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And it goes to show that "sexism is the barrier" is not the whole story This is true but possibly not in the way that you think. I'm not sure that girls are c

And it goes to show that "sexism is the barrier" is not the whole story This is true but possibly not in the way that you think. I'm not sure that girls are choosing that different way of life quite so much as they're conditioned to do so, and this is discriminatory. I think it's possible to explain the phenomenon described in the OP via "intersectionality" - in other words, there are multiple forms of discrimination and they overlap in ways that sometimes confuse us and deflect us from the true course of treating people equally. About the best intro I've seen to it is here: http://miriamdobson.wordpress.com/2013/04/24/intersectionality-a-fun-guide/ http://miriamdobson.wordpress.com/2013/04/24/intersectionali... In this case, both geeks and women suffer from discrimination in different contexts. Being a geek and a woman is doubly difficult because mainstream society (both men and women) say "you're a woman, you shouldn't be a geek". This ends up producing some pretty weird conclusions like this: http://thesituationist.wordpress.com/2010/02/01/the-nerdy-gendered-situation-of-computer-science/ http://thesituationist.wordpress.com/2010/02/01/the-nerdy-ge... - which argues that women can only be encouraged into computer science if we make it less geeky, which basically discriminates against those who got into computer science because it's geeky and that's what they like. A properly intersectional understanding would argue for maximum freedom for both women and geeks and, especially, female geeks who suffer from multiple discrimination.

coldtea 14y ago
>In this case, both geeks and women suffer from discrimination in different contexts. Being a geek and a woman is doubly difficult because mainstream society (both men and women) say "you're a woman, you shouldn't be a geek". Sure, but why should society like everything? In this case, geeks. Now, I'm a geek myself. But I still find it OK that society can like some things (and professions) more than it does others. Especially since part of the geek essence is being "antisocial" it makes ever more sense of the general population to not like geeks. So much sense, that it's actually more like a tautology ("anti-social people are not liked by society"). Not to mention that geeks themselves do the same distinctions all the time. Who would waste a second's thought to think a McJob guy or a city cleaner as somehow "inferior"? Or even people like "office drones" with their Excels and such?
- chii 14y ago
  why is it that being fans of a popular sport and wear you team s jersey is cool, while being fans of more niche interests like geeky movies or tech isn't, to such a degree that kid who like it gets teased? there is some thing inherent in being more intellectual that provoke those who aren't.
  - coldtea 14y ago
    >why is it that being fans of a popular sport and wear you team s jersey is cool, while being fans of more niche interests like geeky movies or tech isn't, to such a degree that kid who like it gets teased? Because one is "popular" (your words) and the other is "more niche" (also your words). So if the many want to tease the few (which is how teasing goes anyway), it would be the people doing popular things to people doing more niche things. >there is some thing inherent in being more intellectual that provoke those who aren't. Yes, that's it's a niche endeavor. Nothing anti-intellectual only about it. People would equally tease the sole guy who collects stamps or the sole girl who still listens to Milli Vanilli.

coldtea 14y ago

>In this case, both geeks and women suffer from discrimination in different contexts. Being a geek and a woman is doubly difficult because mainstream society (both men and women) say "you're a woman, you shouldn't be a geek". Sure, but why should society like everything? In this case, geeks. Now, I'm a geek myself. But I still find it OK that society can like some things (and professions) more than it does others. Especially since part of the geek essence is being "antisocial" it makes ever more sense of the general population to not like geeks. So much sense, that it's actually more like a tautology ("anti-social people are not liked by society"). Not to mention that geeks themselves do the same distinctions all the time. Who would waste a second's thought to think a McJob guy or a city cleaner as somehow "inferior"? Or even people like "office drones" with their Excels and such?

chii 14y ago
why is it that being fans of a popular sport and wear you team s jersey is cool, while being fans of more niche interests like geeky movies or tech isn't, to such a degree that kid who like it gets teased? there is some thing inherent in being more intellectual that provoke those who aren't.
- coldtea 14y ago
  >why is it that being fans of a popular sport and wear you team s jersey is cool, while being fans of more niche interests like geeky movies or tech isn't, to such a degree that kid who like it gets teased? Because one is "popular" (your words) and the other is "more niche" (also your words). So if the many want to tease the few (which is how teasing goes anyway), it would be the people doing popular things to people doing more niche things. >there is some thing inherent in being more intellectual that provoke those who aren't. Yes, that's it's a niche endeavor. Nothing anti-intellectual only about it. People would equally tease the sole guy who collects stamps or the sole girl who still listens to Milli Vanilli.