I hate Joe Average

I really hate the term Joe Average. I feel like it’s a stereotype that people like to fall into to justify behaviors. If the behavior is benign, why do you feel the need to justify it? It it’s malignant, then it’s an absolution of responsibility for it.

I feel like the stereotypical Joe Average constantly defers to people who are “Smarter than they” to solve the world’s problems, but if the person who gets delegated for this task makes them feel stupid, they get very angry. It’s such a double-standard. First of all it implies that there is some mean average, but if you believe this mean average does not apply to you, then you are a snob or weird.

We are consistently made to feel guilty about not caring enough about “Joe Average”, if we shop at Wal Mart, buy a foreign car, or don’t believe in nationalized medicine. Why SHOULD I care about Joe Average? Why does Joe Average get a pass from thinking about things that make his head hurt? If Joe Average hadn’t shopped at Wal Mart, Wal Mart wouldn’t be the only source of employment for Joe Average, so why should I feel sorry for him when he gets fucked by it?

Certainly Joe Average is the best guy to have around when you want to just drink a beer and chill out, because he’s not gonna get too pretentious on you, unless you bring up some sport he is passionate about. This brings up another point, why is it socially acceptable for him to try to make me feel stupid about Football, but it’s not ok for me to make him feel stupid about music?

I think the idea of Joe Average is responsible for a great deal of the misery we end up heaping upon ourselves, and I know that the concept is exactly what it says, and is the average of all of our mainstream values lumped into a single archetype, but I get a little sick of it as a tool for agenda pushing.

Erek

I’m not following. Are you saying that the ‘Average American’ doesn’t exist? Are you saying the ‘Average American’ is a whiny entitled brat? Are you saying the ‘Average American’ made his bed and now he should lie in it?

Ok, wait. On third read or so, I at least understand your first sentence. Do you really know people who say, “hey, the average American does this, so that’s why I’m going to do it”?

But still, beyond your opening paragraph, I’m not sure what you’re driving at. Who makes you feel guilty about not caring about ‘Joe Average’? The examples you give are certainly things that folks will say matter to ‘all Americans’, or ‘our community’ or some such, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen that directed at a specific sub-set of citizen.

I’m not trying to be obtuse, but the exact nature of your rant eludes me.

Out of random curiosity, how many slightly incoherent pit-threads relating to Wal-Mart, the inability of the general populas to kill people with their bare hands, or other behaviors that you see at typifying the stupid bergoise of America do you have in store for us over the next month?

I am saying that “Joe Average” is used in a very manipulative way. Like when someone wants to displace guilt. Almost invariably it is used when someone is trying to duck guilt, or when they are trying to shoulder you with guilt. The buck rarely stops with Joe Average.

Or “populace” and “bourgeois”, even.

[/spelling Nazi]

At least three mae.

Erek

Spring Break, eh Erek? Can’t wait until you’re back in school…

Sam

Let’s see, there is one about people who drink red wine with fish; people who collect little ceramic angels; people who forward glurge; people who misprounounce French phrases… Four. He has four more.

Oh, you’re so cute when you’re acting all superior. I’m sorry if I sullied your one venue for socialization by posting flames in an area dedicated to flaming.

Erek

How do you feel about Dame Edna Everage, if you don’t like her cousin Joe? :stuck_out_tongue:

You haven’t sullied it. You haven’t really “flamed” it, either. Instead, you post inane, ignorant, silly, pointless rants in a place for flaming, when you really should just clean up the language and post in MPSIMS.

And I still can’t wait until you’re back in school next week. Cutie.

Sam

I don’t think I’ve ever heard the term “Joe Average”.

I think Joe Average would get along just fine with American Woman.

Dear Sweetykins,

I don’t think my threads were silly at all, and they got interest and people actually debated. Maybe people don’t like this one. However, I’m not really sorry I posted three threads in one weekend.

As one who is obviously superior to those of school age you’d think you’d understand that one weekend does not equal a whole spring break.

