I agree with this.
jedibunny
Posts: 321
http://www.forbes.com/sites/tarabrown/2012/03/26/dear-fake-geek-girls-please-go-away/
I completely agree with it. I believe that geek became chic when people started realizing that they weren't alone in their particular obsessions about [insert geeky thing here] via the wonders of the intarwebz - and then it became the new coolest thing to call yourself. Some others I know were just having this discussion. Yes, I'm a geek, but part of me being able to say that comes from the YEARS I spent being completely Uncool and bullied by Cool Kids. Part of me being able to say that comes from the fact that I actually know what I'm talking about with the things I'm geeky over, and get particularly irked with people who pretend they do and try to converse and/or argue with me about them. Too many girls took on the label because the people who actually deserved it suddenly found others like them and reveled in their camaraderie, creating an elite culture online. Then the elitist idea became Cool... so others adopted the term undeservingly.
I completely agree with it. I believe that geek became chic when people started realizing that they weren't alone in their particular obsessions about [insert geeky thing here] via the wonders of the intarwebz - and then it became the new coolest thing to call yourself. Some others I know were just having this discussion. Yes, I'm a geek, but part of me being able to say that comes from the YEARS I spent being completely Uncool and bullied by Cool Kids. Part of me being able to say that comes from the fact that I actually know what I'm talking about with the things I'm geeky over, and get particularly irked with people who pretend they do and try to converse and/or argue with me about them. Too many girls took on the label because the people who actually deserved it suddenly found others like them and reveled in their camaraderie, creating an elite culture online. Then the elitist idea became Cool... so others adopted the term undeservingly.
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Hmm, I really hope this isn't talking about me. I liked SyFy when it was SciFi, read and reread David Eddings' Belgariad series, along with any other fantasy I could get my hands on, and shunned the teen romance novels my friends read. I'm also a numbers geek. My profession is numbers. I will happily spend hours on a spreadsheet making it just right. Do I qualify?
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I will get some flack with this but saying 'OH MY GOD I LOVE THE BIG BANG THEORY I'M A GEEKGIRL' rustles my Jimmies. I don't think they write a single good female geek character. Some of them are nerdy, but the only really good geek character they ever wrote was the comic book writer.0
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I know geeks of every aspect. I am a geek of many aspects myself, punk rock, art/crafty (I do it for fun and own my own business, cosplay, sci-fi, fantasy, some horror always have a book with me and cosplayl. I am not extremely intelligent, nor do I play video games, but thankfully I have only had to deal with people like this in my crafting world. I am good at ignoring them. It's a fad for geek to be cool though and hopefully it won't last. I hate to be elitist, but these are the people who I used to get into fights with in high school for being myself and now all of a sudden being me is cool. Weird!0
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LET ME LOVE YOU!!! XDHmm, I really hope this isn't talking about me. I liked SyFy when it was SciFi, read and reread David Eddings' Belgariad series, along with any other fantasy I could get my hands on, and shunned the teen romance novels my friends read. I'm also a numbers geek. My profession is numbers. I will happily spend hours on a spreadsheet making it just right. Do I qualify?
I'm glad I'm not the only Excel nerd on here and Garion was my secret self when I was growing up (I WAS going to be the Riven King, dammit!)... but yeah, it seems like the "cool" Geek/Gamer Girls are just like the other "cool" girls, except that as well as being size zero, they also get to have tattoos and piercings and say cute things about Legend of Zelda.
Honestly, I HOPE they are real geeks and gamers, but somewhere in the back of my mind I can't help thinking that most of them wouldn't know a flux capacitor from a sonic screwdriver... :P0 -
I have to agree, there are so many "geek girls" out there that think being able to access the internet makes them a geek because they have to use a computer to access it. Basically things that were considered geeky to do have become more accessible to the masses. I have to say I am slightly bitter.
