Can we please stop it with the Tumblr hate?

[Ragsnstitches]

Besides, nobody gathers on Tumblr to plot to eradicate straight, white, cismen. We use Google+.

Please, NOBODY uses Google+ ;P

That's what they want you to think.

OT: A lot of the user base for Tumblr is teens and we all know teens; they post whatever comes to mind

It's a lot like a diary but you can't burn the diary when you find it again after 5 years

It's always there... Mocking you... tormenting you...

*shudder*

This is definitely an issue, but not just with Tumblr. Pretty much every major platform (in regards to forums and blogs) where people can grind their axes, is filled to the brim with teens who are still forming their identities and sometimes are overly dramatic about it. Everything is EXTREMELY important when it's an issue that concerns them.

Personally my issue with the Tumblr hate and other social issue hot spots is that a lot of people... too many people, are getting their entire knowledge of the issues from their, and virtually no one is qualified to speak on it. It's all strong feelings and no rationality, reasoning or discourse.

It might die down in a few years, but I feel really uncomfortable with all the misinformation being passed around like it's going out of fashion.

 

[PsychicTaco115]

That's what they want you to think.

Illuminati confirmed?

This is definitely an issue, but not just with Tumblr. Pretty much every major platform (in regards to forums and blogs) where people can grind their axes, is filled to the brim with teens who are still forming their identities and sometimes are overly dramatic about it. Everything is EXTREMELY important when it's an issue that concerns them.

Personally my issue with the Tumblr hate and other social issue hot spots is that a lot of people... too many people, are getting their entire knowledge of the issues from their, and virtually no one is qualified to speak on it. It's all strong feelings and no rationality, reasoning or discourse.

It might die down in a few years, but I feel really uncomfortable with all the misinformation being passed around like it's going out of fashion.

Definitely a good point. There is a reason the Tumblr stereotype is "feelz before realz"

Problem is, feelz can be misguided for something that sounds so good...

Fuck

Why does everything have to be so heavy? >.<

 

[scorptatious]

I really have one thing to say about Tumblr:

$17,000 ball pit.

 

[Queen Michael]

I know that Not All Tumblr Users are bad, but the community as a whole is pretty horrible.

First we have all the shipping, which in at least 87% of cases focuses on treating two hot male characters as gay sex objects.

Then there's the scoial justice, which almost never extends to actually making a real-world difference. It's always limited to writing angry rants.

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

 

[Harpalyce]

I tend to think that people trying desperately to keep Tumblr as their hate pinata tend to make themselves look foolish in doing so. Oh no, there's a teenage girl fantasizing about two men kissing and feeling like she has a free space to identify her sexuality! Don't those teenage girls know that only MANLY MEN are allowed to fantasize about HOMOSEXUALITY because LESBIANS? And sometimes people even feel enthusiastic about making people's lives better! They might even call themselves FEMINISTS! And do you know that sometimes there are FIGHTS on a WEBSITE on the INTERNET? How horrible, get to the lifeboats, women and children first, etc etc.

But truthfully, I always get sort of whistful when they talk about the Tumblr hivemind as if it's a thing that exists. It sure would save some awfulness, like literal neo-nazis invading the Welcome to Night Vale fandom in order just to target people who happen to be not white or even just people who enjoy drawing characters who are not white because 'the superiority of the aryan race blah blah let's go tell people to kill themselves', apparently. It'd be a much nicer place if everyone really was part of this hive mind. Without the neo-nazis. Or the pedophiles. And so on.

 

[Zontar]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

 

[Zontar]

Oh no, there's a teenage girl fantasizing about two men kissing and feeling like she has a free space to identify her sexuality! Don't those teenage girls know that only MANLY MEN are allowed to fantasize about HOMOSEXUALITY because LESBIANS?

It's not the fact that they take two characters who are straight and make gay fantasies about them, it's the fact they tend to be in your face about it. No one cares what you're into as long as it's legal, we just don't want to hear about it.

And sometimes people even feel enthusiastic about making people's lives better! They might even call themselves FEMINISTS!

Well those people calling themselves that don't tend to actually do, and Tumblr's specific brand of feminism has been called out by many 2nd wave feminists as being counter-productive to its own stated goals. And that's ignoring the whole fact that 80%+ of it is actually just attempts to make men feel bad about themselves for existing, but that's neither here nor there

 

[Queen Michael]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

Demisexuality actually illustrates my main beef really well. It's supposed to be people who only feel sexual desire to pople they've got an emotional connection to, or something like that. Now, I'm not denying that there could be people like that. After all, if there are people who want to have sex with horses then it's not that outlandish to imagine that there might be people like this as well. What bugs me is that they need a special term to describe every part of their sexuality. Like this one person who was a self-described "sapiosexual." Because just saying "I'm into smart people" doesn't sound special enough.

