stereotype #3

Our next stereotype might seem, as a bit of a sensitive matter, but as our mission to inform about stereotypes, it must be mentioned. Our next stereotype is none other than “potheads.” Have you ever caught yourself looking at someone and hearing that little voice in the back of your head say, “yup, that dude’s a pothead.”

            Now ask yourself, what exactly caused you to say that? First thing is first; you probably made this prejudgment by the way this certain individual looked. Potheads tend to look, how should I say this, a little on the unkempt side to say the least. They tend to have long messy hair, if it were a male, then maybe this individual might have a bit of facial hair that looks like a five’ o’clock shadow all though its 11AM. They might have some sort of hat or beanie on, probably to cover up their untamed hair. And of course no stoner is ever dressed to impress, they tend to be quite the opposite; wearing loafers instead of shoes, shorts or ripped jeans, and a tee shirt or hoodie of some sort.

Now that we have a stereotypical physical aspect down packed lets just make one thing clear, and that is, what exactly is a pothead. A pothead is someone who is addicted to marijuana and consumes it regularly. I would also like to make something else clear; there is a total difference between a pothead and a hippie. All though the two might look similar, a hippie is an individual who experiments with various harmful drugs such as Molly, cocaine, pain-killers, acid, LSD and others, a pothead simply smokes a lot of, well, pot!

Also, if you happen to interact with a stereotypical pothead, and asked him/her, lets just say, “What music do you listen to?” you might get reggae or classic rock as a response. Or “what do you do for fun?” they might say: just chill, or skate, or, play the guitar. But then again, this is just a stereotype, not all guitarist are potheads, or skaters potheads, nor are all potheads skaters or guitarist.

I have come across various potheads in my time, and I would have to say that they are all individuals, not all potheads are “brain-dead,” I have actually met very, very smart potheads. Nor are they careless and irresponsible individuals, yes there are exceptions to my comment but I have met people who say “yeah, I smoke everyday, but I use it as a self-reward at the end of the day when all of my work is completed.” No two potheads are alike, the same way that no two scene-kids are alike or muscle-car owners drive alike. They are just people like the rest of us, who simply enjoy to smoke weed to set their minds free and unwind every now and then. Just like your grandfather smokes a cigar every so often, or your dad drinks a beer to unwind at the end of the day.  

Stereotype #2

     Now I'll be honest, none of us that contribute to this blog could be classified as a "Scene Kid,"(the previous stereotype covered) but don't take us for a bunch of kids sitting around a computer screen making fun of other people's styles; we can criticize ourselves just the same, and that is exactly what we are going to do this week.  Now this stereotype is one that both Martha and I represent on a pretty regular basis, so lets get going.
     This stereotype requires you to switch your thinking just a bit, because it doesn't encumbrance a complete lifestyle such as "Scene Kids" do.  This stereotype can appear in a person of any age, but often is seen in the younger generation.  Now what is this mysterious stereotype we're speaking of?  Well, all it requires is a person driving a late-model muscle car and a generous right foot.  The stereotype we will be speaking of this week is: "People who drive late-model muscle cars drive, lets say......., aggressively."  
     First we need to establish our creditability on this subject, the best way we can do that is by what we drive.  Martha drives a newer Mustang, one of those slick retro-style ones they released starting in 2005; which round off the top side of our classification of "late-model" muscle cars.  My car is more on the bottom side, being a 3rd Generation Camaro, debatably the boxiest design out of all the Camaro's, but still an awesome looking car if I may say so myself.  

    




(This is the body style of Martha's car that I was speaking of, isn't that an aggressive looking car?)








Now what classifies as a late-model muscle car? Well here are some of the major models I would count:



 3rd & 4th Generation Chevy Camaro's & Pontiac Firebird's- Now you may be wondering what I mean by "3rd & 4th Generation," well the Camaro (& Firebird) have gone through 5 major re-designs through its lifespan, which designated by the time periods (generations) they were released: 1st Gen (1967-1969); 2nd Gen (1970-1981); 3rd Gen (1982-1992); 4th Gen (1993-2002); 5th Gen (2010-present).  I say 3rd and 4th generation because the 1st and 2nd generation are largely considered an investment cars, cars that are worth the effort to be collected and are mostly garage babies.  The 5th generation is too new, and expensive, to be left with an irresponsible kid behind the wheel.  The 3rd and 4th gen are new enough where they haven't established a high collectible value and are fairly readily available. (3rd & 4th Generation Camaro's shown)














3rd & 4th
(this would be James type of car)


Generation Mustang's- Mustang's also have pretty distinct generations and designs, though their time periods don't match exactly with the Camaro's, notably their isn't a gap where no Mustang's were produced like the Camaro had (2003-2009 no Camaro's were produced by Chevy): 1st Gen (1964-1973), also the best of the generations; 2nd Gen (1974-1978); 3rd Gen (1979-1993); 4th Gen (1994-2004); 5th Gen (2005-present).  The 3rd and 4th Generation Mustangs were chosen for the same reasons as the Camaro, their relatively low collect-ability and easy availability. (3rd & 4th Generation Mustang's shown below)














Other late-model cars that could be considered, though they aren't as common, would be Corvette's, Monte Carlo's, Grand National's, El Camino's, Impala's, Chevy 454SS's and Ford Lightning's.

