Misconceptions/Ignorance

[RaffB]

I hate the whole "You like X, therefore you must be Y" thing

Hell, I like Sci-Fi, Anime, Video Games, but I also drive round on massive motorbikes, can grow a Zeus style beard in about a week, and can sing pretty much any song from Les Miserables and Cats....
Really confuses people... especially when I counter their arguments with "***** Please, I'm Fabulous"..

Also, while stereotypes about nationality annoy me when taken seriously, they can be a great source of comedy. Hell, giving grief to both the Welsh and Scottish nations is practically a national sport in England (and rightly so). They do it to us, so we do it right back

p.s same with the Aussies, although that normally is based on whoever won the Rugby/Ashes most recently..

 

[Relish in Chaos]

?You have OCD? So, like, does that mean you?re obsessive about cleaning and stuff??

No, that's not the only symptom of an OCD sufferer (not only that, but there are varying degrees of the disorder), and it?s certainly not what I do. The most I do in terms of obsessive cleaning is making sure my hands are completely dry after washing them. I?m actually a pretty dirty and unorganized person.

Also, people seem to think that whenever a woman is stressed out or lashes out at you for no particular reason, she must be on her period. Uh, no, you?re not her, are you? Maybe she?s just going through some hard shit that day, or in her general life.

That being fat is always because people are lazy over-eaters that can?t be bothered to get off their arses and exercises. But I have a few fat friends that are serious about dieting, and regularly exercise, yet they?re still fat due to their metabolism or whatever.

That a guy must automatically be homosexual if he?s somewhat feminine. I don?t even need to explain how fucking stupid stereotyping people like that is, and it?s unfortunate that I used to believe it a while ago with one of my classmates. Whenever I heard him speaking, I thought, ?He?s gotta be gay?? But no, he?s not. Shock horror.

That having a big cock is automatically positive. No, because some girls can?t ?take? you. I?m not speaking from experience or anything; just stories that I?ve heard. I?m still a virgin, and I?m not sure whether or not black guys having big dicks is a myth.

That all hackers are socially awkward teenage nerds. No, some work for companies, the government, etc. They?re not all dicks that just want to fuck around with strangers? computers for shits and giggles.

That rock music is just guys screaming really loud. That?s about as stupid as saying all rap music is black guys talking about ?pimping hoes? and repeatedly saying the word ?nigga?.

That Austrians are evil. Just because the only famous Austrians you can think of are Adolf Hitler and Josef Fritzl doesn?t mean that they?re all bad guys.

That being a transvestite automatically makes you gay, when there are loads of straight transvestites, many of whom have girlfriends.

 

[artanis_neravar]

The jet engine is pronounced Tur-bin, not tur-bine. Doesn't really annoy me I just correct people when they say it wrong, gets me funny looks all the time though

 

[Elate]

Colour blindness. When people find out:

"WHAT COLOUR IS THIS" it's red "YEAH BUT WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE" red.

Then I have to go into a 10 minute explanation about how colour blindness works and why all the colours are still essentially the same, and that I just associate them to certain colours just like they do, except if they were to see them through my eyes, they would look different to what they're used to.

Glasses and the general "You wear glasses because you spend to long on the computer" no I wear glasses because it's genetic in my family, and had them before I started using a computer properly.

Dear god, the list goes on and on, but of course the kicker, "You're gay? But how come you're not, y'know like all camp?" because sexual preference determines personality apparently, once you start the man loving, insta-lisp, it's how they know. That one possibly annoys me the most.

The jet engine is pronounced Tur-bin, not tur-bine. Doesn't really annoy me I just correct people when they say it wrong, gets me funny looks all the time though

Add to that; when Americans or the like correct me on how to pronounce or spell something, tur-bine is the correct pronunciation in (UK)English. The American version is tur-bin.

 

[Lugbzurg]

Oh, this? I just ran into a problem like this just a few hours ago.

I am well-versed in Digital Media (Note: software). Yet, some idiots thought I must be so bad at it, just because I didn't know the exact place to pull paper out of some printer (Note: hardware) that I had never even touched.

They wouldn't stop bugging me about it for an hour or so.

