MY HATE, pt I Otherkin

[trippinprincezz13]

I honestly think that a lot of that dysphoria is about the world being a bad place. It creates a lot of tension in most people, and I think a lot of young people react to the tension by feeling that the thing that is wrong is THEM, their body or even their very existence, rather than recognizing that they are all right and it's the entire rest of the world that is wrong.

Which, really, in so many ways, is a very reasonable conclusion to come to. "Wow, I am really uncomfortable with THE ENTIRE EVERYTHING. Obviously, the logical conclusion is that the problem is me, and not EVERYTHING ELSE".

But in this particular case, it actually IS that the entire society and the habitat we live in is fucked. So on that level, I can't totally blame anyone for not wanting to be human.

That seems reasonable, and it definitely helps explain why so many people who fall into that mindset usually express themselves in negative terms.

Almost every time I've seen someone identify as somehow other-than-human, they refer to personal experiences that are negative. Activities they can't do, things they can't eat, social situations that they can't adapt to, etc. A lot of the time it comes down to "I can't seem to relate to most people around me," which is of course a feature of our highly alienating contemporary culture. They develop all of these little aversions and stress reactions that fit the persona. Thing like Furries hissing or snarling like animals, or Otherkin reacting to things their fictional identities would be averse to (Vampires averse to garlic and sunlight, etc). They tend to cite all of these things as "evidence" of the reality of their identities.

If the motive behind adopting these identities is dysphoria brought on by an alienating and toxic culture, it stands to reason that the things these people will refer to as proof of their condition are all negative experiences.

Really interesting observations by you both. I get the feeling, looking at the way the world is and wondering "am I the crazy one?"/"how can I possibly fit in here"/or a slight sense of detachment from the people around me. But I don't try to detach myself from it even further, and realize not everything is horrible, and make the best of a bad situation - to sum it up briefly and roughly. I have enough anxiety - I don't need to isolate myself further. 

Going back to the Juggalo/Otherkin comparison - The Juggalos seem to collectivize their weird to have FUN with like-minded people - and, as I believe was mentioned, seem to be pretty welcoming to anyone looking to have a GOOD TIME (side note: I saw a small group of Juggalos at a Furthur (surviving members of Grateful Dead) show in Maine not to long ago. It made me pretty happy).

Otherkin seem to strive to separate themselves from everyone else - isolation is their crowning achievement. Sure, they may form online and RL communities, but those seem to be focused on (don't have much experience with RL, but the online seem to behave that way) why they can't socialize with "normal" people or can't participate in normal activities (eg., the toddler/dog thing). And as CD touched upon, focus on whose "identity" is more really real, and if you don't eat up someone else's lines, then you're out. More isolation and hierarchy. It seems they WANT to wallow in the negativity. I sometimes find it hard to relate to others and/or I get quite a bit of social anxiety, but so I try to find like-minded people to hang out with or at least try to find common grounds with the people around me to maximize the fun.

The world is a messed up place, and I do have a hard time dealing with it sometimes, but retreat doesn't sound like the solution here/

[Reginald Ret]

Otherkin are losers. They don't identify with human society, so they piss and moan and feel all persecuted. Fuck that noise. There's no excuse I've heard so far to identify with human society, it's a fucked up boring abortion of a thing but pissing and moaning isn't the answer. Smashing things and roaring, like a demented primate is.

Hahahahaha, fuck yeah.

I honestly think that a lot of that dysphoria is about the world being a bad place. It creates a lot of tension in most people, and I think a lot of young people react to the tension by feeling that the thing that is wrong is THEM, their body or even their very existence, rather than recognizing that they are all right and it's the entire rest of the world that is wrong.

Which, really, in so many ways, is a very reasonable conclusion to come to. "Wow, I am really uncomfortable with THE ENTIRE EVERYTHING. Obviously, the logical conclusion is that the problem is me, and not EVERYTHING ELSE".

But in this particular case, it actually IS that the entire society and the habitat we live in is fucked. So on that level, I can't totally blame anyone for not wanting to be human.

That seems reasonable, and it definitely helps explain why so many people who fall into that mindset usually express themselves in negative terms.

