# Attention whores have privacy rights too, you know! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 15, 2005, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157 "2005-02-15T05:05:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Torgo\_ate\_my\_hamster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/71c47a/32.png) [@Torgo\_ate\_my\_hamster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Torgo_ate_my_hamster)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/41 "2005-02-16T03:13:30Z")
You’ve misspelled it. It’s spelled Schwarzenegger. ---
**Author:** ![saramamalana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/74df32/32.png) [@saramamalana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saramamalana)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/42 "2005-02-16T03:32:46Z")
You’re both wrong. It’s schadenfreude. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/43 "2005-02-16T03:36:03Z")
So are you. It’s Schadenfreude. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/44 "2005-02-16T03:42:28Z")
> [@laina\_f](#): > > Damn, my irony meter just broke. I send my shirts to a service. Much less hassle. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/45 "2005-02-16T10:12:40Z")
> [@Nordic](#): > > One doesn’t have to be an attention whore to **feel like a leper at the prom** when it seems that everyone else in the thread, **including many who are at best average,** is being lavished with compliments while your existence isn’t even acknowledged. > In real life I’m generally considered, well… **let’s just say above average**. So being ignored here makes me wonder if people on these boards **just don’t like me personally** for some reason. It’s natural to want reassurance, or barring that, at least to know why not. I mean, what are those threads if not giant blatant attention-fests? (bolding mine) Holy cow! So there’s simultaneous self-pity and vanity, insulting people and then asking for their attention, and saying that it’s all shallow but also indicates some value of personality! If the Pit were scored like a Scrabble game, that’d be the equivalent of “syzygy” on a triple word score tile! And if you really are fishing for compliments, I recommend that you shave your beard and then start a thread about it in MPSIMS. It does wonders for your ego. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/46 "2005-02-16T10:16:09Z")
Still prefer you with the goatee… ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/47 "2005-02-16T10:27:48Z")
> [@Case Sensitive](#): > > **Nordic** , you have a wonderful personality …just need a little work on the attention whore bit. ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/48 "2005-02-16T15:13:03Z")
You guys are funny. I’m enjoying this. 😃 Obviously, _anything_ I say at this point is going to be construed as egotistical and attention-whoring, even though I was only responding to what **AwSnappity** said. But I’ll try again and take my inevitable lumps. I thought what I said in my earlier post was pretty reasonable. The entire point of a picture thread is for people to _comment on your pictures._ If there’s any way you can say that’s not the case, I’d be delighted to hear it. I didn’t say there’s anything wrong with it; it’s all in good fun. I didn’t insult anybody directly; I did not name names. If it doesn’t apply to you, it’s not about you. Besides, if anyone is offended by the statement “Some people are average,” I feel little responsibility. It’s a large thread so it stands to reason that not everyone is spectacular. True enough? Okay. But: When everyone else is being offered modeling contracts, and you hear nothing but crickets chirping in response to your picture, well even the healthiest ego would question itself. If nothing else it tells me I’m not enough of a presence on the boards for people to even care what I look like. Fortunately, my self-esteem is not made or broken by the SDMB. But since I do enjoy spending time here, and I respect and like many of you a great deal, I would one day like to be known enough for someone to at least say, “Ah, so _that’s_ what Nordic looks like. He doesn’t make me vomit.” ---
**Author:** ![AwSnappity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@AwSnappity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AwSnappity)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/49 "2005-02-16T15:49:22Z")
> [@SolGrundy](#): > > (bolding mine) > Holy cow! So there’s simultaneous self-pity and vanity, insulting people and then asking for their attention, and saying that it’s all shallow but also indicates some value of personality! > > If the Pit were scored like a Scrabble game, that’d be the equivalent of “syzygy” on a triple word score tile! > > And if you really are fishing for compliments, I recommend that you shave your beard and then start a thread about it in MPSIMS. It does wonders for your ego. Ha! Love the snark. And I’m glad to see that **Nordic** is enjoying himself. I would feel kinda bad if my post hurt his feelings. Anyway, **Freejooky** declared his love for me upon seeing my pictures, so I’m not an unattractive loser like the rest of you all. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/50 "2005-02-16T16:15:44Z")
Hey, I would’ve said you were smokin’ hot but my wife would have evicerated me with her powerful forelimbs. I like your friend tooAAAAAAGHGHGH… ---
**Author:** ![Rufus\_Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@Rufus\_Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rufus_Xavier)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/51 "2005-02-16T16:38:41Z")
> [@Nordic](#): > > The entire point of a picture thread is for people to _comment on your pictures._ If there’s any way you can say that’s not the case, I’d be delighted to hear it. Perhaps, but the comments should not necessarily be delivered in the thread. That would lead to a very noisy thread. For instance, if I post in a photo thread that already has 50 Dopers’ pictures in it, which ones should I comment on? All of them? Only the ones that haven’t had comments yet? Only the ones I think are attractive? And in the meantime,wouldn’t all the other 50 Dopers also be commenting on each others’ pictures? And the new ones coming in after me, how do they fit in? Sounds like an Excedrin headache in the making; a thread where, in the time it takes you to type up a few sentences and put in a link, 25 other posts have got in ahead of yours. Now, if you started a picture thread and laid down the following ground rules: 1. Each poster must post only once. 2. The post must contain a link to one photo of yourself, a brief explanation of where and when the photo was taken, and a comment (positive reinforcement only!) about only the previous poster’s picture. That might keep things neat and organized. Or if you really want people to comment on YOUR pictures, start a “look at my pictures!” thread. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/52 "2005-02-16T18:22:39Z")