Sexuality as a fashion statement. Jeez.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I really have one thing to say about Tumblr:

$17,000 ball pit.

Don't pretend that you weren't a little jealous of the ball pit. XD

 

[Zontar]

I really have one thing to say about Tumblr:

$17,000 ball pit.

Don't pretend that you weren't a little jealous of the ball pit. XD

It deflated quickly and some guy from /b/ pissed in it. Keep that in mind. (he also got away scot free)

 

[Harpalyce]

It's not the fact that they take two characters who are straight and make gay fantasies about them, it's the fact they tend to be in your face about it. No one cares what you're into as long as it's legal, we just don't want to hear about it.

Sooo... it's a problem not because they like it, but because people on their own personal tumblrs might post about something they enjoy? Mirabile dictu, what horrors! Won't somebody think of the children!?

Well those people calling themselves that don't tend to actually do, and Tumblr's specific brand of feminism has been called out by many 2nd wave feminists as being counter-productive to its own stated goals. And that's ignoring the whole fact that 80%+ of it is actually just attempts to make men feel bad about themselves for existing, but that's neither here nor there

I will admit that there are some bubbles of toxicity on tumblr - because there are bubbles of toxicity EVERYWHERE, and sadly, they don't just come in the 'strange feminism that isn't really feminism' variety. There's plenty of messed up shit in many varieties - because tumblr is a large blogging platform. I'm not going to defend things like TERFs because I find them personally as disgusting as the neo-nazis. But, again, those bubbles of fuckery happen on just about any sufficiently large social, well, thing, be it blogging or livejournal or twitter or whatever.

Unfortunately for some reason Tumblr's gotten stuck with the stereotype of being wholly toxic when, really, most of the feminism that crosses my dashboard (and that I support) isn't that way at all.

But it makes things a whole lot easier to stereotype the whole as being the same as the irrational majority if you're out looking for a convenient hate pinata.

 

[Broderick]

As for the whole topic in general, I like tumblr; it is an easy way to to see new art and get exposed to other types of media. However, there is quite a lot of misinformation, racism and sexism that tends to be rampant in some circles on tumblr. Frankly, I am unsure what to do to help clean up the community a bit. I figure just call people out on their BS, and if they do anything illegal, report them. I mean hell, one person tried to get someone's husband DEPORTED because they disagreed with them. It...can be quite vexing to see shit like that happen over something so trivial.

Unless some other event happened, I'm going to guess you are talking about Pinkiepony with the whole deportation remark. I think Pinkiepony is also what dragged tena into furiously attacking her whole clique, and spreading out into basically 90% of her anti-sjw posts, which is kind of understandable since pinkie was a unique blend of drama magnet and utter hypocrite.

On the plus side, that deportation fiasco seems to have pretty much killed her presence on Tumblr, I think her blog is still deleted, she probably realized that commiting crimes wouldn't go over so well when she finally turns old enough to be tried as an adult.


OT: Tumblr gets a lot of hate and stereotypes, but so do a lot of websites. 4chan is pretty much just /b to anyone that doesn't go to the site, Reddit is often considered a cesspool of annoying neckbeards and often gets lumped in with either the MRA or red pill crowd, Facebook is pretty much associated with everything vapid and mainstream, and so on and so forth.

The actual stereotypes against Tumblr aren't even new, while they didn't have the term SJW, Livejournal had pretty much the same stereotypes leveled against it when it was relevant, people moved those accusations to Tumblr when it became more popular.

That would be it. I am kind of glad to see at least someone stand up to the kind of BS that floats around tumblr sometimes. The whole pinkipony thing was just terrible, but I am glad it is pretty much over for the most part. While I understand she was young(not terribly young but eh), she definitely had some issues and behavior that needed to be addressed. I hope that she learns from all of this, and can grow as an adult.

 

[Harpalyce]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

Demisexuality actually illustrates my main beef really well. It's supposed to be people who only feel sexual desire to pople they've got an emotional connection to, or something like that. Now, I'm not denying that there could be people like that. After all, if there are people who want to have sex with horses then it's not that outlandish to imagine that there might be people like this as well. What bugs me is that they need a special term to describe every part of their sexuality. Like this one person who was a self-described "sapiosexual." Because just saying "I'm into smart people" doesn't sound special enough.

Sexuality as a fashion statement. Jeez.

Here's a question: so why does it matter to you?

If somebody's just being foolish, they're probably going to come into their own comeuppance given time. We can all remember the embarrassing phases we went through in middle school, after all.

