crows to burnaby

I'm always highly amused by "musician wanted" ads that specify "no flakes".

If you're a flake, do you really think you're a flake?

Sure, many people will admit they're flaky in one way or another. But the type of "flakes" referred to here are usually the type who blow off rehearsals, don't learn the material, don't have their gear ready, and are in general unreliable. There's a lot of these people out there, but the problem is they don't realize it's a problem.

No one is going to look at an ad and say "No flakes... oh... uh... guess I'm out."

"No druggies" also shows up in ads, but that should be pretty clear. Either you're a druggie, or you're not. There are druggies who haven't admitted it to themselves and might answer the ad anyway, but they're likely to be in the minority.

But I doubt "no flakes" works as an effective filter.

I'd suggest making the ad itself a deterrent to flakes - ie., "We work really hard and expect you the same from you". Of course, everyone's definition of "work really hard" is going to vary as well...