourth official, he showed Zidane a straight red card.

The image of Zidane walking past the World Cup trophy on his way down the tunnel instantly became one of the defining photographs in football history.

It was the final match of his professional career, and France went on to lose the World Cup on penalties without their captain.

For years, people wondered what had been said to trigger such an extraordinary reaction.

Materazzi later claimed that after Zidane offered him his shirt, he replied, "I'd rather have your sister,” per Spanish publication AS.

Zidane later confirmed that insults aimed at his family had provoked him. However, he never apologized directly to Materazzi. In a later interview, he famously said, "I'd rather d*e" than apologize to him.

The incident dominated headlines around the world and became one of the most replayed moments in World Cup history.

While Zidane later admitted, "I'm not proud of what I did," the debate over the incident never truly disappeared.

Beyond the controversy itself, the headbutt helped fuel discussions about the role of fourth officials, off-the-ball incidents, and the use of video technology to assist referees.

It also sparked wider conversations about verbal ab*se on the pitch and whether provocation should ever be considered when judging violent conduct.

#4 Qatar 2022

The 2022 FIFA World Cup was packed with historic firsts. It was the first World Cup held in the Middle East, the first played during the Northern Hemisphere winter, and the first tournament staged in air-conditioned stadiums.

On the pitch, it delivered one of football's greatest finals as Lionel Messi finally lifted the trophy.

Off the pitch, however, the tournament was overshadowed by a human rights controversy that had followed Qatar since it won hosting rights in 2010.

In February 2021, a major investigation by The Guardian reported that at least 6,500 migrant workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka had died in Qatar between 2010 and 2020.

The figure came from government and embassy records and covered all causes of d*ath among migrant workers from those countries during the period after Qatar secured the World Cup.

Human rights groups argued that many of those workers had been drawn to Qatar by the massive construction boom linked to the tournament.

Qatar built seven new stadiums, a metro system, roads, hotels, and entire districts ahead of the event.

Much of the labor was performed by migrant workers operating under the controversial kafala sponsorship system, which tied workers to their employers and limited their ability to change jobs or leave the country without permission.

Rights organizations documented cases involving unpaid wages, dangerous working conditions, recruitment debts, and exposure to extreme heat.

The exact number of World Cup-related d*aths remains heavily disputed.

Qatari authorities rejected suggestions that all 6,500 d*aths were connected to tournament projects and argued that the figure included workers from all industries and natural causes unrelated to construction.

Qatar stated that only a small number of d*aths occurred directly on World Cup stadium sites.

Critics, however, pointed to the frequent classification of d*aths as "natural causes" or heart failure, arguing that heat stress and working conditions were often not properly investigated.

The controversy did not end when the tournament finished.

In 2024, a FIFA-commissioned independent review concluded that "severe human rights impacts did ultimately occur in Qatar from 2010 through 2022" and stated that FIFA "has a responsibility" toward affected workers and families.

Human rights groups have continued to call for compensation, though no dedicated FIFA compensation fund has been created.

Ultimately, Qatar 2022 permanently shifted the conversation around World Cup hosting.

Human rights, labor protections, and worker welfare are now central issues in discussions about future tournaments, including the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia.

The debate also increased pressure on FIFA to consider not only stadiums and infrastructure when selecting hosts, but the treatment of the people who build them.

#5 The Qatar Vote, 2010

On December 2, 2010, FIFA's Executive Committee gathered in Zurich to decide the hosts of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

The result stunned the football world. Russia secured the 2018 tournament, while Qatar, a nation of fewer than three million people, with little football tradition, extreme summer heat, and no previous experience hosting a major international sporting event, was awarded the 2022 World Cup.

Qatar defeated the United States by 14 votes to 8 in the final round.

The decision immediately sparked disbelief. FIFA's own technical inspection report had rated Qatar as a high-risk candidate, citing concerns over climate, infrastructure, and operational challenges.

Temperatures regularly exceeded 50°C during the traditional World Cup window, leading many observers to question how the tournament could even be played safely.

Almost as soon as the votes were announced, allegations of corruption emerged.

Former FIFA secretary general Michel Zen-Ruffinen alleged that vote-trading agreements existed between bidding nations and that several executive committee members were vulnerable to financial inducements.

