# How embarrassed should I be about my hobby? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 15, 2014, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284 "2014-12-15T14:19:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Whiskey\_Dickens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9fc348/32.png) [@Whiskey\_Dickens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whiskey_Dickens)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/41 "2014-12-15T21:00:36Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > Not even close. > > Whoops. > > (And yes, it is My Little Pony. Which, bizarrely, when you look at the figures, is topped _only by Pokemon_ in sheer volume of porn produced. In fact, of the top 10 most eroticized characters on Paheal, the “Mane 6” take 6 of the 7 top spots, with Chun Li still at #3. Porn is weird.) Wow, the cognitive dissonance in this post is awe inspiring. “Sex with kids, how did you even get that idea?” beat “Man there’s a ton of people turning this kids’ show into something sexual.” ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/42 "2014-12-15T21:05:17Z")
Paddington Bares it All Felch! with Ruff Ruffman Samurai Jackoff The Slut Life of Zack & Cody ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/43 "2014-12-15T21:07:33Z")
Analmaniacs Sexter’s Laboratory Fine-ass and Ferb Rocko’s Modern Lust The Backsideigans The Wonder Heavy Pets Are You Afraid Of The Dick? ---
**Author:** ![Southern\_Yankee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/southern_yankee/32/2800_2.png) [@Southern\_Yankee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Southern_Yankee)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/44 "2014-12-15T21:39:23Z")
So, _Uncle Grandpa_ is already a thing… ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/45 "2014-12-15T21:41:22Z")
> [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > Wow, the cognitive dissonance in this post is awe inspiring. > “Sex with kids, how did you even get that idea?” > > beat > > “Man there’s a ton of people turning this kids’ show into something sexual.” Yes, and the two are about as related as… Um… I dunno, two completely unrelated things? Rule 34 is basically about turning things you like into porn, regardless of who they’re aimed at. My Little Pony, with its cast of ostensibly _adult_ female characters, is a fairly apt target for that. It has nothing to do with wanting to fuck children, sexualizing children, or any such thing. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/46 "2014-12-15T21:55:21Z")
Yeay! I got it in one! That didn’t sound right, did it? ---
**Author:** ![Nauplius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nauplius/32/51_2.png) [@Nauplius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nauplius)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/47 "2014-12-15T22:01:19Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > … It has nothing to do with wanting to fuck children, sexualizing children, or any such thing. One can never be sure given your track record. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/48 "2014-12-15T22:08:02Z")
Someone at Cracked once did an article on the most disturbing fanfic they had found: one involved Snape having an orgy with the Teletubbies. Perhaps that was it? ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/49 "2014-12-15T22:14:26Z")
My first reaction to the the OP > [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > So… I write fanfiction. > > Erotic fanfiction. > > For a popular child’s cartoon franchise. > > According to various people within the community, I’m pretty good at it. Is that the community you care about? Christ Jesus. Has the SDMB become so pathetic that this is a place to seek validation for semi-pedophiliac fan fiction? What the living fuck? ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/50 "2014-12-15T22:16:02Z")
> [@Teuton](#): > > I wouldn’t have shared it here. Not because it bothers me, but because I know there are people that will follow you around and bring up past weirdness into other threads. Yep. **BPC** , are you a masochist? You know how certain posters follow you endlessly with snark about things you probably shouldn’t have shared here. Havent you learned from those experiences? ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/51 "2014-12-15T22:18:32Z")
If I were you I wouldn’t be embarrassed about it. I’d post it on the internet and tell people I think I might be weird for it so they would talk about me and I’d get a flurry of attention for a day. If I were you. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/52 "2014-12-15T22:22:03Z")
I always assumed Applejack was a lesbian. She’s too butch. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/53 "2014-12-15T22:27:03Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Someone at Cracked once did an article on the most disturbing fanfic they had found: one involved Snape having an orgy with the Teletubbies. Perhaps that was it? I remember that Cracked article. I read the Snape/Teletubbies fic. I really, really wish I hadn’t… ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/54 "2014-12-15T22:37:00Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > …My Little Pony, with its cast of ostensibly _adult_ female characters, is a fairly apt target for that… The age of the My Little Pony ponies is actually an interesting mystery. It’s not really made clear how old they are, or whether age in a human sense is even relevant - maybe my little ponies don’t have a concept of becoming an adult at a certain chronological age - there could be some sort of maturity evaluation or ritual that “passes” somepony into adulthood and the age at which a pony accomplishes that depends on a lot of variables. Maybe any pony with a cutie mark is considered an adult. As for the “Mane 6” characters, we see that Twilight Sparkle starts out as a student in the city of Canterlot, though it’s not made clear what level she is at - is she a homeschooled teenager working on a high school equivalency certificate? Is she the equivalent of a doctoral student who is suddenly sent by her grad advisor to conduct field research? It’s not clear, and maybe the pony world doesn’t have human-style academic credentials like that, and the primary purpose of school is to learn stuff that one can go out and use, not to earn certificates. Applejack is part of a farming family and is commonly seen working the fields with her big brother. Given that farming is famous for bringing children in at an early age, we can’t really tell what that means. Does AJ pretty much run the farm with the help of her family, or is AJ basically a young farmgirl who has daily chores assigned by her family? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/55 "2014-12-15T22:37:31Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Yep. **BPC** , are you a masochist? You know how certain posters follow you endlessly with snark about things you probably shouldn’t have shared here. Havent you learned from those experiences? Maybe it’s all three? ---