I later brought up as a point to showcase their logic, stating that "Clearly, you must know how to prepare calzones, flaming Shish Kabob and roast duck all on your own, simply because you know how to eat."

Other ignorant misconceptions?

"Gamers need characters they can relate to (as in being Caucasian mid-20s male jerks who treat people like dirt and are angsty for no reason whatsoever all the livelong day)."
"Snakes are slimy."
"My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is a very girly show."

 

[rutger5000]

I've experienced a few. The first would be about studying psychology. I've studied it for three years, but about two years ago I was talking to this guy on my contiki tour about what I studied and I shit you not his responce was "So... does that mean you can like, read my thoughts?" Some people seem to think because I studied psychology that I can discover their deepest and most personal insecurity like some sort of god damn mind-reader. Some even stopped talking to me because of it!

Another would be my amputation but that one actually makes me laugh (ironic, considering the psychology one gets me angry). I had my left foot amputated and it's pretty amusing seeing how people react. You'd never be able to guess I went through that unless I showed you, it doesn't impede my walking or negatively influence my attitude and I think both are expected from amputees. When you think of one you normally picture a rather sad case that you can spot from a mile away and have to pretend like you don't notice. I've known people who I literally forgot to tell and several months later I take off my shoe and laugh at the looks on their faces because I forgot to warn them.

About the Psychology, can you explain me what's wrong about that. As far as I'm concerned psychology is the study of human behaviour and thought. Of course reading ones mind is a bit of an overstatement, but can't one assume you would have a better idea of the human thought process then most people?

 

[rutger5000]

I'm Dutch and live in Amsterdam, so natrually I smoke weed all day. I kid you not, the mother of an American friend of mine actually thought this was the case, and couldn't comprehend I had never smoked a joint.

 

[Lugbzurg]

Got another one...

"Videogames are isolating"
...among other things. When I hear someone break out this garbage, I bring up how reading books or watching films is just as lonesome and whatnot, if not more so.

 

[thomas.owns]

White guys can't jump.

 

[SadakoMoose]

As a Type 1 Diabetic, I face all sorts of people who seem to think I am 'allergic to sugar' and wonder why I am not as big as a house. People seem to believe Type 1 diabetes is gained from the overindulgence of too much sugar, Where it is actually an auto-immune disease, a fluke basically. I was just curious what kinds of misconceptions the general public have about the escapist community's lives and how you deal with it. I'm also open to answer any questions you have about me and what daily life involves.

captcha: political PARTAYYYY

Oh hey, another one!
Cool to finally meet another Type 1 on the escapist forums!
What pump do you own?

But yeah, I used to get a lot of that, in school especially.
Actually, some people even referred to it as a "phase" I was going through.
Holy crap, right?

Still, my diabetes hasn't slowed me down all that much. I'm even gettin' ready to start training as a pro wrestler.
Weirdly enough, my pro wrestling fandom is the thing that I get the most ignorance about.

Some examples:
"Oh you mean that WWF stuff?"
"Isn't that where Vince McMahon and Leprechaun blew up a bus or something?"
"Oh, it's just a soap opera for guys (you know because only men enjoy wrestling and we're all too self conscious to watch regular soaps, apparently.)"
"Bah, it's all fake and homo-erotic! Anybody can do it! You're not a real athlete! It's not sports 'cause I can't bet on it! You're just an actor."

People can get REALLY REALLY mean and dismissive about pro wrestling, you know?
Otherwise intelligent people acting Classist, Homophobic, and saying genuinely dismissive and mean-spirited things...

 

[Gordon Freemonty]

As a Type 1 Diabetic, I face all sorts of people who seem to think I am 'allergic to sugar' and wonder why I am not as big as a house. People seem to believe Type 1 diabetes is gained from the overindulgence of too much sugar, Where it is actually an auto-immune disease, a fluke basically. I was just curious what kinds of misconceptions the general public have about the escapist community's lives and how you deal with it. I'm also open to answer any questions you have about me and what daily life involves.

captcha: political PARTAYYYY

Oh hey, another one!
Cool to finally meet another Type 1 on the escapist forums!
What pump do you own?

