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May 3, 2006
Lunch At The Cool Kids Table
By DEANNA DAHLSAD
Do you remember being in school and entering the lunch room? You could
be a visitor from another galaxy and see the divisions... the group of
jocks here, the geeks there... pockets of persons defined by their
actions and interests which become their labels. I see it again when I
visit my children's schools. And as their schools have more ethnic
diversity than mine did, the pockets are often arranged by color and
accent as well as afterschool activities. Even in grade school there
are little pockets of little people.
Despite these pockets of people being formed somewhat naturally based on
interest, each group is not only visually separated, but they are rather
visually identified. The clothing, the school jackets and athletic
uniforms, help you id the jocks. The pocket protectors and A/V
equipment of the nerds etc etc. But you are also identified by the
company you keep. And this is where the groups are unnaturally formed,
for no longer can one person leave his group, even temporarily, to join
another. Each is branded with a label. Even as adults this happens.
Models can't know anything about advances in nuclear medicine.
Accountants can't be funny or draw etc etc.
It's silly, because people have more than one interest. We can, and
ought to be able to join and leave groups at any point, based on our
interests and abilities. Remember how those kids in The Breakfast
Club all discovered that if they looked past what they saw, and what
labels each person had, they had many things in common? The internet is
like a giant Breakfast Club experience!
Sure, we were all fed that "Free to be you and me" stuff, and while I'm not
knocking it as an ideal, humans still like to categorize people. We
like to label them, group them with others with the same label -- and we
prefer to have them remain that way. Now, the internet provides one of
the greatest freedoms of all: the freedom to be "me and me" (or "you and
as many 'you's as you'd like").
Where once upon a time -- or more specifically, a place -- your key to
the A/V room may have prevented you from sitting and talking film with
the pompon squad, the internet has taken that all away. You are only
seen by your user ID, and whatever information you provide in a profile.
While the media is full of stories of the dangers of the internet,
warning you that 45 year old Bill is really 13 year old Susan, or vice
versa, this anonymity of only revealing what you wish has its benefits.
You want to be seen as a wild artist type, choose a user ID that
proclaims this to the world! Put 'bon vivant' as your job title!
Voila! Now, I don't recommend lying. Omit details you feel limit you,
or opt to use real descriptors you find fit the group best. (Leave out
your model portfolio at the medical site. List your hobbies, but leave
the work are blank.) But don't lie -- because if the other kids accept
you and you've lied, well, who will you eat lunch with? (Only the
group labeled 'liars', that's who!)
No longer are you judged by your hair style, athletic awards and
spelling bee certificates (or lack thereof), job description, or
considered to be too pretty to know what you are talking about. If you
can no longer be judged by your unseen pocket protector or letterman's
jacket, your gender, race, age, employer or any label you wish can also
be unseen. (At least as long as you choose not to disclose it!)
You can have unique user IDs and profiles at each site (interest group)
-- even more than one ID at the same site, should you wish it...
Persons will still gravitate to areas of interest, but they may not only
move fluidly between groups, but they can also belong to multiple groups
-- have multiple labels -- at the same time. Now the A/V nerd can be a
football expert. The accountant may present his own comics. (Maybe the
A/V nerd grew up to be an accountant, and now he or she is both a
football expert and a webcomic, who knows?!) What we now have are
individuals reacting to each other based on mutual interests and forming
opinions based on personality, ability, and the individual experiences
of interacting with each other.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if this way of relating to one another on the
internet was transfered to us in real life?
Posted by photocartoonist at May 3, 2006 2:34 AM