# POSERS, explain yourselves! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 26, 2003, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519 "2003-02-26T00:33:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/21 "2003-02-26T14:31:57Z")
Batman wore a skirt? ---
**Author:** ![Triss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Triss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triss)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/22 "2003-02-26T14:47:39Z")
\ > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Lilly Putt_ > \ > spelling poseur, colour, labour…etc with a “U” is so french (intentionally not capitalized) or french-Canadian. (Canadien to you) Lots of Canadians use this British form of spelling, (which of course does have its roots in French) not just French-Canadians. It’s just the way many of us were taught, and it tends to stick. It may even be MOST Canadians, but I’m not 100% sure about that. \ We ARE still part of the Commonwealth, darling. British subjects, you know. \ \ ---
**Author:** ![lucwarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@lucwarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lucwarm)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/23 "2003-02-26T15:08:56Z")
What thread about posers would be complete without a reference to SUV’s?!? (and spoilers . . . ) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/24 "2003-02-26T15:56:48Z")
funny one should bring G’n’f’n’R into this. When I was growing up I called em “Guns ‘n’ Posers”. heheheheheheh. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/25 "2003-02-26T17:05:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lilly Putt \* > \*\*You said “oral tradition.”:eek: > > In the Punk Rock Rule Book™ where it states: “Although a real punk™ would never call anyone else a poser, a real punk™ would also never mention this fact, therefore cancelling out the entire matter. In fact, a real punk™’s vocabulary only consists of the following words: anarchy, Sid, fuck, and you.” 😉 \*\* LOL Since I’m to old to be a punk anymore, I’m exempt. ---
**Author:** ![XJETGIRLX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9fc29f/32.png) [@XJETGIRLX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XJETGIRLX)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/26 "2003-02-26T17:23:27Z")
What I hate is people who feel the need to assign a motivation to everything I wear, say or do. Can’t I just f’n wear my combat boots because they’re _comfortable_? Why does it have to be some deep social statement? Christ on a cracker folks! I get where you’re coming from, and I felt that way too when I was in high school. I got pissed off when the preppy girls started wearing fake bellybutton rings (as if!) and fake tattoos. Then they started dying their hair ‘temporarily’ with kool-aid. Back then we wanted to pound their faces in for being poser-twits. But ya know what? I think that even giving a shit is kind of poser-like in and of itself. I mean, why do you care, really? Does it harm you? Does it threaten you? If not then why waste your time/energy/anger on someone else? To some extent we all do this, only it’s not always with clothes. We try to fashion ourselves in the form of that which we admire. Those that have no substance behind their form will be shown to be fools on their own – I’m sure they don’t need your help. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/27 "2003-02-26T17:56:35Z")
Mrs. Bricker has an entire cabinet filled with tea sets - delicate, old, finely-made tea cups and saucers. We are not supposed to actually put tea in them, mind you: they are there for the looking, not the drinking. Is this “posing” ? If a person has a library full of unread books, how is it different than a cabinet full of untouched tea cups. - Rick ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/28 "2003-02-26T18:09:55Z")
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/29 "2003-02-26T18:53:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > \*\*I’ve always been annoyed by those people who have a giant bookshelf filled with matching leather-bound editions of the classics. They have no other books in the house, and if you should chance to open one of the leather-bound books, they make that distinctive “virgin book” crackle which tells you they’ve never been touched before. > > People like this want to appear smart, and well-read, but can’t be bothered to actually read the books. They paid quite a bit for the image, however, because some of those leather-bound editions can be pretty pricy. > > They are what I call “biblio-posers.” \*\* OooH!! OOoooH!! (hand waving wildly) Mr. KOTTER!! I can explain. See, those books are for looks only (sort of like the guest room towels, don’t touch!! The real ones are the coffee and donut stained paperbacks in my bedroom (you every try to read a 90 lb hard back while curled up in bed?). Actually I don’t own any of the leatherbound classics, only the coffee stained dogeared paperback copies. But I always wanted the “pretty” copies. ---