Besides the fact that I’m not in school. ;p

I posted three threads, all in reaction to other things I saw in the pit. One was in reaction to some dumbass gun control debates. One was in reaction to the requisite dumbass hating on Wal Mart that is required about once a week apparently, and this one was just in response to someone saying that I must not care about Joe Average if I am willing to forgive Wal Mart for it’s transgressions, and then she went on into some foolish rant about the Exxon Valdez oil spill, and basically how it’s people like me causing all this corporate horror. So I posted this rant about Joe Average being an excuse to shift blame around. No doubt my OP was not very concise, I’d definitely agree with that.

But no such luck for you. I will not be heading back from Spring Break, well ever. I’m done with school as far as I know, have been since 1996. So you’re fucked sweetykins.

Besides, who wants to clean up the language?

Erek

I decalre that this was funny. (Would have been better without the self-conscious misspelling – unless you’re actually Scottish, in which case it would still have been better without the erroneously phonetic misspelling.)

–Cliffy

Gaudere’s Law can bite my choad!

–Cliffy, again

I’ll admit to not knowing how to spell “burgoise,” but populas? “Populas”? I swear to god that was a typo. If you don’t believe me I’ll go back and pull cites from the boards, I promise.

You’re right, what’s with this Joe Average shit?
It’s Joe Sixpack. Duh :wink:

I do not understand this. If I criticize you for driving around in a Japanese car, won’t you feel the need to justify it? Does the very act of you justifying your behavior mean that it ISN’T benign?

The sentence It it’s malignant, then it’s an absolution of responsibility for it. does not make sense either. I cannot even imagine what you’re trying to communicate.

There is a huge difference between “You are smarter than me” and “You are making me feel stupid”. I can acknowledge the fact that my boss is much smarter than I am. But I don’t feel stupid when I’m around him, nor do I feel that he tries to make me feel stupid.

I am not made to feel guilt or anything else about “Joe Average”. I care about expoitation and oppression because I don’t think these things belong in a society. I also think they ultimately affect everyone in a bad way. But no one makes me feel this way. If you don’t want to feel sympathy for others, don’t.

And who says that Joe Average gets a pass from thinking? I can say it’s fucked up that Joe Average keeps voting for politicians that have agendas that go counter to his welfare, and very few people will disagree with me (we’ll just disagree on who the politicians are). I can also say it’s fucked up how politicians pander and exploit Joe Average by making pie-in-the-sky promises and devising seductive propaganda. Most people I see (around these parts at least) routinely place the blame on and away from Joe Average.

Who says it’s acceptable and not acceptable? Joe Average? Why should you care, since you hate this imaginary, non-existant man?

You often end your posts and threads with something grandiose like this, but offer little to back it up. Our society includes lots of little annoying stereotypes like “Soccer Mom”, “Stupid Dad”, and “Yuppie”. I believe they enjoy more or less the same amount of power as “Joe Average”. We are miserable because this is the human condition. It has nothing to do with stereotypes.

Dear sugarpants,

You might not realize that your threads are silly, but that reflects nothing more than your own idiocy. You are entitled to your opinion that you have posted incisive social commentary, but that’s not terribly relevant, as you’ve actually posted something both less coherent and less entertaining than the rants on the side of a bottle of Dr. Bronners. In fact, the drug-induced ravings of the many pleasant urban outdoorspeople that I pass on my way to work are considerably sharper in terms of providing a cutting, stark revelation as to the state of society.

I guess what I’m asking is this - if I give you a cigarette and some money for booze, will you please be quiet?

Actually, I think this is quite obvious. I suspect the sorts of schools that generally admit people such as yourselves don’t permit enough freedom to access the internet on weekends. Hopefully, eventually, you’ll find the treatment you need, or at the very least develop a more entertaining schtick.

I wish you all the best in future endeavors. Remember, don’t scratch too hard - there aren’t actually bugs crawling under your skin, and you’ll only end up injuring yourself.

Yours affectionately,
Excalibre

P.S. You seem to be misspelling your first name. “Eric” and “Erik” are acceptable spellings. It’s tough, but if you keep trying, I bet you’ll learn to spell it one day!