My main enjoyment in picture threads is to see the faces behind the screen-names (and share mine.) Compliments are only a nice bonus (and while I get some, I don’t get lots. Doesn’t hurt my feelings.) I feel the same way about meeting business acquaintances in person for the first time. “Oh, cool, now I can picture the face when I hear the voice.!” ---
**Author:** ![AwSnappity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@AwSnappity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AwSnappity)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/53 "2005-02-16T18:39:51Z")
> [@TroubleAgain](#): > > My main enjoyment in picture threads is to see the faces behind the screen-names (and share mine.) Compliments are only a nice bonus (and while I get some, I don’t get lots. Doesn’t hurt my feelings.) I feel the same way about meeting business acquaintances in person for the first time. “Oh, cool, now I can picture the face when I hear the voice.!” That’s exactly what I think about picture threads. I didn’t think their main purpose was to get compliments. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/54 "2005-02-16T20:21:16Z")
> [@Nordic](#): > > When everyone else is being offered modeling contracts, and you hear nothing but crickets chirping in response to your picture, well even the healthiest ego would question itself. If nothing else it tells me I’m not enough of a presence on the boards for people to even care what I look like. Stop whining, **Nordic** , or I’ll spell your name without an “ **r** ”. ---
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/55 "2005-02-16T20:51:08Z")
> [@](#): > > Attention whores have privacy rights too, you know! Yes we do. Carry on. 😉 [hi jack]So is there going to be an Attention Whore 2005 thread, **laina\_f**? Might be some real competition this year. :D[/hj] ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/56 "2005-02-16T21:07:23Z")
> [@Case Sensitive](#): > > Stop whining, **Nordic** , or I’ll spell your name without an “ **r** ”. Who’s whining? I was just explaining to **AwSnappity** where my little throw-away comment in the other thread was coming from. I didn’t start this thread and I never intended to say any more about it. How can you all be so mean to someone so pretty? ☹ 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/57 "2005-02-16T22:10:25Z")
> [@Nordic](#): > > If nothing else it tells me I’m not enough of a presence on the boards for people to even care what I look like. _You’re_ whining. Why are you so concerned with being a “presence” on this board, and why should anyone care what you look like? This is an internet message board, not a beauty contest. I couldn’t care less if you’re Brad Pitt incognito, a disfigured hermit forced to live in a cave with a bag over your head, or a disembodied brain in a jar, just as long as you have something worthwhile to say. If you _must_ gain attention here, the way to attract it is through posting something worth reading, and not your current adolescent “nobody loves me, nobody even notices me” snivelling. There, I’ve noticed you. Happy now? ---
**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/58 "2005-02-16T22:47:42Z")
I don’t read the photo threads because they always turn into circle jerks. However, one non-whore purpose they can serve is to clear up misconceptions. Based on **Nordic** ’s first couple of posts to this thread, I assumed he was a teenaged girl. > [@harmless](#): > > [hi jack]So is there going to be an Attention Whore 2005 thread, **laina\_f**? > Might be some real competition this year. :D[/hj] Right now I’m obsessed with the $21 million paean to attention whoredom that is Christo’s Gates (I leave for NYC tomorrow). Maybe when I get back. Are you intending to enter the competition again, **harmless** , or, like Miss America, will you graciously pass the crown on to another? I’d like you to help judge (which includes the perq of making a lot of snarky remarks in the thread). I was very disappointed when a mod closed the competition thread so quickly after you won; many AWs are at their best only after they’ve been deprived of something they think they deserved. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/59 "2005-02-16T22:54:48Z")
> [@laina\_f](#): > > I don’t read the photo threads because they always turn into circle jerks. However, one non-whore purpose they can serve is to clear up misconceptions. Based on **Nordic** ’s first couple of posts to this thread, I assumed he was a teenaged girl. I think you just shredded whatever tiny fragments of ego he was still feebly clinging to… ---
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157/60 "2005-02-16T23:22:00Z")
> [@laina\_f](#): > > \Are you intending to enter the competition again, **harmless** , or, like Miss America, will you graciously pass the crown on to another? I’d like you to help judge (which includes the perq of making a lot of snarky remarks in the thread). Why, it just wouldn’t be fair of me to enter again…what with all the experience I now have. 😉 Judging does sound like fun, though. > [@laina\_f](#): > > I was very disappointed when a mod closed the competition thread so quickly after you won; many AWs are at their best only after they’ve been deprived of something they think they deserved. Exactly! Why, that was like the icing on the cake and some of the funniest posts. 😃 Thanks again for the prize, btw. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-whores-have-privacy-rights-too-you-know/290157.md?page=4)