**Author:** ![Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2bfe46/32.png) [@Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xavier)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/30 "2003-02-26T18:56:47Z")
> [@](#): > > **Ethilrist** : Batman wore a skirt? He did in the movie I watched. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/31 "2003-02-26T19:25:29Z")
Ok, I admit it, I’m a poser. Didn’t realize it until now. I don’t enjoy SF, seldom read it (sometimes I read the “literary” kind), don’t watch Star Trek, enjoy the Star Wars films, but am not a huge fan - yet I’ve been known to go to SF cons and try to blend in. Why? Because I enjoy the company. Many of my friends go, so I go as well. Sometimes I sit in on panels that interest me, sometimes I’ve sat ON panels (generally about SF films, I have a film degree - or on feminism), sometimes I just hang, drink too much and have a good time. Sometimes I helped run the convention. I’ve never been a fan of rock music in any form - but could convincingly pass for “punk” as a teenager - I hung with kids in leather jackets or black trenchcoats, combat boots, heavy eyeliner, and the occational mohawk dyed purple - is it any surprise that although I didn’t really follow the bands, I owned a leather jacket - and if the rest of the crowd went out dancing, I dressed to fit? I don’t game at all, but I’ve been known to be seen at gaming cons - in a t-shirt and jeans so I don’t stand out - usually handing out registration packets or coordinating card tournaments for games I don’t play. Once again, friends are there and needed a hand, and I helped out. But I can’t intellegently discuss character generation techniques for Champions or how to develop a winning MtG deck. And, to fullfill my “poser” credentials, I work in corporate America, own a Brooks Brothers navy suit with a conservative white blouse, yet do not have an MBA and tend to hold liberal political opinions. Course, I’m also posing at being a poser - since I am far too old to care about any of this. ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/32 "2003-02-26T19:58:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lilly Putt \* > \*\*I have heard the term used often in skateboarding circles, and there is a BIG difference between a poser and a beginner or novice. Everybody needs to start somewhere, and there is nothing wrong with learning to do new things. A poser is somebody who only wants to gain acceptance or attention by adopting an IMAGE. > > Narrad, I believe you missed the point. > > As I said that was a shitty example of what I was trying to convey. Lets use “SATANISM, GOTH, and PUNK ROCK” as better examples. A lot of times this is used as a shock tactic by teenagers who don’t get enough attention. They know nothing of the dangers that may be headed their way if they choose to portray themselves in a certain manner. This often leads to behavior that is associated with such an image, such as hurting animals, other people and themselves, and being all-around assholes. > > BTW, I am not religious by any means (before anyone tries to flame me about the satan thing.). I have also been in a hardcore “punk” band for ten years, but you would have no idea by the looks of me. I have seen a lot of misguided people do a lot of stupid things, which only results in perpetuating the stereotypes of the image they are trying to portray. > > When I was in highschool, we had a lot of wannabe gangsters. This was in the suburbs, near Malibu where the least expensive houses in the area run about $475,000.00 nowadays, (for a 3 bedroom 2 bath). There was no bussing. My family was one of the least wealthy, actually poor for the area, and I found it rather distressing that children of millionaires were getting into “gang fights” on the weekends. \*\* So if rich kids do it they’re posers but if poor kids do it they are the real thing? Does this work for all non-mainstream scenes? Did growing up in the “suburbs near Malibu” allow you to identify with the '70s punk movement in working class England? I’m sorry if this sounds snarky, I don’t mean it that way. Any of us who have been involved in any kind of non-mainstream scene knows how much it sucks when our scene goes mainstream - as they all do eventually. We spend a lot of time and energy proclaiming to everyone who will listen that “I was [scene] before [scene] was cool.” You know what, fuckin’ relax and don’t worry about. The basis for many scenes is to do your own thing and to not worry what everyone else thinks. If you stay true to that then the posers will come and go and, with any luck, your scene will fade from MTV back into obscurity and you will be surrounded by your fellow hardcores and you can all reminisce about when you used to be cool! ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/33 "2003-02-26T19:59:20Z")