Almost every time I've seen someone identify as somehow other-than-human, they refer to personal experiences that are negative. Activities they can't do, things they can't eat, social situations that they can't adapt to, etc. A lot of the time it comes down to "I can't seem to relate to most people around me," which is of course a feature of our highly alienating contemporary culture. They develop all of these little aversions and stress reactions that fit the persona. Thing like Furries hissing or snarling like animals, or Otherkin reacting to things their fictional identities would be averse to (Vampires averse to garlic and sunlight, etc). They tend to cite all of these things as "evidence" of the reality of their identities.

If the motive behind adopting these identities is dysphoria brought on by an alienating and toxic culture, it stands to reason that the things these people will refer to as proof of their condition are all negative experiences.

Really interesting observations by you both. I get the feeling, looking at the way the world is and wondering "am I the crazy one?"/"how can I possibly fit in here"/or a slight sense of detachment from the people around me. But I don't try to detach myself from it even further, and realize not everything is horrible, and make the best of a bad situation - to sum it up briefly and roughly. I have enough anxiety - I don't need to isolate myself further. 

Going back to the Juggalo/Otherkin comparison - The Juggalos seem to collectivize their weird to have FUN with like-minded people - and, as I believe was mentioned, seem to be pretty welcoming to anyone looking to have a GOOD TIME (side note: I saw a small group of Juggalos at a Furthur (surviving members of Grateful Dead) show in Maine not to long ago. It made me pretty happy).

Otherkin seem to strive to separate themselves from everyone else - isolation is their crowning achievement. Sure, they may form online and RL communities, but those seem to be focused on (don't have much experience with RL, but the online seem to behave that way) why they can't socialize with "normal" people or can't participate in normal activities (eg., the toddler/dog thing). And as CD touched upon, focus on whose "identity" is more really real, and if you don't eat up someone else's lines, then you're out. More isolation and hierarchy. It seems they WANT to wallow in the negativity. I sometimes find it hard to relate to others and/or I get quite a bit of social anxiety, but so I try to find like-minded people to hang out with or at least try to find common grounds with the people around me to maximize the fun.

The world is a messed up place, and I do have a hard time dealing with it sometimes, but retreat doesn't sound like the solution here/

Well said, all.
The problem with retreating from the world is that a significant percentage of it is inside your head and wherever you go, there you are.
Having said that, there is nothing wrong with taking a break from the less pleasant sides of reality. If i may paraphrase you:
Maximize the fun not only in spite of the fact that everything is horrible, but because of it. The world is a really crappy place that sometimes seems actively fuck with you. Beat the world in the face with your joy and fun, even if it is just to be contrarian.

[P3nT4gR4m]

The world is a messed up place, and I do have a hard time dealing with it sometimes, but retreat doesn't sound like the solution here/

Quite the opposite, in fact. Teh solution is always CHARGE!!!

[Junkenstein]

If in doubt - Leeroy Jenkins.

Doubt is swiftly removed.

[tyrannosaurus vex]

I appreciate that there is well-thought-out reasoning and understanding in this thread, but I fear it is leading the conversation away from the important lesson here. Furries and Otherkin exist to be shunned and hated. It's a natural process and therefore proper. Any time a human population reaches certain levels of tolerance and acceptance, it generates Otherkin spontaneously so society will have a suitable target for unreasonable hate. Do you know why the dynastic system broke down in Egypt? Well, they started worshipping people who thought they were birds and dogs, instead of hating them. It's all right there in the heiroglyphs.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I appreciate that there is well-thought-out reasoning and understanding in this thread, but I fear it is leading the conversation away from the important lesson here. Furries and Otherkin exist to be shunned and hated. It's a natural process and therefore proper. Any time a human population reaches certain levels of tolerance and acceptance, it generates Otherkin spontaneously so society will have a suitable target for unreasonable hate. Do you know why the dynastic system broke down in Egypt? Well, they started worshipping people who thought they were birds and dogs, instead of hating them. It's all right there in the heiroglyphs.

Furries and Otherkin exist to exist, just like everyone else.

I just happen to hate them.  Unfortunately, there are a large number of them in Tucson, though that should be hardly surprising, and I have known ONE (1) that I found to be a decent human being.  The rest are the world's "nice guys".  Which is to say that they aren't nice.

Being the underdog isn't an automatic ticket to decency.  Underdogs can be complete shits, too.