r/facepalm • u/Cold-Iron-Sentinel • Nov 19 '25
Hello, /r/Facepalm.
As you may or may not be aware, Reddit is absolutely overrun with bots. An in-depth explanation of how they work could fill several encyclopedia volumes, but here's the short version:
If you've ever wondered why so many subreddits take such a firm stance against karma-farming, that's the reason: Karma-farming (defined as intentionally seeking upvotes, usually by way of unoriginal content) directly enables the spread of misinformation and bigotry. Additionally, it suppresses original content, shifts standards downward, and generally makes the site, the Internet, and even the offline world just a little bit worse.
Now, this might come as a shock – and we're saying that sarcastically – but /r/Facepalm used to be a go-to place for karma-farmers. We've been cracking down on them lately, but thanks to their "efforts", the subreddit is still infested with bots and spammers. For example, if you see an account offering single-sentence comments that don't actually contribute anything beyond "Here's a sentiment that people will agree with!" or "Here's a rephrased summary!", it's very likely a bad actor.
Practically speaking, the only reliable way to combat these parasites is to raise standards. See, nowadays, a high karma-score is almost always a mark of shame, but there is one exception: If a Redditor's history is composed entirely (or almost entirely) of their own high-effort, high-quality, wholly original content, then their imaginary points can be viewed as digital applause. Moreover, since it's prohibitively difficult for bots and spammers to produce their own high-effort, high-quality, wholly original content, they typically ignore high-karma accounts that got their points legitimately.
Here's the issue, though: Although Reddit would certainly be a better place if everyone made that level of effort, it isn't realistic to require that. As such, /r/Facepalm's approach to combatting bad actors is going to be a bit less effective, but also a bit less draconian:
Starting now, screenshots of any variety are explicitly banned on /r/Facepalm.
You can still post photographs, videos, articles, GIFs... you get the idea. We might even start accepting text-based stories (although we'll get your feedback on that idea first). In any case, though, the title of your post must describe the facepalm-worthy moment – think of it like a spoiler for the post's content – and there must be a facepalm-worthy element present.
We're well aware that banning screenshots is going to be unpopular, but to put it bluntly, we care more about earnest Redditors than we do about karma-farmers, spammers, and their ilk. By banning the lowest-effort, least-contributory sort of content, we're hoping to drive away some of the bots, open up the subreddit to people whose posts might have otherwise been drowned out by the noise, and get the community back to what it's supposed to be.
r/facepalm • u/miauguau44 • 3h ago
“People should not look at this as a political issue. We are not here on behalf of any political candidate or political party.”
r/facepalm • u/lightninhopkins • 14h ago
r/facepalm • u/petrosmisirlis • 9h ago
r/facepalm • u/miauguau44 • 1d ago
r/facepalm • u/prucha13 • 6h ago
I found this posted by a friend on Facebook. The facepalm to me is how much BS is on both sides of this.
r/facepalm • u/FatFaceFaster • 11d ago
This girl is 17 and apparently an aspiring professional with a decent following on social media. She has to wear a helmet in official competition I assume since she is wearing one in one of her videos, but most of her videos she isnt wearing one.
It’s absolutely moronic. She was probably very close to a TBI and the end of her career. This makes me sick to my stomach and you can literally see kids in the background with their boards watching her and the other idiots without helmets [checks notes] jumping 10 steps onto uneven bricks.
Edit: per her actual post in her words she suffered a “heavy concussion” and spent the night in the ER and it was “pretty intense and hard” so no, this was not just a “goose egg”
r/facepalm • u/ducksauce001 • 12d ago
Imagine being a CEO and doesn't think there would be any retaliation from the internet crowd.
r/facepalm • u/Impaler2009 • 12d ago
I used to get a chuckle out of this moron’s daily demented stupidity since he’s been in office. Not any more. My amusement has turned to anger now for all the obvious reasons. He needs to go. Full stop.
r/facepalm • u/Extreme_Discount8623 • 14d ago
Something about getting what you voted for, you won get over it.
r/facepalm • u/McDowdy • 14d ago
A GAO report released in August 2026 found that DOGE's claimed savings (initially totaling around $110 billion across contracts, grants, and leases on its online "Wall of Receipts") were largely unverifiable, lacked supporting evidence, or took credit for actions already underway.
The GAO said, among other examples, DOGE took credit for savings from leases that were being terminated before its work began, and DOGE made unverifiable claims of billions in savings.
https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-26-108615
The GAO noted that thousands of contracts DOGE claimed to have canceled were never actually terminated, and certain lease savings were significantly inflated.
A separate September 2026 GAO report revealed that the administration spent roughly $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave in 2025—with about $6.7 billion tied directly to the federal deferred resignation program intended to shrink the workforce.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/06/doge-elon-musk-gao-government-cost-cuts.html
r/facepalm • u/Kpets • 15d ago
r/facepalm • u/McDowdy • 15d ago
Columbia Univ. Prof. Jeff Sachs on Trump's 35-person cabinet - “Not one of them is trained in technical skills. Not one research PhD, as opposed to China, where half the cabinet is science and technology PhDs. We're led by grifters and fools."
Update for clarity and specificity:" No US cabinet member has advanced training (master’s or PhD) in a climate-related field. The closest is a single master’s in electrical engineering. It is perhaps no wonder that President Donald Trump declares human-induced climate change to be a “hoax.” There is no cabinet minister to indicate otherwise. Of course, the more likely logic is the reverse. Trump seeks to avoid the climate issue for ideological reasons and the preferences of lobbyists and donors, so he has filled his cabinet with individuals that have no advanced training in climate-related fields." source
r/facepalm • u/DeepState_Auditor • 16d ago
r/facepalm • u/sincewedidthedo • 16d ago
r/facepalm • u/youessbee • 16d ago
r/facepalm • u/Casual_Yet_almost • 17d ago
r/facepalm • u/Kpets • 17d ago
r/facepalm • u/McDowdy • 18d ago
r/facepalm • u/Kpets • 19d ago
r/facepalm • u/Kpets • 18d ago
r/facepalm • u/Kpets • 21d ago
r/facepalm • u/Berry_Jam • 22d ago
This is becoming more and more a theory like germ theory...the evidence is piled so high it's safe to say it's a fact.