Likewise!

I would LOVE a pump but im still stuck on MDI unfortunately... NHS doesnt just throw them out to everyone I'm afraid... However i have a pump clinic in May which I am desperately looking forward too. Fingers crossed I get one...

 

[Xanthious]

As a black man I hate it when people think I have an enormously large . . . . oh wait never mind . . .maybe there is some truth there.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

Eyewitness accounts, especially during stress related events like being attacked or mugged, are actually really untrustworthy due to the witness being under stress and not analyzing even the basic details.

"Your Diabetic...?

My diabetic?

 

[Waaghpowa]

When I tell people I play Street Fighter competitively, they give me funny looks. To them, "it's just mashing buttons". They can't take it seriously.

Case in point: This match between FGC veterans Daigo Umehara and Alex Valle at SoCal Regionals 2012.


I can't tell you how many times I've seen someone look at this match and dismiss it. "Oh, they're just spamming fireballs. Why don't they do combos? I could beat these guys." Nothing could be further from the truth. I can't even begin to describe the layers of strategy going on here.

I'm not big on fighting games, but by the looks of it, the Haduken spam is to pressure your opponent into either:
A) Defending
B) Make an aggressive advance which leaves them open to counter attack
Am I close?

The fact that im british i immediatley like tea.

The fact that i do and i make a fine brew is neither here nor there

I like tea and I'm like Chinese, my guess is that people wont mistake you for Chinese though

 

[Ungenericteen]

Mine is rather odd I have dyslexia and dysgraphia the former make people think see numbers backwards and that one is entirely understandable but the latter is an inability to write legibly and apparently this means I can not read why this is I have no idea but several times i have stated "Nope I just can not write, I read very quickly in fact. Have to read fast so i can remember what i need without writing it down" and yet still the response of something along the lines of how I am illustrate comes despite my best efforts to state otherwise.

I have dysgraphia and mild dsylexia, when I dropped an art class in grade school a class mate said "you just need to try more, I have dsylexia and I can read" dysgraphia affects the nerves of my fingers making me unable to write a straight line without aid.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

I get the 'gamer' label at work, so people assume I'm lazy at home, drink mountain dew all the time, stay indoors all the time, and get over involved with 'fake' experiences. This is mostly not true, although I do stay indoors unless I have a reason to go out, I won't just go out for the sake of it. I do however clean the kitchen and keep my room tidy, I only drink MD at work because I need the energy, and I often lean more towards fun games rather than 'deep' games.

The other misconception I get is that as an English person I either drink tea with my little finger poking forward (I don't even drink tea at all) or more specifically because I'm from South East London I strut around calling people 'bruv' and stealing whatever isn't nailed down.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

I like tea and I'm like Chinese, my guess is that people wont mistake you for Chinese though

That has always confused me how British people get associated with drinking tea more than Chinese people do, I assume the Chinese have been drinking it longer than Britain has been established?

I guess the Chinese have to put up with enough stereotypes as it is.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

naa the other guy, anti smoking people are douches

Why? Smoking is bad for everyones health assuming they are in proximity to the smoker.

Don't get me wrong here, I don't care what you do in your own privacy, but when it affects other people it becomes a problem

 

[Waaghpowa]

I like tea and I'm like Chinese, my guess is that people wont mistake you for Chinese though

That has always confused me how British people get associated with drinking tea more than Chinese people do, I assume the Chinese have been drinking it longer than Britain has been established?

I guess the Chinese have to put up with enough stereotypes as it is.

Tea was unknown to the British till roughly the 16th century. Before that it was almost entirely Asian, mostly China I believe as far as it being a beverage.

Edit:I just remembered a common misconception. The Italians DID NOT invent noodles, that was the Chinese.

 

[launchpadmcqwak]

naa the other guy, anti smoking people are douches

Why? Smoking is bad for everyones health assuming they are in proximity to the smoker.

Don't get me wrong here, I don't care what you do in your own privacy, but when it affects other people it becomes a problem

you can smoke a pack a day for years and not die, so i doubt a bit of second hand smoke is going to give your kid cancer