# Which SDMB minority are you in?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [July 31, 2006, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692 "2006-07-31T12:26:53Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/1 "2006-07-31T12:26:53Z")
I know there have been various polls over the years to permit or entice Dopers to reveal some details about themselves, and many of them have been well received if not outright popular topics. I know I have participated in some of them.
I could be very mistaken about the assumptions below, but based on my assessment of those past polls I’m concluding that the majority of SDMB participants (there’s no way to tell much about those who don’t post) fall into these demographics:
1. White
2. Heterosexual
3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
6. Have at least some college education
7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
8. Own a pet
9. Don’t smoke
I can’t persuade myself about gender. It seems close to 50-50.
Other classifications relating to political and religious persuasions I haven’t studied all that closely. Nor do I care all that much.
There are so many other categories that you may feel “in the minority” with that I thought you could say for yourself where it is you may feel an outsider here.
First off, do you accept the categories above as being accurate? If not, make your case. If so, are you outside that particular group?
Add categories as you see fit, and respond as you care to.
---
### Author:  [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/2 "2006-07-31T12:30:04Z")
Hey, 9 out of 9.
I wonder if that puts me in a minority.
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### Author:  [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/3 "2006-07-31T12:32:30Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> 1. White
> 2. Heterosexual
> 3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
> 4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
> 5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
> 6. Have at least some college education
> 7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
> 8. Own a pet
> 9. Don’t smoke
Some of those (locations within the USA) may have more to do with population density distributions in the USA than with anything else. The NE is more densely populated than, say, Idaho.
1. Hispanic White
4-5) Currently live in Spain
2. English as third language
3. Haven’t stayed in one place long enough for one since leaving college. Had a canary when I was a teen.
I match the rest.
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### Author:  [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/4 "2006-07-31T12:34:24Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> 1. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA.
I don’t think this constitutes a majority. I know of a non-trivial number of Dopers in Atlanta and how could you miss all the people living outside the USA?
Probably a better characterization of a geographical majority is “major urban area” because we all know the SDMB population is smarter than everybody else and only stupid people live in rural areas.
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### Author:  [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/5 "2006-07-31T12:37:18Z")
Seven out of nine.
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### Author:  [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/6 "2006-07-31T12:40:11Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> 1. White
> 2. Heterosexual
> 3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
> 4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
> 5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
> 6. Have at least some college education
> 7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
> 8. Own a pet
> 9. Don’t smoke
>
> I can’t persuade myself about gender. It seems close to 50-50.
8 out of 9, and it will soon be all 9 once we’ve settled into our new home and can get a cat. (Oh, and I’m male, but my Doper wife is most certainly female)
I agree that #4 and #5 should be edited into something more like “live within 25 miles of a major city”, and you’d still be on a fairly safe assumption. And of course, simply “live in the United States,” but that’s almost a foregone conclusion for most of the internet, especially English language sites maintained by United States companies.
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### Author:  [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/7 "2006-07-31T12:41:51Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> 1. White
> 2. Heterosexual
> 3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
> 4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
> 5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
> 6. Have at least some college education
> 7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
> 8. Own a pet
> 9. Don’t smoke
1. White. Yep though I prefer to call myself Pakeha (it’s a NZ thing)
2)Yep
3)Until November. Then I’m officialy old 😃
4)WAYYYYYYYYYYY South of the Mississippi
5)WAYYYYYYYYYYYYY south 😃
6)Yes
7)Yes
8)Yes
9)No
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### Author:  [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/8 "2006-07-31T12:44:23Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> I know there have been various polls over the years to permit or entice Dopers to reveal some details about themselves, and many of them have been well received if not outright popular topics. I know I have participated in some of them.
>
> I could be very mistaken about the assumptions below, but based on my assessment of those past polls I’m concluding that the majority of SDMB participants (there’s no way to tell much about those who don’t post) fall into these demographics:
>
> 1. White
> 2. Heterosexual
> 3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
> 4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
> 5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
> 6. Have at least some college education
> 7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
> 8. Own a pet
> 9. Don’t smoke
I am considered white (though I have some Native American ancestry), I am straight (but celebant), I qualify on 3 & 4, I’ve taken a few college classes, I speak English and I don’t smoke.
---
### Author:  [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/9 "2006-07-31T12:48:16Z")
Got me 9 for 9, and I’m female.
My minority would be in the “Religion - Other” category you didn’t list. While a disporportionate number of Dopers are athiest, nearly all the rest are Christian or Jewish. There’s only a few of us admitted neopagans running around (I can think of about a dozen, and I pay attention to such things.)
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### Author:  [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/10 "2006-07-31T12:49:05Z")
Six out of nine.
I’m pretty sure that Dopers in Bulgaria are a pretty small minority, though.
