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Is SV a bit too hostile to nerd culture?

Spacehillbilly

Spacehillbilly

Banned Forever
Banned
Location
Los Angles
For a site spun off from SB, I feel there has been a backlash against pop culture and general nerdiness.

Why is this? Is it because of politics or subcoming to the hipster mindset?
 
What backlash? Some sort of example set would really help with having any idea what you're talking about. Because, like, I have no idea.
 
Spacehillbilly said:
For a site spun off from SB, I feel there has been a backlash against pop culture and general nerdiness.

Why is this? Is it because of politics or subcoming to the hipster mindset?
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Ummm.... What? We have separate megathreads for every tabletop game in existence, people get infracted for how viciously they argue about the minutia of comics and star wars and games. How is this site hostile to nerds/nerdiness?

Edit: hell, I'd say we are MORE friendly to it than SB with it's rightwing bias and stricter posting rules.
 
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Lunatic350 said:
What backlash? Some sort of example set would really help with having any idea what you're talking about. Because, like, I have no idea.
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Arawn_Emrys said:
Ummm.... What? We have separate megathreads for every tabletop game in existence, people get infracted for how viciously they argue about the minutia of comics and star wars and games. How is this site hostile to nerds/nerdiness?
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I just realized right now, this thread is a stupid idea and I didn't think I was thinking before I was typing.

Sorry if I wasted anyone time.
 
Spacehillbilly said:
I just realized right now, this thread is a stupid idea and I didn't think I was thinking before I was typing.

Sorry if I wasted anyone time.
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No, seriously, it's not stupid if it helps clear the air. What made you ask? Is there something you liked that go shouted down or attacked? Actual discussion can only improve the site.

Edit: seriously, I hate it when people start a discussion and then just vanish when the first few responses aren't favorable.
 
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Jace911 said:
this is about Ready Player One isn't it
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Isn't that just a cheap scam to make money of of nostalgia rather than a genuine nerdy movie? Sort of like Pixels? I mean just generic cyberpunk-ish with random pop culture stuff making cameos but nothing actually relating to any of them?

Edit: and not even cameos, just people using them as avatars?
 
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Arawn_Emrys said:
No, seriously, it's not stupid if it helps clear the air. What made you ask? Is there something you liked that go shouted down or attacked? Actual discussion can only improve the site.

Edit: seriously, I hate it when people start a discussion and then just vanish when the first few responses aren't favorable.
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Jace911 said:
this is about Ready Player One isn't it
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Arawn_Emrys said:
Isn't that just a cheap scam to make money of of nostalgia rather than a genuine nerdy movie? Sort of like Pixels?
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What made me want to ask this question was the reception to Ready Player One.

While it is no doubt garbage, it's the only thing that got me thinking.

Before this, we had Big Bang Theory and Pixels who's attempt on capitalizing geek culture has sort of killed what I would call the geek zeitgeist that started in 2008 with the first MCU movie.

But the real end was not a work, but an event.

Gamer Gate.

This event brought the ugly side of nerd culture to the fold and I feel that this plays a large part.
 
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SV isn't hostile to nerd culture in general.

SV is hostile to the parts of nerd culture that blindly reject critical analysis, constantly invoke the geek social fallacies, and show casual hostility to anyone with a life more nuanced and complicated than a STEM undergrad.
 
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Spacehillbilly said:
What made me want to ask this question was the reception to Ready Player One.

While it is no doubt garbage, it's the only thing that got me thinking.

Before this, we had Big Bang Theory and Pixels who's attempt on capitalizing geek culture has sort of killed what I would call the geek zeitgeist that started in 2008 with the first MCU movie.

But the real end was not a work, but an event.

Gamer Gate.

This event brought the ugly side of nerd culture to the fold and I feel that that this plays a part.
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The problem with GG is that it was a bunch or rightwingers taking advantage of the same nerds that they had been badmouthing for years (see Milo) by suddening claiming to be their defenders, only to turn on them as soon as they weren't needed anymore (Trump is blaming school shootings on video games and calling in game company execs to "address the problem" after the last mass shooting)
 
I also feel it comes from a critique of consumerism and materialism due to SVs majorly left wing leanings.

No saying this a bad things, rather it's just my observation.
 
Spacehillbilly said:
I also feel it comes from a critique of consumerism and materialism due to SVs majorly left wing leanings.

No saying this a bad things, rather it's just my observation.
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There's a difference between being hostile to nerd culture, and being hostile to cynical attempts to cash in on merd culture. All the stuff I've seen mentioned in the thread falls into the latter category, GG included.
 
Spacehillbilly said:
I also feel it comes from a critique of consumerism and materialism due to SVs majorly left wing leanings.

No saying this a bad things, rather it's just my observation.
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I've not noticed any such indications, things like the thread for Transformers spend as much or more time talking about the toys than anything else.
 
If anything we aren't hostile ENOUGH to "nerd culture". Fuck identities built around the consumption of media, vague leanings towards intellect and much more concrete leanings towards the aestheticization of violence, unearned feelings of entitlement and the rejection of social progress.
 
LSkullD said:
If anything we aren't hostile ENOUGH to "nerd culture". Fuck identities built around the consumption of media, vague leanings towards intellect and much more concrete leanings towards the aestheticization of violence, unearned feelings of entitlement and the rejection of social progress.
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Frankly this is a rather uncharitable stereotype, obviously there are problematic elements of general nerd communities that align with those things (though I'm not really sure what "aestheticization of violence" entails) but reducing nerd culture just to that is unfair and inaccurate.
 
Spacehillbilly said:
Why is this?
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1. We've been waking up to how unbelievably toxic and regressive aspects of the culture actually are.

2. 'Nerd culture' is becoming increasingly superficial and manufactured and becoming synonymous with cringy consumerism.

3. The appearance of hugely successful nerds in the public sphere is seemingly ruining the world even more instead of saving it.

4. Nerd as a descriptor is increasingly narrow for people's evolving tastes and interests especially as people become more sympathetic to countercultures.

5. Just fuck em.

Take your pick.
 
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