The unpopular opinions thread.

Vorcha: Humans are master race food.

I once read this thread title as unpopular orphans, what say you all? Oliver Twist? Annie?

All orphans are unpopular; that's why they're orphans.


*packs bags*

I am a member of this generations most loathed demographics, I am a cigarette smoker, have been for almost 35 years and I have no intention of quitting. I find excessive drinking to be the more disgusting habit and driving gas consuming vehicles more dangerous to ones health and enviornment. No amount of nagging, cajoling or insults will change my mind.

I am apathetic/no strong feelings towards Legion. I find him to be the most overrated character in the ME trilogy. Legion's appearance in ME2 came far too late near the end of the story. It was not enough time to bond with him during the story arc unlike the other squadmates. For what little screen time it had, I found Legion to be rather dull and uninteresting. In fact I found the Geth as a whole dull and uninteresting in ME2/ME3. A letdown for me as I had higher expectations for them.

 

Hello there friend.

What brand do you smoke?

I do  Marlboro Reds myself. Although recently I have encountered this Kamel Turkish blend on sale and I have tried a pack and they weren't half bad.

There is no easy explanation for why it takes root in the west, a decent theory however is that back in the mid to late 90s and early 2000s programs such as Toonami via Cartoon Network and its various national subsidiaries/affiliates introduced a young audience to a then dying sort of trend. It sort of reinvigorated the industry in the west, one that had been sort of fading away since the Mecha craze of the mid 80s. This introduction allowed it again to cement itself into the culture and opened up a new generation of viewers. 

So basically the premise here is that they got hooked or became aware of the genre as children and became fans of it.

Something of this nature likewise happened in Eastern Europe at the time although it was much smaller in scope due to the various copyrights held up by production companies that still exist to this day, but yeah. The cartoons of the East came West and met with popular appeal among children/teenagers. So I suppose its culmination of childhood memories and support of the art-form.

The weird clunkiness is what makes it hilarious. 

Not true ^^^^^^^^^^^^   Orphan Black is amazing. 

Basically, it comes from the idea of the so-called Otaku Culture in Japan and the cultural connotation with it. Look at how it's historically been characterized: Otaku has been seen as something that has had a negative effect on Japanese society in many aspects. The 1989 "Otaku Murderer" case gave a negative connotation to the fandom from which it has not fully recovered. The usage of "(interest) otaku", however, is used for teasing or self-deprecation, but the unqualified term remains negative. The identification of otaku turned negative in late 2004 when Kaoru Kobayashi kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and murdered a seven-year-old first-grade student. Japanese journalist Akihiro Ōtani suspected that Kobayashi's crime was committed by a member of the figure moe zoku even before his arrest. Although Kobayashi was not an otaku, the degree of social hostility against otaku increased. Otaku were seen by law enforcement as possible suspects for sex crimes, and local governments called for stricter laws controlling the depiction of eroticism in otaku materials. In a society such as Japan that is strong on the idea of a collective identity (which is also remarkably Conservative culturally), this hasn't given much positive coverage to the idea of the otaku. It's important to note as well that many perceive otaku in Japan to have grown out of a culture of social outcasts. It's growth coincided with the boom of anime, which caused a sort of mutual reinforcement of each other.

Now, as you say, there is something to be said for broad strokes with people, including how you might characterize otaku and their many forms. I am obviously talking about anime/manga culture for the otaku, but whether it's fair or not (you'll note I didn't prescribe a setting beyond my personal view of anime). But the truth is, in Japan, the majority of people just don't care about this stuff. They're busy living their lives, focusing on making a living. The sort of anime and manga that I perceive that you're talking about is generally viewed similar as something that's harmless, but for whom the people who exceedingly take part or enjoy it are (fairly or unfairly) lumped in. 

Of course, you're right when you say that it's a lucrative industry; I couldn't find the figures for anime/manga alone, but the figures for Otaku culture overall in 2005 came in at about 2 Trillion Yen. But of course, I wouldn't call my statement narrow-minded or insulting. If you feel as such, then that's your problem.

But onto the idea of cultural appropriation; I believe you've misunderstood me, though I should say that it's probably not the right term to use either. I think you're asking how this applies in the United States. I'm talking about in Japan itself, in everyday Japanese culture, from the perspective of most everyday Japanese. It's important to note that even if by and large, it's seen as a subculture (more like, say, Goth is in the United States and Europe), it's also seen as a source of income, marketing, and promotion for tourism. Money talks after all. On my most recent trip to Japan, the welcoming video depicted the plane landing amidst the fight of Godzilla and some giant robot (maybe Mechagodzilla.) The movie industry is of course booming for many films made from content that quickly develop their own Otaku followings, but it's also a sign of cultural insulation. Which leads me too...

Yes. I know many Japanese people. I have lived in Japan. I was stationed at Camp Zama in the Kanagawa Prefecture in 2008-9 with the US Army. This might explain some possible differences in our experiences; how many Japanese did you know who were Conservative, or held positions in the political, defense, or economic/financial sectors (which are generally more of the Conservative setting and hold the view that Otaku culture, as it were, is kind of weird.) To me, it sounds like the many Japanese you know are in the United States. Of course, I don't know the Japanese people you know. I don't know how much you correspond with them or if you've been to Japan or how often or where you stayed. And as you say, Japan has a broad cultural base, with a population of 127 million. For Conventions, I can't say, as I've been to handful, and they were mostly filled with people here in the United States dressing up. In Japan, I of course saw the odd convention with a few cosplaying attendees, but I stayed out of the regions of cities where Otaku tend to hang out, like Akihabara in Tokyo. 

And cultural appropriation is a thing, whether or not you agree with the term or not. I would say that people who wear a Native-American feathered headdress is a very egregious example of such. Much as the kilt is in other countries. Now, I never stated whether it was positive or negative. Indeed, it can be both, in the ways that a culture might profit off the idea of an image often created by such an appropriation (such as the 'otaku' culture here in the United States, which is largely made up of many Japanophiles), and for which provides an economic boon to the country through commerce and purchases. As well, it can be very negative. Despite my statements on this thread supporting the teams that engage in it, look at the controversies raised by the borderline racist imagery of Native Americans used by some sports teams.

I think I'll give you the benefit of the doubt here and assume that I mis-communicated my point, and that you thought I was talking about here, in the United States.

As an aside (and addendum) Japanese culture is easily the most racist I've ever been in. It's humbling when you're going trying to go into a bar, and the bouncer stops you and says "No Round-eye." And the way they treat non-Yamato Japanese is just atrocious. There were a couple of guys I knew who joined the JGSDF because they couldn't get married due to their prospective in-laws checking their ancestry and finding out they were 'burakumin', or 'hamlet people', thus making them technically untouchable in Japanese culture.

I kind of agree with you on cultural appropriation, but then you see how sometimes it can be caricatured (such as my examples with the Cleveland Indians and Washington Redskins for Native American culture.) I wouldn't say that my culture is bad, or that the other is bad, but I can see how an argument against this kind of treatment can be seen as negative. 

Motherfu-

That's it. Soon as I've farmed enough credits, I'm getting on a plane and I'm coming after you. I will steal a car with a hooker inside, respray it to get the cops off me and I will find you. Prepare to taste the wrath of my Desert Eagle.

Wait, they nerfed clip size and upped the recoil again, didn't they? Fucking devs ruin everything...