> [@](#): > > _From ‘Punk Rock Heaven’, by Mary Prankster_ > > Baby, you’re a poseur > Honey, I should know > You ask me where the shows are > But then you never go I’m hardcore old school! Or at least old, these days. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/34 "2003-02-26T20:23:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by clairobscur \* > \*\*That would be my father. He had all these beautiful, leather-bound books, but I doubt he ever read any of them. He didn’t read much, and when he did, he read paper-back. But actually, he wasn’t a “poser”, either. He never pretented to be a cultured man, or tried to appear smart. I just liked the leather-bound books and considered them as essentially another piece of furniture decorating the house. It wasn’t even because he expected his children to read the books since he began to buy them only after his retirment, when we all have left the house. \*\* And - Posted by CanvasShoes > [@](#): > > I can explain. See, those books are for looks only (sort of like the guest room towels, don’t touch!! I’ve always been of the opinion that books should not be for “decoration” or purchased to match one’s furniture. (Just as I would never buy a piece of art because it matches the carpet.) However, I don’t have a problem with leather-bound editions, per se; my problem stems from them remaining \* unread\* and unloved. It defeats the entire reason for a book’s existance, and somehow strikes me as being almost a sacrilige. I have purchased a few leather-bound editions myself, of books that I dearly love, and read again and again. (They’re more durable than a paperback.) I will never buy a book just to impress visitors. A real library should be eclectic . . . with books of all shapes, sizes and colors; that is the sign of a true book lover, and not a person who treats books like furniture. ---
**Author:** ![cowgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@cowgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cowgirl)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/35 "2003-02-26T21:14:58Z")
In high school I used to get upset about ‘poseurs’ too, like the people who joined the rugby team for long enough to get the cool jackets, then quit the team and kept wearing the jackets. As I age I have mellowed out on the subject: people can indeed wear/do whatever the hell they want. But the part I have trouble with is where they wear/do something, _only because of the image it will project to others_. Like limping, for attention, when there’s nothing wrong with your leg. Or dressing like a punk so people will think you are punk, rather than because you want to get a mohawk and believe in anarchy. This of course leaves lots of room for fuzzy indeterminate gray area, which is why I hesitate to use the label, ever. But the gangsta one is a good example: the culture arose out of poor people living in urban ghettos. The things they wear/do came directly from that experience. Wealthy suburban kids doing the same things are not doing them for the same reason, I would submit they are doing it more for image. Getting into gang fights, for instance, is a pretty stupid thing to do if you have any choice in the matter - which kids from the suburbs probably do to a greater degree than kids in the ghettos. ---
**Author:** ![D.E.S.K.Top668](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@D.E.S.K.Top668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D.E.S.K.Top668)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/36 "2003-02-26T21:34:36Z")
No offense intended **Lissa** , but just because a specific edition of a book is unread doesn’t mean it’s unloved. I have several “good” editions of various books that have never been opened, prefering to read my old, ragged paperbacks. I bought them because they were great books and I know the paperbacks won’t last forever. I want to make sure that I have a copy for my children when they’re old enough to enjoy them. As for the OP, I think the only “real” posers are the out and out liars. You know, the ones saying (for example) “I was going to punk shows since '85” when they’ve never even been to a show. If somebody’s reason for dressing/acting a certain way isn’t a valid reason to me, I’m the one with the problem, not them. I used to wear skate shirts all the time because I loved the graphics and I spoke fluent “skaterese” because a lot of my friends were into boarding. I certainly wasn’t trying to fit into a group through posing, it was just that it was what I was exposed to. ---
