New Testingstan

Civil War Man wrote:

Bakustra wrote:i think a large part of that is backlash from the mainstreaming as well- see the recent intensification of "fake nerds" etc. but nerd "culture" was always relatively mainstream and it's just now that there is a Frankensteinian overall culture that these things can be articulated

Yeah, I can see how it is a backlash to nerd culture going mainstream. Since much of the nerd identity is based on ostracism, there would be a hostility towards newcomers who don't meet that criteria. If you fulfill the requirements of some social outcast quota, you are "one of us," but if you don't, you are one of the popular kids trying to steal their toys.

Nerd culture being mainstream is a relatively recent phenomenon, though. It's always had an unhealthy obsession with popularity, but most nerd staples didn't really become mainstream until the advent of the internet or later. They were mainstream in the sense that everyone realized they existed, but it's only been within the last couple decades or so that you could openly indulge in some of those pastimes without being viewed as a freak. A grown man reading a superhero comic was an embarrassment. Even interest in massive pop culture phenomena like Star Wars and Star Trek was viewed as unhealthy. The idea that the most popular movies of the past few years have been predominantly adaptations of Tolkien novels and superhero comics would have been unthinkable a mere 20-30 years ago. There were Tolkien adaptations and superhero movies made during that time, and even earlier, but Hollywood has only started viewing them as safe profit generators very recently.

Infinity Biscuit wrote:One thing that I felt kind of relates to this that I was reading was about how, as I mentioned in another thread, Mike from Penny Arcade honestly thought that by making fun of and deliberately trying to trigger rape victims who criticised one of his jokes, he was launching some sort of crusade against bullying.

The only way that makes sense that I can tell is if he considers that since he's the "nerd", he's being targeted by "non-nerds" (ie women who aren't part of The Club) and that makes them in the wrong, by default. That any conflict between the two is the non-nerd bullying the nerd. And that sort of persecution complex seems to come up a lot in nerd culture and it seems as if it would breed a corollary that would explain a lot.

After all, if you (as the nerd) are by default not the bully in any sort of conflict situation on an unconscious level, then that gives huge carte blanche to lash out whenever you feel threatened in any way. After all, it's just standing up for yourself, right?

Darksi4190 wrote:You know I can't help but be a little disappointed with the last episode of Futurama. Into the Wild Green Yonder was a much better "finale" for the show.

Oxymoron wrote:Yo IB,

am I right in finding the following clip really funny :


http://youtube.com/watch?v=qWS2NVX6VP0

Or should I feel like a bad person ?

RogueIce wrote:Personally I'm meh on it. I've seen the original movie of course, and it was good but nothing terribly special. I am far more a fan of SG-1, though to be fair to Emmerich having a decade to develop a universe and their characters will tilt things more in favor of a long running series than a single two hour movie.

Still I'll await the previews and see what he has in store. Could be good. Doesn't have to be a continuation of the SG-1verse for me to like it, though I'm sure plenty out there are nerdraging over just that.

evilsoup wrote:I'm sure Paramount want to keep their options open for the inevitable crossover
maybe Picard can save nuKirk and then get flattened by a bridge

Darksi4190 wrote:Hell, i'm surprised Paramount didn't kill STO when the reboot movies came out.