I answered “not at all”, even though I was for some years very shy, anxious and fearful about asking girls out, because I never felt anything like the specific fears both Scotts wrote about, of being labelled a creep, sexist, gross, objectifier, etc. It was just “ordinary” shyness and social awkwardness, not related at all to the tangled issues about feminism and gender relations that the current discussion centers on. I interepreted the question as being interested specifically in the intersection of shyness with these issues, otherwise I might have answered “sort of”.
Yup. I’m pretty sure I was the only one who knew about or cared about feminism during the awkward middle/high school years. Most kids just aren’t that ideologically involved. Maybe I just grew up in a medium-IQ bubble (certainly lower than the Scotts), but in my experience the only place feminists really manage to hurt people is via the internet and internet-fueled outrages.
However, even if it’s restricted to the ’net it’s still important and worth addressing, seeing as that’s a main hub of communication now. Besides, nerdy heterosexual males are highly at risk for any damages that may occur via internet exposure.
I answered “not at all”, even though I was for some years very shy, anxious and fearful about asking girls out, because I never felt anything like the specific fears both Scotts wrote about, of being labelled a creep, sexist, gross, objectifier, etc. It was just “ordinary” shyness and social awkwardness, not related at all to the tangled issues about feminism and gender relations that the current discussion centers on. I interepreted the question as being interested specifically in the intersection of shyness with these issues, otherwise I might have answered “sort of”.
Yup. I’m pretty sure I was the only one who knew about or cared about feminism during the awkward middle/high school years. Most kids just aren’t that ideologically involved. Maybe I just grew up in a medium-IQ bubble (certainly lower than the Scotts), but in my experience the only place feminists really manage to hurt people is via the internet and internet-fueled outrages.
However, even if it’s restricted to the ’net it’s still important and worth addressing, seeing as that’s a main hub of communication now. Besides, nerdy heterosexual males are highly at risk for any damages that may occur via internet exposure.