In the years that followed, investigations by journalists, prosecutors, and law enforcement agencies uncovered extensive evidence of corruption throughout FIFA's leadership structure.

The controversy intensified after the 2015 FIFA corruption scandal.

US federal prosecutors alleged that football officials had received millions of dollars in bribes connected to various FIFA decisions.

Multiple executive committee members who participated in the 2010 vote were later indicted, suspended, banned, or convicted on corruption-related charges.

Reports based on leaked financial documents claimed that hundreds of millions of dollars moved through accounts linked to FIFA voting members during the bidding period, though Qatar consistently denied wrongdoing.

The practical consequences were enormous. Because of the extreme summer heat, FIFA was forced to move the World Cup to November and December 2022, making it the first winter World Cup in history.

Domestic leagues across Europe and beyond were forced to suspend their seasons mid-campaign, disrupting football's traditional calendar for the first time.

Even Sepp Blatter, FIFA president at the time of the vote, later admitted that awarding the tournament to Qatar had been "a mistake."

By then, however, the decision was irreversible. Qatar invested more than $200 billion in infrastructure, stadiums, transport systems, and urban development projects connected to the event.

The Qatar vote fundamentally transformed how football views World Cup hosting.

It exposed weaknesses in FIFA's bidding process, contributed directly to the corruption investigations that exploded in 2015, and led to governance reforms designed to increase transparency.

Every major hosting decision since, from the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico to the awarding of the 2034 tournament to Saudi Arabia, has been scrutinized through the lens of the controversial vote that took place in Zurich in 2010.

#6 The 2015 Corruption Arrests

On the morning of May 27, 2015, football's governing body woke up to the biggest corruption scandal in its history.

Swiss police arrived at Zurich's luxury Baur au Lac hotel, where FIFA officials had gathered for the organization's annual congress, and arrested several senior executives.

Images of officials being escorted from the hotel quickly spread around the world and sent shockwaves through the sport.

The arrests were part of a massive FBI-led investigation that had been running for years.

The United States Department of Justice charged 14 individuals, including top FIFA officials and sports marketing executives, accusing them of taking part in a long-running scheme involving bribery, racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering.

Prosecutors alleged that more than $150 million in bribes and kickbacks had been paid over a period of nearly 24 years.

US Attorney General Loretta L*nch said the accused officials had "corrupted the business of worldwide soccer to serve their interests and enrich themselves,” per The Guardian.

Investigators claimed football executives accepted bribes in exchange for marketing rights, sponsorship deals, and influence over major football decisions.

At the same time, Swiss authorities launched a separate criminal investigation into the controversial awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.

Those tournaments had faced allegations of vote-buying and corruption since the hosts were announced in 2010. Several members of FIFA's executive committee who participated in the voting process were later accused, indicted, or linked to corruption investigations.

The scandal reached the very top of world football.

Although FIFA president Sepp Blatter was not initially charged, the pressure became impossible to ignore. Just four days after the arrests, he announced his resignation after 17 years in charge of FIFA.

Years later, Blatter admitted that awarding the 2022 World Cup to Qatar had been "a mistake." He was later banned from football by FIFA's ethics committee.

The fallout transformed the sport. FIFA introduced major reforms, including term limits for senior officials, stronger ethics oversight, greater financial transparency, and changes to the World Cup bidding process.

The scandal also changed how fans viewed football's governing body, exposing the political deals and financial interests that often operated behind the scenes.

#7 Rubiales And Jenni Hermoso, 2023

Spain should have been celebrating one of the greatest moments in its football history.

On August 20, 2023, the Spanish women's national team defeated England to win its first FIFA Women's World Cup.

Instead, the trophy presentation became the beginning of a scandal that would shake Spanish football and trigger a global conversation about sexism, power, and accountability in sport.

During the medal ceremony in Sydney, Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales grabbed forward Jenni Hermoso by the head and kissed her on the lips in front of millions watching around the world.

The incident was captured live on television and immediately sparked controversy.

Rubiales initially dismissed criticism, describing the kiss as a spontaneous gesture and later claiming it was consensual. Hermoso publicly disagreed.

"I felt vulnerable and a victim of an impulse-driven, sexist, out-of-place act, without any consent on my part," Hermoso later said.

