Risk Factors for Geekiness

Wednesday, September 18th, 2013

For real, live grownups like Mencius Moldbug — with, like, wives and daughters and stuff — it’s obvious that (a) geeks are born not made, and (b) a Y chromosome is a major risk factor for geekiness:

In other words, we are not equalists.  We’d certainly love it if everyone was equal (hopefully leveling up, not leveling down).  But we’re not insane and don’t argue with reality.

For example, I’m a geek and I’d love it if my daughter was a geek too.  She isn’t.  Not only is she more girly than me, she’s more girly than her mother (who has an EE degree).  She’s reading Lemony Snicket in kindergarten, but she’s not a geek.  A friend of mine has a daughter, about the same age, about as smart, who is a geek.  I wish my daughter cared about numbers, planets and dinosaurs.  For all I know, my friend wishes his daughter was a walking Disney Princess encyclopedia whose dolls can improvise an hour-long soap opera.  We can wish all we want, but that’s just not how it is.  If I tried to impose my ideal daughter on the real person who reality decided would be my daughter, I would be a bad person and a bad parent.  And that’s why I’m a realist, not an equalist.

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