Does it really negatively affect you if somebody has found the word "demisexual" to describe themselves and is happy with that because they wanted a word (and a community around that world) of people who don't experience immediate physical woah-what-a-hottie attraction but instead only experience that after they have gotten emotionally close to someone? Does it really negatively affect you if someone describes themselves as asexual, or lacking an interest in sex, but still has sexual relations with their partner because they know it's important to their partner in much the same way one would wash the dishes or maybe do the laundry as an expression of affection within a relationship?

Does it really matter all that much to get angry about? I mean, I doubt you're going to change anybody's minds even if you go yell at them on tumblr. So is that anger going to actually do anything than make you grumpy? Isn't it a bit strangely petty to be angry because you think people who are happy with what they are and how they describe themselves are living life differently than you?

I have to admit this is the part of hating tumblr I don't get, really. It seems a little pointless. It's okay to not understand what people are doing and to not feel like you need to chase them down and yell about how they're living their lives wrong. Wait until they actually do something objectionable instead of, idk, just describing themselves with a word you don't understand before letting all that anger sit on your mind. There are actual bad people on tumblr doing bad things like doxxing others, keeping up constant harassment, outing queer folk to their (homophobic, etc) parents and putting them in danger, etc., etc. In comparison, getting mad at somebody calling themselves demisexual seems a bit strange to me. It's not like them working out their personal identities is negatively impacting me in the least, after all.

 

[epicdwarf]

We need to stop just generalizing the entirety of tumblr on its SJW.

Not everyone on tumblr is a SJW, not even a majority. Hell, SJW are even at the butt of a lot of jokes on tumblr. The problem is that communities on reddit and 4chan over-react to their shit. Now we have entire sub-reddit's dedicated to tumblr hatred and TONS of "SJW" troll accounts on tumblr. The anti-tumblr crowd has now become possibly more militant than the community they are "fighting" against.

 

[Saika Renegade]

Tumblr, like a lot of websites, thinks it's a lot more important than it really is, and doesn't have the power to affect as much as it thinks it does. The small, vocal minority that doesn't realize this is why it garners so much negative attention.

That said, I've seen infighting on so many sites and in so many communities that to pretend there's some kind of unity in any group larger than about 5 people is kind of silly. There's commonalities, but unity of purpose without the scrapes and troubles of interpersonal friction is rare. I can barely get myself and five friends to agree on where to go for dinner.

 

[Queen Michael]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

Demisexuality actually illustrates my main beef really well. It's supposed to be people who only feel sexual desire to pople they've got an emotional connection to, or something like that. Now, I'm not denying that there could be people like that. After all, if there are people who want to have sex with horses then it's not that outlandish to imagine that there might be people like this as well. What bugs me is that they need a special term to describe every part of their sexuality. Like this one person who was a self-described "sapiosexual." Because just saying "I'm into smart people" doesn't sound special enough.

Sexuality as a fashion statement. Jeez.

Here's a question: so why does it matter to you?

If somebody's just being foolish, they're probably going to come into their own comeuppance given time. We can all remember the embarrassing phases we went through in middle school, after all.

Does it really negatively affect you if somebody has found the word "demisexual" to describe themselves and is happy with that because they wanted a word (and a community around that world) of people who don't experience immediate physical woah-what-a-hottie attraction but instead only experience that after they have gotten emotionally close to someone? Does it really negatively affect you if someone describes themselves as asexual, or lacking an interest in sex, but still has sexual relations with their partner because they know it's important to their partner in much the same way one would wash the dishes or maybe do the laundry as an expression of affection within a relationship?

Does it really matter all that much to get angry about? I mean, I doubt you're going to change anybody's minds even if you go yell at them on tumblr. So is that anger going to actually do anything than make you grumpy? Isn't it a bit strangely petty to be angry because you think people who are happy with what they are and how they describe themselves are living life differently than you?

I have to admit this is the part of hating tumblr I don't get, really. It seems a little pointless. It's okay to not understand what people are doing and to not feel like you need to chase them down and yell about how they're living their lives wrong. Wait until they actually do something objectionable instead of, idk, just describing themselves with a word you don't understand before letting all that anger sit on your mind. There are actual bad people on tumblr doing bad things like doxxing others, keeping up constant harassment, outing queer folk to their (homophobic, etc) parents and putting them in danger, etc., etc. In comparison, getting mad at somebody calling themselves demisexual seems a bit strange to me. It's not like them working out their personal identities is negatively impacting me in the least, after all.

First of all, like I said, what bothers me is that sexuality is becoming a fashion statement. People are using their sexuality to seem more special; at least that's the impression I'm getting. And the idea that some sexualities are "cooler" than tohers is obviously harmful; far too many kids that are coming out of the closet to their parents are told they're "just trying to be different."

And yeah, those people yoy're mentioning are doing bad things. I never said they're not. You can always find somebody worse than whoever you're talking about. But they are aware that they're doing bad things; they just don't care. It's a different deal when teens are trying to find facets of their sexuality that they can turn into a new word that will make them more special. Not saying everybody's like that, but too many are.