She also told a Spanish court, "My boss was kissing me, and this shouldn't happen in any social or work setting." The striker said the incident "tarnished one of the happiest days of my life,” per The Guardian.

What followed turned an inappropriate moment into a full-scale institutional crisis.

According to Hermoso and multiple reports, federation officials attempted to persuade her to publicly support Rubiales and minimize the incident.

When she refused, criticism intensified.

FIFA opened disciplinary proceedings and suspended Rubiales from football activities for 90 days.

Spain's World Cup-winning squad announced they would not represent the national team until meaningful changes were made, while much of the coaching and support staff resigned in protest.

Rubiales initially refused to step down, repeatedly declaring, "I'm not going to resign."

His combative speech only fueled public outrage.

Politicians from across Spain's political spectrum condemned his actions, clubs demanded accountability, and the social media movement #SeAcabó ("It's Over") became a rallying cry against sexism in football.

The fallout extended beyond Rubiales.

Long-standing complaints from Spanish women's players about the culture surrounding the national team returned to the spotlight.

Coach Jorge Vilda, who had previously been backed by federation leadership during disputes with players, was eventually removed. Montse Tomé became the first woman to manage Spain's national team.

Rubiales resigned in September 2023. In February 2025, a Spanish court found him guilty of s*xual a*sault, marking a dramatic end to one of football's most damaging scandals.

The Rubiales case became a defining moment for women's football. It accelerated demands for stronger safeguarding policies, clearer codes of conduct for officials, and greater accountability within football institutions.

More importantly, it forced football's governing bodies to confront how power is exercised around female athletes, making the treatment of women in the sport a central issue rather than a side conversation.

Small Problems, Clever Fixes: 40 Creative Solutions People Shared

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:08:02 +0000

You know the saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

But maybe that should come with a little asterisk. Because the truth is, some things stick around not because they work perfectly, but because we’ve just gotten used to them.

Luckily, there are people out there who don’t settle for “good enough.” They spotted overlooked problems and came up with clever fixes that actually made life better.

We’ve rounded up some of the smartest solutions to everyday annoyances—scroll through and upvote your favorites!

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1 Parking Lines Go Up The Wall So You Can Properly Park Your Car

#2 Lightswitches That Show What They Are For

#3 This Sturdy Runner Allows People Using Wheelchairs Or Walkers To Access Our Local Beach

#4 My New Sheets Have Tags Identifying The Long Side And The Short Side

#5 My Oven Shows The Start Time Incase You Did Not Start A Timer

#6 I Found A Wallet On A Saturday, I Left A Note In A Way So Only The Real Owner Could Contact Me

#7 Free Vegetable Leaves For Pets In My Local Supermarket's Produce Section

#8 The Cafe At My Closest Beach Gives Free Drinks To People Who Collect A Bucket Of Litter From The Beach

#9 This Chair In An Office Cafeteria Has A Notch To Hang Bags

#10 The Guy Who Does The Grass For My Building Left A Rectangle Of Wild Flowers So The Bees Can Use Them

#11 This Plug Has A Hole In It To Make It Easier To Pull Out Of The Wall Without Tugging The Cord

#12 The Hospital My Wife Delivered At Gives You A Kit So You Can Have A “Birth Day” Party

#13 The Beaches Here In The Netherlands Have Free Sunscreen Dispensers

#14 This Apartment Complex Pool With Wheelchair Access

#15 Not Only Does It Keep Your Page; It Keeps Your Line

#16 The Bathroom I Went To At A Restaurant Had Free Feminine Hygiene Products

#17 This Gate That Allows Horses But Not Vehicles

#18 This Parking Garages Floor Names To Help You Remember Where You Parked

#19 The Employees At This Venue Have The Location Of The Restroom On Their Shirts

#20 This Staircase Has A Crevice To Roll Your Bike Up The Stairs

#21 My School's Library Has Noise-Level Guides That Change Colour When It Gets Too Loud

#22 An Old TV Repurposed Into A Cat Bed For My Cat’s Birthday

#23 I Would Like More Of This Please

#24 My New Inhalers Have A Countdown (200 Uses Total) On Them So I Don't Have To Keep Track Of When They Need To Be Replaced (UK)

#25 Any Love For Packaging Here? Very Thoughtful Hardware Package Design

#26 Medicine Section At My Local Rite Aid Has A Magnifying Glass To Help Visually Impaired People Read The Labels

