Gus1234U, I'm sorry - I don't want anyone to have hurt feelings over this thread. I'm mostly interested in understanding my own reactions to these situations. I have a very immediate negative reaction to this situation and I am not sure why.

Know-it-all may not even be the right word. Could you explain more about what you mean by being a know-it-all and why it happens?

I am talking about someone who pretends to have far greater grasp of a subject than they actually do and who lectures and argues with other people over the topic. Sort of like when a person who has no kids has all sorts of advice for parents about how they can better manage things because they read an article in Woman's Day and who would be very dismissive of an actual parent's experience.

I like the 2+2=5 idea. Looking back, I can see that perhaps some people are trying out their ideas and don't really know how aggressive they are coming across.