At first I thought it was just a fashion trend but it's lasting way too long for my liking.0 -
It's also similar to the amount of girls that wear band t-shirts and you know they don't even know it's the name of a band let alone like the music. Saying that I wonder how I would be judged, but really you do just know with some girls it's their latest look.0
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LET ME LOVE YOU!!! XD
I'm glad I'm not the only Excel nerd on here and Garion was my secret self when I was growing up (I WAS going to be the Riven King, dammit!)... but yeah, it seems like the "cool" Geek/Gamer Girls are just like the other "cool" girls, except that as well as being size zero, they also get to have tattoos and piercings and say cute things about Legend of Zelda.
Honestly, I HOPE they are real geeks and gamers, but somewhere in the back of my mind I can't help thinking that most of them wouldn't know a flux capacitor from a sonic screwdriver... :P
:laugh: I'm so glad somebody else here knows what I'm talking about. I wore those books out, then I read the Mallorean. I'm waiting for my own little nerd to get old enough to read them.
I know the difference in a flux capacitor and a sonic screwdriver Star Trek (TOS and TNG) and Doctor Who have a permanent spot on my netflix queue. 0 -
Same here. Currently reading my daughter "The Hobbit", but want to get to The Belgariad when she's a little older... or maybe just let her discover them for herself.:laugh: I'm so glad somebody else here knows what I'm talking about. I wore those books out, then I read the Mallorean. I'm waiting for my own little nerd to get old enough to read them.
And that's another thing. My daughter isn't discovering geek culture, she IMMERSED in it at home. She'll grow up a gamer and a comic book nerd and a geek girl, not just choose it as a way to rebel or stand-out or pick up guys. But equally, I worry that she'll be excluded because of it... She might grow up to be pretty or beautiful and still a nerd, but I don't want her to think she can't be a geek because of it. =/0 -
LOL so its cool to be a geek now..... Well we already new we were awesome so its time the rest of the world caught up lol. Don't worry about the posers they will lose interest quickly lol. Anyone who walks into my room will know I'm a geek its all books and Star wars stuff and Weapons lots of weapons.... Just talk the poor children into the ground and they will go away lol:bigsmile:
My little one is already reading Manga and both of them watch Anime as well as Star trek. My daughter is in love with the theme song from Voyager and DS9 lol...0 -
I used to worry that we 'pushed' our older son into being a geek/gamer type, because we're that way but as he gets older it is becoming obvious he would have found it on his own. My younger son, raised in the same environment, is definitely NOT a geek.0
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Honestly, I HOPE they are real geeks and gamers, but somewhere in the back of my mind I can't help thinking that most of them wouldn't know a flux capacitor from a sonic screwdriver... :P
LOL!!!! I heart this. So much.0 -
I also agree with this. I was always the "geek" in the family. I would spent days playing SNES, "wasting" my summer vacation (It was one of my proudest moment, beating LoZ: A Link to the Past!), collecting a lot of weird stuff (Weird to my family), listening to the complete opposite music as them, watching Spiderman and dressing quite weird. Was into the Simpsons way before a lot of my friends liked it lol I was always crafting something and sewing (Not very well, but a sewing machine was always on my Christmas list :laugh:) Some of the stuff I love now are largely due to my boyfriend's influence but I do get obsessed with most of it :laugh: I'm a big comic book girl now, still a Nintendo fangirl, a Trekkie and a proud cosplayer! Oh and I now have quite the soft spot for The Doctor
So do I qualify? hahaha!
And I know what you mean Pinuplove, I don't want to push baby boy into anything but seems to gravitated towards Mario Bros. well, anything! Put in the old Super Mario Super Show and I had never seen him so still! And we didn't even put it in for him, we were watching it lol0 -
I always worried that I "pushed" my son towards it too, but he is 15yrs old now and definitely is his own person and still loves comic books and sci fi though he is a total skate punk. My 10yr old girl is a different matter. She is going to be my art/book geek. She has already sold paintings at local craft fairs and can't be without a book.I used to worry that we 'pushed' our older son into being a geek/gamer type, because we're that way but as he gets older it is becoming obvious he would have found it on his own. My younger son, raised in the same environment, is definitely NOT a geek.0 -
ehhhh I think what we are railing against here is not people who "Fake" it per se but more the sexualization of geekdom, such that people are encouraged to fake it socially because its sexy and sex sells. Basically rule 34 here although its not porn per se.
but really, whatever. The fakers are generally nice people who are just trying to fit in. Is it a little irritating? yes, but it doesn't mean they dont' genuinely like whatever geek thing they think they like, it just means that you don't ACTUALLY have much in common with them even though they hope you do.
Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
(PS man I really liked the belgariad and mallorean even though they are the SAME story and I totally recognized that and enjoyed them anyway. But really did no one else have a pern phase?)0 -
I had, and still have, a great love for Pern. My geeky heart broke when Anne McCaffrey died.0
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^ THIS.I had, and still have, a great love for Pern. My geeky heart broke when Anne McCaffrey died.
I admit I had tears the day it was announced that she'd died.
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Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
I will never be cool, I'm way too awkward. Librarians are hated.0 -
^ THIS.I had, and still have, a great love for Pern. My geeky heart broke when Anne McCaffrey died.
I admit I had tears the day it was announced that she'd died.
I dont want to talk about it *sniff sniff* :sad:
I still reread my Pern books but I reread everything lol...... Remeber they came out with a Pern game for the Dreamcast lol0 -
Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
I will never be cool, I'm way too awkward. Librarians are hated.
Lol, I used to be one of those. But honestly all I have to do is open my mouth and people's eyes glaze over. What is this you say about dungeons and gear lvl's? Your mage what? Dps huh? Or when I want to play this song I love from Daft Punk, and people just don't understand, lol. Sigh, if only I had Nerd Rage.0 -
I will never be cool, I'm way too awkward. Librarians are hated.
@MixedFeelings; WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! Librarians are awesome people!!!!! =D0 -
Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
I will never be cool, I'm way too awkward. Librarians are hated.
Lol, I used to be one of those. But honestly all I have to do is open my mouth and people's eyes glaze over. What is this you say about dungeons and gear lvl's? Your mage what? Dps huh? Or when I want to play this song I love from Daft Punk, and people just don't understand, lol. Sigh, if only I had Nerd Rage.
It is a good way to get rid of men in bars, I remember a friend and I were on holiday and a group of sailors (middle aged men not tan, muscle bound youths in a white uniform) came over and started talking to us. They asked what we did for a living I said I was a librarian, she informed them she was a marine biologist, he said "There's just no point us trying is there?", in unison we said no but they still bought us a drink.
The older I've become the more I've entered in to geekdom, not on purpose but not caring either.
I think my main objection is hearing youths say "I'm such a geek" because they are wearing fake glasses. Glasses do not make the geek.0 -
Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
I love BBT! I want to marry a taller Leonard.0 -
Take heart folks - it just means you're the cool kids now. Other people are copying you. also....dang do people still watch BBT?
I love BBT! I want to marry a taller Leonard.
Too late, I already got him.0 -
LET ME LOVE YOU!!! XDHmm, I really hope this isn't talking about me. I liked SyFy when it was SciFi, read and reread David Eddings' Belgariad series, along with any other fantasy I could get my hands on, and shunned the teen romance novels my friends read. I'm also a numbers geek. My profession is numbers. I will happily spend hours on a spreadsheet making it just right. Do I qualify?
I'm glad I'm not the only Excel nerd on here and Garion was my secret self when I was growing up (I WAS going to be the Riven King, dammit!)... but yeah, it seems like the "cool" Geek/Gamer Girls are just like the other "cool" girls, except that as well as being size zero, they also get to have tattoos and piercings and say cute things about Legend of Zelda.