(Buick Grand National, Chevy 454SS, Ford Lightning & Pontiac Firebird shown)

     Now I might have been a little thorough in my car breakdown, but what can I say, cars are my passion; but besides the cars, what is this stereotype?  Now just because you own one of the cars mentioned, or any others that fit into the category, doesn't mean you are roped in with this stereotype; though driving one on a daily basis often helps you fall into it.  People who fit this stereotype have, as they say, a "heavy foot" or a "lead foot," meaning they like to press on the gas, and hard!  Honestly, how can you not, when so much power is released with a little twitch of the foot, it's easy to start craving for more, to push the car to see what it can do.  Characteristic of this stereotype are people who drive "aggressively", for lack of other "PG" terms, so they tend to speed a little bit, jump as soon as a traffic light turns green, or take a corner just a little bit too sharp, but that doesn't mean they're a bad driver.  Often, since their car is moving at a faster pace, they process at a faster pace as well, leading to, a lot of times, a better driver.  They learn to process and react faster so hopefully when possible trouble comes their way, they can quickly avoid it and save an accident. Also with that faster pace, it keeps traffic moving along, I don't know about some of you, but it becomes really irritating when you get stuck behind a person going slower than the speed limit, disrupting the flow.

     Don't get the wrong idea though, we aren't promoting driving recklessly, there are plenty examples of tragic accidents from people driving stupidly, but sometimes it's not all that bad.  You would get where your going faster, and less stressfully, if everyone drove with the flow of traffic, and think of all the accidents that would be saved if people had better reaction times; I'm not saying people should speed to become a better driver, they could learn in a safe environment or a closed course, just something to make people more instinctive drivers.  Also it's really relieving sometimes to just put your foot to the floor, hear the roar of the engine as it pulls you head back against the seat and sail down an open stretch, which can be done effectively without going over the speed limit; again safe driving is the key.  People of this stereotype just try to push the boundaries sometimes and go beyond what the law permits due to their adrenaline-junky nature.  Don't get me wrong, there are many cases where this ends badly, but there are least just as many that don't, and if you are smart about it, know you car's, as well as your own, limits, you can have a little fun while driving.

Stereotype #1

     Since this blog means to "de-bunk" dug-in stereotypes, we'll start with a recently formed one; Scene Kids.  Now in the life of a stereotype, this one is just now maturing; having gained much attention starting about 4 or 5 years ago.
     Now what exactly is a scene kid?  Well, like most stereotypes, once they gain popularity they go from a "style" to a "lifestyle;" this meaning that it went from a way kids looked to the way people live their life.  First of all, how do you spot a Scene Kid?  Well the major characteristics are as follow:

• "Highlighter" Colors, often over the black background of band shirts
• Multi-colored hair, streaks of bright colors, often pink, purple and blue.
• Women have very volumous hair often referred to as "teased hair" and often elaborate makeup.
• Skin Tight Jeans/ Skinny Jeans- Men often wear women's jeans
• Accessories such as belts, tattoos, huge sunglasses, piercings and gauges.
• Classic shoes, such as vans or converse/ women often wear mocassins or flats

          Now for some of the social culture of a Scene Kid:
     Scene Kids go to lots of shows, mostly local bands, but really any that are happening at their favorite joints.  This, consequently, is a very good thing; not only does it support local bands, it also supports local businesses that sponsor the shows.  A person dedicated to the "lifestyle" should quickly gain an expansive repertoire of music.
     On the topic of music, the Scene Kid movement has led to a new genre of music, one that goes by many names; the most common of which are "metalcore" and "scenecore."  This music is characterized by "scene" chords or "horror" chords and ridiculous, often humorous, breakdowns.  One breakdown that is widely known is "Boom Snap Clap" by Irish Front (which can be viewed at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6qUlSZhoK8).
     Another aspect of Scene Kids is their heavy use of social networking sites.  This starting out on the now dying MySpace, but still lives strong on sites such as Facebook.  For some, it seems to be a contest to see who can have the most friends, which is a common misconception.  Another one of these misconceptions is an abundance of photos, though there are many scene girls who snap many, many pictures through the course of the night, this is a characteristic that can be found in many social groups.
     Scene Kids take a lot of drugs and drink a lot of alcohol.  This is probably one of the most common misconceptions that goes around.  Sure there are a few people who display this, but most don't; and if you really don't believe me, look at any social group, there are always some bad apples that make the rest look bad.


Now, with the exception of a few bad examples (which exist in any group), Scene Kids aren't all that bad; sure their music may get annoying if you don't like it, or you may not like their style, but really they aren't any more troublesome than most "cliques" that arise.

First Post

First of all what is a stereotype?  Well the dictionary definition is: "a simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group."  It can easier be put as an image associated with a particular type of person, often one with a negative connotation that doesn't portray that person at all.  The main purpose of this blog is to describe various stereotypes, bringing them to the readers attention, and showing how there is more to a person than their looks reveal.
WARNING:  Though this can be a sensitive subject, we ask that our readers take most of what we post lightly; the best way to overcome hurtful stereotyping is to rob it of its gravity.  How can a stereotype be hurtful if its not taken seriously.....?