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### Author:  [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/11 "2006-07-31T12:49:12Z")
> [@Zeldar](#):
>
> 1. White
> 2. Heterosexual
> 3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
> 4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
> 5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
> 6. Have at least some college education
> 7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
> 8. Own a pet
> 9. Don’t smoke
1. E. Indian.
2. English was (is) my second language. But now I’m more fluent in that than the other.
I fit the rest though.
---
### Author:  [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/12 "2006-07-31T12:51:50Z")
> [@Brain Wreck](#):
>
> Probably a better characterization of a geographical majority is “major urban area” because we all know the SDMB population is smarter than everybody else and only stupid people live in rural areas.
If we disregard the motivations of those who live outside a 25-mile radius from the downtown area of a “major urban area” I do suspect that that group of Dopers would constitute a minority.
I’m not willing to go so far as to say “stupid people” are in a minority here, though. 😃
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### Author:  [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/13 "2006-07-31T12:54:35Z")
I also don’t think that north of Kentucky in the USA is a majority. But barring that, I live in Florida and also own no pets.
> [@Kalhoun](#):
>
> Seven out of nine.
Pic?
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### Author:  [@ErinPuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ErinPuff)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/14 "2006-07-31T12:57:33Z")
1. White - yes
2. Heterosexual - no
3. Over 20 but under 40 years old - I’m 20, so no
4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA - yes
5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA - yes
6. Have at least some college education - yes
7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language - yes
8. Own a pet - no
9. Don’t smoke - yes
So that’s 6 out of 9.
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### Author:  [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/15 "2006-07-31T13:10:31Z")
1. White
2. Heterosexual
3. Over 20 but under 40 years old
4. Live East of the Mississippi in the USA
5. Live North of Kentucky and Virginia in the USA
6. Have at least some college education
7. Speak English as a first (if not only) language
8. Own a pet
9. Don’t smoke
7 out of 9. Skipped 3 & 6.
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### Author:  [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/16 "2006-07-31T13:20:02Z")
5 of 9
He got killed in VOY ep 83, iirc…
I’m also a Texan redneck metrosexual construction worker. Can’t be too many of those hanging around. Not at the bars I go to, anyways.
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### Author:  [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/17 "2006-07-31T13:21:57Z")
> [@Ludovic](#):
>
> I also don’t think that north of Kentucky in the USA is a majority.
Perhaps my effort to “quadrantize” (is that a word?) the USA was a bit weak. I get the impression that most Dopers:
1. Live in the USA
2. Live in the Eastern Part of the USA
3. Live in the Northern Part of the USA
The quadrant where I believe most people at the Dope live is from Illinois eastward and from Kentucky-Virginia northward. The term “Northeast” normally tends to include New England and New York with occasional inclusion of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and with occasional inclusion as far south as Washington, DC. But if we accept this broader definition of Northeast as that quadrant defined by the Mississippi and the Kentucky-Virginia latitude, I think that’s where the majority of us live.
I do realize there’s a good sized contingent from The West and The South, but I do believe those areas are in the minority overall.
If I had to guess at the numbers, percentage-wise, I’d start with something like:
1. USA 70-80 %; non-USA 20-30%
2. Of USA Dopers (as percentages of USA portion):
2a) Northeast 40% (includes the section mentioned above)
2b) South 25% (east of the Mississippi)
2c) West 20% (Texas/Oklahoma to California)
2d) Northwest 10% (WA/OR east to the Mississippi, include Western “Midwest”)
2e) Alaska and Hawaii 5%
I welcome disputes over my numbers since I pulled them out of the air. That’s my basic impression, however.
Anybody want to take a shot at the breakdown of non-USA Dopers?
I know we have quite a few from:
British Isles
Australia and New Zealand
Other European countries
Asia
South America
what am I leaving out?
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### Author:  [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/18 "2006-07-31T13:23:51Z")
8 out of 9. I’m 45, so a bit older than the average Doper – assuming that your analysis of Doper characteristics is correct.
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### Author:  [@El\_Perro\_Fumando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Perro_Fumando)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/19 "2006-07-31T13:24:23Z")
> [@Only Mostly Dead](#):
>
> 8 out of 9, and it will soon be all 9 once we’ve settled into our new home and can get a cat. (Oh, and I’m male, but my Doper wife is most certainly female)
Dang, he beat me to it. No pets (for now), but everything else applies.
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### Author:  [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)
#### Post date: [July 31, 2006, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-sdmb-minority-are-you-in/366692/20 "2006-07-31T13:25:37Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#):
>
> 5 of 9
>
> He got killed in VOY ep 83, iirc…
Can’t pass this one up. **Who** got killed? And what is VOY?
Voyage of Yerbouti?
Veil of Youth?
Victory of Yankeeland?
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