Like I said, people describe themselves as, say, "sapiosexual" on their main page so that anybody who visits their page will see how unique they are. This does cause real harm:

1. It implies that there's some sort of coolness hirerarchy among sexualitites.

2. It makes people who actually are sexually unusual seem like they're just trying to be different.

3. It creates an environment where you're defined by your sexuality.

 

[Skull Bearer]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

Demisexuality actually illustrates my main beef really well. It's supposed to be people who only feel sexual desire to pople they've got an emotional connection to, or something like that. Now, I'm not denying that there could be people like that. After all, if there are people who want to have sex with horses then it's not that outlandish to imagine that there might be people like this as well. What bugs me is that they need a special term to describe every part of their sexuality. Like this one person who was a self-described "sapiosexual." Because just saying "I'm into smart people" doesn't sound special enough.

Sexuality as a fashion statement. Jeez.

Demisexual was created as a term in the asexual community to describe people who did not feel sexual attraction for others except in really rare and exceptional circumstances; what other term would they have? They're not asexual, and simply labeling them gay or straight wouldn't reflect their experiences. So a new term was made for them.

It bewilders me that people take issue with this, why do you care?

 

[Harpalyce]

It's a different deal when teens are trying to find facets of their sexuality that they can turn into a new word that will make them more special. Not saying everybody's like that, but too many are.

Like I said, people describe themselves as, say, "sapiosexual" on their main page so that anybody who visits their page will see how unique they are. This does cause real harm:

1. It implies that there's some sort of coolness hirerarchy among sexualitites.

2. It makes people who actually are sexually unusual seem like they're just trying to be different.

3. It creates an environment where you're defined by your sexuality.

So how do you decide who is legit and who is just trying to be special? Shouldn't that generally be left to the queer community to decide if something is 'legit enough' to be underneath that umbrella? Wouldn't it be better to let people work out for themselves what label and community they think fits best?

If they're just doing it 'to be cool', it'll be a flash in the pan, they'll be over it in a few weeks. But I've only really seen people who really do find deep meaning from these labels. It's not a matter for them of being cool, but instead being able to find a group of people like themselves and being able to go "oh thank God, I'm not broken, I'm not a freak, I'm not defective, there are other people like this too and they can tell me that it's okay to be this way" - which is a really powerful and good thing to have. I don't see what's so bad about a community being up-front about sexuality being a complicated thing that might take awhile to untangle, or even a community being up-front about how sexuality is a large part of somebody's life.

It's strange, but for the years I've been on tumblr, I don't think I've actually seen anybody trying to obviously be a special snowflake with their sexuality. I've only seen people trying to untangle their own feelings and being really relieved to find out there's more than two or perhaps three choices - Straight, Gay, and Bi if you're feeling particularly generous. And for my asexual friends, it really was a huge breakthrough for them to find a community that could get together and show them that having a lack of interest in sex doesn't mean one is fundamentally broken or defective.

I don't doubt that maybe there are a handful of people trying it out to 'be more special', but I think their numbers are so very small - and that it's so very hard to figure out who is who - that it's ultimately moot, especially when you take into mind that people looking for a fad will skip on to the next in a few weeks and people who aren't, well, aren't.

So why is it so integral to find them and be angry at them, especially when there's little chance that you'll find the poseur you want instead of somebody who is genuinely trying to work out who they are?

 

[Zontar]

Not to mention the way the sidebars on people's profiles often mention their sexuality, because apparently people are defined by that.

Bonus points when it's a sexuality which doesn't actually exist like "demisexual", or impossible by definition like those who claim to be (term I forgot that is used for those who are not sexually active to any degree) but also claim it's possible to be sexually active some of the time.

Demisexuality actually illustrates my main beef really well. It's supposed to be people who only feel sexual desire to pople they've got an emotional connection to, or something like that. Now, I'm not denying that there could be people like that. After all, if there are people who want to have sex with horses then it's not that outlandish to imagine that there might be people like this as well. What bugs me is that they need a special term to describe every part of their sexuality. Like this one person who was a self-described "sapiosexual." Because just saying "I'm into smart people" doesn't sound special enough.

Sexuality as a fashion statement. Jeez.

Demisexual was created as a term in the asexual community to describe people who did not feel sexual attraction for others except in really rare and exceptional circumstances; what other term would they have? They're not asexual, and simply labeling them gay or straight wouldn't reflect their experiences. So a new term was made for them.

It bewilders me that people take issue with this, why do you care?

It was coined by a 14 year old girl who wanted a term to describe someone who was asexual but sometimes wasn't.

It's something which is impossible by definition. If you are at times sexually attracted to people, then you aren't asexual.