# Why are you what you are? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 6, 2000, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904 "2000-11-06T04:18:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/21 "2000-11-07T04:02:52Z")
Because I _am_ the Kwisatz Haderach! ---
**Author:** ![absoul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@absoul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/absoul)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/22 "2000-11-07T04:06:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TheNerd \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by absoul \* > > \*\*I think for me mostly it was the lead paint chips… > > … yeah that was probably it. > > \*\* > > You mean wall-candy? \*\* Yup, and washing down box-elder bugs with Clorax. ---
**Author:** ![tiggeril](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tiggeril/32/7234_2.png) [@tiggeril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiggeril)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/23 "2000-11-07T06:13:51Z")
Well, there was that time when I was four and I stuck a bobby pin in the electrical socket… ---
**Author:** ![The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@The\_Asbestos\_Mango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Asbestos_Mango)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/24 "2000-11-07T06:24:29Z")
Catholic because the Archangel Michael kicked Satan’s butt in my apartment while I watched. **Byzantine** Catholic because it was the only way I could be Catholic and belong to an Eastern religion at the same time. Craps dealer because I was depressed at the lack of non-casino job opportunities in this town. (found out the hard way- dealing craps is **fun** ) Redhead because the dye job seemed like an appropriate way of rewarding myself for losing fifteen pounds. Completely insane as a means of psychological self-defense. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/25 "2000-11-07T21:21:13Z")
I am what I am because if I were something else, you’d be asking me why I’m something else, rather than what I am. It’s just simpler this way. ---
**Author:** ![sk8rixtx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@sk8rixtx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sk8rixtx)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/26 "2000-11-07T21:37:48Z")
> [@](#): > > Being taught to read early. Being bored in school. Reading Conan. Reading Superman. Reading Calvin and Hobbes. Listening to Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Rush, Blink 182, and Tenacious D. Being made fun of in elementary. Being beaten up in Junior High. Being picked on in High School. Being sick and tired of stupid people. Being tired of corruption and lies. Never having a girlfriend. Being unloved. Being lonely. Dealing with my own pain. Not sharing. Having no other outlet. Loving computers. Loving cars. Loving car audio. Loving home audio. Loving home theater. Loving home. Pizza, ice cream, beer, weed, mushrooms. Nickelodeon and Nickelback. MTV, Comedy Central, and science fiction. Douglas Adams, Monty Python, and Princess Bride. Movies, TV, violent video games, and angry music. Fighting intellectually, spiritually, physically, and mentally. Being tired. Giving up. Writing essays, books, and papers. Finding my own way. Making people laugh, and making people cry. Wonderment, curiosity, unrequited love. Doom, Quake, Fallout, and System Shock. Nervousness and sadness. Loss, friendship, backstabbing. Simpsons, Futurama, Friends, Seinfeld, and Herman’s Head. Knife fighting monkeys. Y’know what you are? You’re fuckin’ cool man. ---
**Author:** ![sk8rixtx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@sk8rixtx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sk8rixtx)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/27 "2000-11-07T21:40:08Z")
As for me… who knows… ---
**Author:** ![Tommy\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Tommy\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tommy_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/28 "2000-11-07T21:49:58Z")
Just lucky I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Gnostic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Gnostic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gnostic)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2000, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/29 "2000-11-07T22:19:16Z")
I am the sum result of all the choices I have made my entire life up to this point. That’s all everyone is or will be. ---
**Author:** ![Gnarly\_Narly\_Dude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/858c86/32.png) [@Gnarly\_Narly\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gnarly_Narly_Dude)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/30 "2000-11-08T02:40:15Z")
It’s all geography. Look at the world. You believe what everyone around you believes. Did everyone make a rational choice of all the alternatives? No, or there’d be a real mixed bag out there, instead of near-solid blocs. Just can’t make up all the questions, much less find all the answers on your own. ---
**Author:** ![Eo\_Echo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ebca7d/32.png) [@Eo\_Echo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eo_Echo)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/31 "2000-11-08T02:50:43Z")
Really, it’s all a crapshoot. Environment, genes, and everything else goes into a blender and what comes out is you, like some kind of human spin-art (actually I always thought those things looked like swatted flies). ---
**Author:** ![racinchikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@racinchikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racinchikki)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/33 "2000-11-08T12:09:46Z")
Because I was beaten up, made fun of, picked on literally every day of my life until about a year ago. Because before this year I never had more than two friends at a time. Because I’ve become strong enough to fight back with my hands and brave enough to fight back with my mind. Because if you ignore it, it doesn’t always go away. Because when you drive a car around a corner right on the edge of control there is a rush of centrifugal force, adrenalin and exhilaration that does more for me than any drug in existence. Because my mind makes connections that others’ don’t. Because my mind moves faster than my mouth. Because I AM country hardcore. Because nobody else does, so I figured I would. Because I see the beauty in everyday things. Because I LOOK for the beauty in everyday things. Because I love cars. Because I love music. Because I love you. Yes, you. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/34 "2000-11-08T14:55:29Z")
Because both my folk were extremely attractive, intelligent, personable folk. I hear it skips a generation. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/35 "2000-11-08T17:56:55Z")
Because you can change your seat at the table, but you can’t change the hand you’ve been dealt. Your path is your path. Individual and unique. ---
**Author:** ![DoZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@DoZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoZ)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2000, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/36 "2000-11-08T18:36:23Z")
Like most people, I’m what my parents “picked” by doing what their parents “picked”. Hand-me-down convictions. ---
**Author:** ![lolagranola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ea5d25/32.png) [@lolagranola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lolagranola)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2000, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/37 "2000-11-09T01:15:09Z")
Mostly a short attention span and an addictive personality. ---
**Author:** ![Wanderlust](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9fc29f/32.png) [@Wanderlust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wanderlust)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2000, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/38 "2000-11-09T01:17:36Z")
I had to convert to get my inlaws to accept the marriage. Not very deep on my part, but they thought I was wise doing it. ---
**Author:** ![woolly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ebca7d/32.png) [@woolly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woolly)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2000, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/39 "2000-11-09T01:40:26Z")
\*\* Why are you what you are? \*\* Because lying requires too much memory and always being brutally honest disconcerts most people. Because I read vociferously, find amusement in much and laugh at anything I find amusing, including myself. Because I think its good to question the why of everything and the only problem with making mistakes is not learning from them. Because I think that what you do with the information is more important than what you know which, in turn is more important than who you know. My chances of running for elected office are less than zero. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/40 "2000-11-10T01:58:12Z")
Alot of it for me was curiosity. I was a “why-child”, always asking questions. My parents used to pay me not to ask questions for a set amount of time. Oh…and the whole generation-skipping thing too 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904/41 "2000-11-10T03:29:43Z")
{comment: gotta love how many people mentioned reading. As Asimov said, we live in the prisons of our own minds–so they might as well be _well furnished_ prisons.} Probably the usual swamp of heredity, culture, environment (mostly chosen by eccentric standards)–the usual stuff, mixed with startling biological imperatives. In other words, danged if I know. But somehow friends and books (voices through time and distance) seem to have polished my rough edges the most. But that may be sheer ego. Veb [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-you-what-you-are/39904.md?page=3)