Honestly, I HOPE they are real geeks and gamers, but somewhere in the back of my mind I can't help thinking that most of them wouldn't know a flux capacitor from a sonic screwdriver... :P
Let me love both of you! I feel like there aren't enough Excel nerds around - I feel sort of left out when I freak out over a new PivotTable function or nested formula that I finally got to work! And the workbook I have that tracks my weight loss and daily workouts is pretty impressive, but only to me. :ohwell:
And *sigh* to Legend of Zelda reference... I miss my NES.0 -
Wrote a long response, disliked my wording, decided not to post it. Long story short, I disagree with this article and wonder why we want to limit the glory that is geekdom, instead of sharing it and getting more unlikely girls into gaming/reading/bookbinding/comic books/fantasy/sci-fi/you-name-it.0
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I work in stats too *dances*
I agree that the sexualisation of "geekdom" is bad, but it's inevitable once something becomes more mainstream. Geeks can be a tight knit/excluding group; I don't game, I don't play cards or tabletop games to some people that excludes me from the geek title. My huge si-fi/fantasy book collection (including Belgariad - wore out one set, had to get another!), my comics, tv shows of choice might not count!
If someone pretends to be a geek, then finds something they actually enjoy it, isn't it worth being a little annoyed?
Great article from the Mary Sue on his topic:
http://www.themarysue.com/on-the-fake-geek-girl/0 -
It's also similar to the amount of girls that wear band t-shirts and you know they don't even know it's the name of a band let alone like the music. Saying that I wonder how I would be judged, but really you do just know with some girls it's their latest look.
Have you heard the song "Take Off Your T-Shirt (If You Can't Name a Song by the Band That's On It)" by WWIII (Watt White)?0 -
I have been called a nerd, not geek most of my life.
I refuse to be labeled as any such though.
I don`t tell people, I game, have a small comic books collection of 200 (ranging from the 70`s- early 90`s.. A precious gift from my uncle when I was 6... I forgot the kick *kitten* 3CP0 he gave me too.. Should not have opened that package!) and that I watch the SPACE (Canadian) every day.
I remember when this whole geek/hipster became popular and how pissed off I was.
I've grown up watching horror movies/shows and scifi movies/shows my whole life because my parents were into that stuff.
I remember Data scaring the cra.p out of me and hiding behind a chair, then when I realized he wasn't a monster when I was around 8, loving him. I remember we had the Star Wars trilogy on VHS and how we would have mini marthons. AND MOST OF ALL... I remember when SPACE had a black and yellow theme and when they still had Friday Frightmare AWEHHH YEAAAAA.......
It was never until I was older that I even realized I did things that were "nerdy" or "geeky"....
I still don't label myself as such, but I sure I'm awesome hahaha.0 -
Wrote a long response, disliked my wording, decided not to post it. Long story short, I disagree with this article and wonder why we want to limit the glory that is geekdom, instead of sharing it and getting more unlikely girls into gaming/reading/bookbinding/comic books/fantasy/sci-fi/you-name-it.
I feel the same way. On one hand it can get frustrating when you think someone's as nerdy as you and the conversation falls flat because you're not on the same page, but on the other, I don't think we should be shaming each other for not living up to a very subjective and very fluid idea of what is enough to be classed as a "true geek". I particularly dislike how the article focuses on fake girl geeks. Should we women really be turning on each other like this when only 10 years ago I encountered regular ridicule in online communities, either called a liar (because I couldn't possibly really be a girl) or a fraud (because if I was a girl, I was only pretending to like X for attention)?
I just don't see how excluding people is going to help anyone, especially as I recall being excluded as a teen for the very reason that I am nerdy.0 -
Hmm, I really hope this isn't talking about me. I liked SyFy when it was SciFi, read and reread David Eddings' Belgariad series, along with any other fantasy I could get my hands on, and shunned the teen romance novels my friends read. I'm also a numbers geek. My profession is numbers. I will happily spend hours on a spreadsheet making it just right. Do I qualify?
Hot damn - someone else who loved Begariad series! I have a group of books I read at least once a year
The Belgariad series
LOTR (yes I start with the Hobbit)
Incarnations by Piers Anthony
The Rowan - Anne Mccaffrey
Ender's Game - why i'm drawing a blank on the author I have no idea!0
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