**Author:** ![Lilly\_Putt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@Lilly\_Putt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lilly_Putt)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/37 "2003-02-26T21:50:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\*So if rich kids do it they’re posers but if poor kids do it they are the real thing? Does this work for all non-mainstream scenes? \*\* I may be wrong, but I thought one joined a gang in order to survive in the rougher neighborhoods, where everybody else was in a gang. One would get beaten and harrassed if the predators had no fear of retribution. Living in that area, I can honestly say I don’t know anything about it, and neither should anyone else who did. > [@](#): > > **Did growing up in the “suburbs near Malibu” allow you to identify with the '70s punk movement in working class England?** I don’t have any use for the English scene, image, etc… My point was that when people adopt an image, and certain destructive behavior associated with that image, they are just going through the motions. I wasn’t clear on that in my OP, and tried to elaborate in my later post. Maybe I should have named this “Stereotypes, explain yourselves.” I have always been of the belief that if you don’t want to be associated with a stereotype, don’t perpetuate that stereotype. “Poser” is just a funny word, in my opinion. I’m really not concerned with any “underground credentials” and the like. Everybody has the right to do as they please, and like what they like, but just because you bought a Good Charlotte CD last week and you like it , you are not required to get a funny haircut, dye it an unnatural color, and engage in behavior previously reserved for jocks. ---
**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 26, 2003, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/38 "2003-02-26T21:51:30Z")
When CDs were first becoming popular, I knew this guy who frequently raved on about how digital music lacked the sound quality of analog music. I eventually learned that he hardly listened to music at all, and the only album he’d purchased in years was “Thriller”. I think he qualifies as a poser, but at the time I considered him just a pitiful phoney. ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/39 "2003-02-26T22:35:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lilly Putt \* > **I may be wrong, but I thought one joined a gang in order to survive in the rougher neighborhoods, where everybody else was in a gang. One would get beaten and harrassed if the predators had no fear of retribution. Living in that area, I can honestly say I don’t know anything about it, and neither should anyone else who did.** But if it looks like a duck, and talks like a duck… What you are differentiating here is the motivation of an individual to join a group. I mean if poser gangsters are doing all of the same things that genuine gangsters, then doesn’t that make them (the posers) the real thing? My point is that if you engage in the activities that define membership in some group, then you are not a poser. If you present yourself a gangster but your closest brush with THE MAN is detention for spit wads then…well, you can draw your own conclusions. \*\* > [@](#): > > Maybe I should have named this “Stereotypes, explain yourselves.” I have always been of the belief that if you don’t want to be associated with a stereotype, don’t perpetuate that stereotype. “Poser” is just a funny word, in my opinion.\*\* Yes, but poser and stereotype are not synonymous. A poser wants to be associated with a stereotype, and in order to do this will perpetuate the stereotype. \*\* > [@](#): > > I’m really not concerned with any “underground credentials” and the like. Everybody has the right to do as they please, and like what they like, but just because you bought a Good Charlotte CD last week and you like it , you are not required to get a funny haircut, dye it an unnatural color, and engage in behavior previously reserved for jocks. \*\* I agree. But the point I was (poorly) trying to make is that when I show up at a Good Charlotte show without a “funny haircut dyed an unatural color” then I am reviled because I don’t fit the stereotype of what a Good Charlotte fan looks like, an image that is perpetuated by the “genuine” Good Charlotte fans. So by not going the poser route, I open myself up to condescension. Does any of this make any sense? I don’t think so. Sometimes I think I just type for the pure joy of typing. ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519/40 "2003-02-26T22:35:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ol’Gaffer \* > \*\*So if rich kids do it they’re posers but if poor kids do it they are the real thing? Does this work for all non-mainstream scenes? Did growing up in the “suburbs near Malibu” allow you to identify with the '70s punk movement in working class England? > \*\* What does england have to do with anything. PUnk started in America… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posers-explain-yourselves/157519.md?page=3)