**Author:** ![Tuxie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ee59a6/32.png) [@Tuxie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuxie)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/56 "2014-12-15T22:51:32Z")
I’m curious why you would choose to share this. Validation? That sense of relief when people don’t make fun of you? Masochism? Enjoying the criticism of others making what you wrote feel more noble or controversial? Loneliness? Finding something extreme enough to bring you up in conversation? Perhaps it is good you are so open. It lets people know not to leave their kids alone with you. Or in the same neighborhood. Or state. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/57 "2014-12-15T23:13:14Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > I always assumed Applejack was a lesbian. She’s too butch. I think Rainbow Dash is more commonly seen as the lesbian. She is blue, blasts rainbows everywhere, and is totally obsessed with sports. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/58 "2014-12-15T23:36:57Z")
@Questioning motives: have you considered that I legitimately am not aware of how “un-okay” this kind of thing is? Like, seriously. I spend a lot of time surrounded by people who are into this kind of thing. My girlfriend is my co-author. While I’m not surprised to see some negative responses, I _am_ surprised at just _how_ negative some of them are. Oh, I’m sorry, my interest in Rule 34 marks me as a predator or a pedophile? I wasn’t aware. I wonder if any of the people judging me think Jessie from Team Rocket is hot. You know, the 16-year-old. Or any of Ash’s other companions, most of whom are pre-adolescent. …Oh, who am I kidding. Those of you who move in these internet circles aren’t judging, and those who don’t won’t get it. > [@robert\_columbia](#): > > The age of the My Little Pony ponies is actually an interesting mystery. It’s not really made clear how old they are, or whether age in a human sense is even relevant - maybe my little ponies don’t have a concept of becoming an adult at a certain chronological age - there could be some sort of maturity evaluation or ritual that “passes” somepony into adulthood and the age at which a pony accomplishes that depends on a lot of variables. Maybe any pony with a cutie mark is considered an adult. > > As for the “Mane 6” characters, we see that Twilight Sparkle starts out as a student in the city of Canterlot, though it’s not made clear what level she is at - is she a homeschooled teenager working on a high school equivalency certificate? Is she the equivalent of a doctoral student who is suddenly sent by her grad advisor to conduct field research? It’s not clear, and maybe the pony world doesn’t have human-style academic credentials like that, and the primary purpose of school is to learn stuff that one can go out and use, not to earn certificates. Applejack is part of a farming family and is commonly seen working the fields with her big brother. Given that farming is famous for bringing children in at an early age, we can’t really tell what that means. Does AJ pretty much run the farm with the help of her family, or is AJ basically a young farmgirl who has daily chores assigned by her family? Well, it’s rather heavily implied by the “Cutie Mark Chronicles” that they’re all of very similar age. And Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash are all apparently mature enough to hold down what amount to fairly high-responsibility jobs. Rarity is, IMO, the most telling - she runs a fashion boutique which has apparently gained notoreity among the movers and shakers in Canterlot, and she takes care of her little sister in a way that’s fairly motherly. The point I’m making is, these aren’t children. Anthropomorphic talking horses, sure, but certainly not children - that distinction is made pretty clearly when you look at the children Cheerilee teaches. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/59 "2014-12-15T23:48:14Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > … > Well, it’s rather heavily implied by the “Cutie Mark Chronicles” that they’re all of very similar age. And Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash are all apparently mature enough to hold down what amount to fairly high-responsibility jobs. Rarity is, IMO, the most telling - she runs a fashion boutique which has apparently gained notoreity among the movers and shakers in Canterlot, and she takes care of her little sister in a way that’s fairly motherly. The point I’m making is, these aren’t children. Anthropomorphic talking horses, sure, but certainly not children - that distinction is made pretty clearly when you look at the children Cheerilee teaches. True, but it doesn’t establish whether or not there is a pony “age of majority” in a formal sense. It is established in “Hearts and Hooves Day” that Big Macintosh, Applejack and Apple Bloom (one of the CMC fillies)'s big brother, is old enough to get married, and in fact the CMC themselves try to set him up with Cheerilee. Maybe there are separate ages of sexual maturity and ages of financial maturity, so one could be old enough to own their own business but not old enough to have consensual sex. Or not. Maybe it’s just a fun show and we should all stop nerding all over the place over it. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2014, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284/60 "2014-12-15T23:56:12Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > @Questioning motives: have you considered that I legitimately am not aware of how “un-okay” this kind of thing is? Like, seriously. If you were any other poster, people would probably be giving you a bit more leeway. They aren’t responding to just this current revelation, but the other whoppers you’ve shared PLUS this one. But I suspect you know this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-embarrassed-should-i-be-about-my-hobby/707284.md?page=4)