#27 This Artist Heals Cracks And Gives Them A Second Chance Through The Unique Practice Of Flacking, Turning Damage Into Art

#28 For Those Times You Reeeealy Want Your Binding To Come Out Even

#29 My Shower Has A Flip Down Footrest For Leg Shaving

#30 In Japan, Baggage Scales Are Flat On The Ground, So You Don't Have To Lift Your Heavy Suitcases

#31 A Magnetic Knife Strip Felt Too Small In The Space, So I Present My Abomination: Knife Frames

#32 The Construction Guy Near My House As A Solar Powered Fan Helmet To Stay Cool

#33 This Park Has A Swing For Kids In A Wheelchair

#34 A Black Towel In My Hotel Room For Make-Up So The White Ones Don’t Get Stained

#35 Atlanta Airport Bathroom Has Lights To Tell You Which Stalls Are Occupied

#36 Beach Has Baskets For People To Help Clean Up

#37 My Movie Theater Has A Sign For End Credits

#38 Construction Company Covering Neighboring Cars To Keep Them Dust Free

#39 This House Put A Free Feed Dispenser On The Fence So People Walking By Can Give Their Alpacas A Treat

#40 This Beginner Chess Set Lists The Possible Moves On Each Piece

#41 An Inclined Driveway That Has Stairs

#42 This Cup Holder At My Workplace For When You're Carrying Too Much

#43 This Clothes Dryer Has A Plug Holder For The Powrr Cord So It Doesnt' Flail Around While Trying To Move It

#44 This Restaurant Bathroom Has Two Different Soaps Depending On When You Wash Your Hands

#45 My Sil’s Dishwasher Projects Onto The Floor How Much Time Is Left

#46 I Made This Benzene Stamp So I Never Have To Fail At Drawing A Benzene Ring In A Lecture Ever Again

#47 The Hospital Near Me Has Gamified Cigarette B**t Disposal

#48 My Breakfast Rusk Had Finger Slopes For Easy Removal

#49 This Titanium Coated Butter Knife With Internal Copper Alloy Heat Tubes. It’s Made To Heat Up When Held In Your Hand, So That It Is Easier To Spread Butter

You might also like: 40 smart inventions that failed because no one understood them

Sarcasm Only: 47 Relatable Memes From Instagram

Asli Akalin — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:02:03 +0000

Laughing comes with some pretty decent health benefits, so if your boss asks why you’re scrolling memes at your desk, you can say it’s all part of a personal wellness program. If that actually works out for you, please get in touch, we’d love to hear that story.

The “Sarcasm Only” Instagram account delights its millions of fans with hilarious and relatable posts and memes. So get comfy as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to share your own thoughts in the comments below.

More info: Instagram

Click here & follow us for more lists, facts, and stories.

#1

#2

#3

“Sarcasm Only” sits at a wildly impressive 16.5 million followers on Instagram, so we wanted to reach out to learn more. Bored Panda got in touch with the page’s admins and they were kind enough to share some more details, starting with how it came to be in the first place.

“I started the page with my brother, Xavi, almost 13 years ago, back when memes were just starting to take off. He already had some experience in the space before Sarcasm Only, and when I saw what he was doing, I immediately felt there was a need for something geared toward girls/ women. At the time, I was in high school and had just started using Instagram myself.”

#4

#5

#6

Given its massive popularity, we were curious to hear their thoughts on how it became so popular. “We are always up to date with what is happening in the world, specifically when it comes to pop-culture/trends. We have also grown with our audience. We often get people telling us that they have been following us for over 10 years and they love seeing our content. We post stuff that our viewers want to see and always take their feedback into consideration when posting the next thing.”

#7

#8

#9

They left us with some parting thoughts about the page and its fanbase. “The Sarcasm Only community is amazing, and we’re incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported us over the years. Our hope is to continue providing a fun space where nothing is taken too seriously because so much of life already is.” You can also find there podcast here.

#10

#11

#12

#13

#14

#15

#16

#17

#18

#19

#20

#21

#22

#23

#24

#25

#26

#27

#28

#29

#30

#31

#32

#33

#34

#35

#36

#37

#38

#39

#40

#41

#42

#43

#44

#45

#46

#47

You might also like: 38 seriously confusing photos that require a second look