A geek by any other name...

I love being a geek. I'm mainly a movie geek, but my slightly obsessive passions range beyond simple movies. Sure, you can call it crazy that I love movies, and sit and ponder or discuss movies for hours on end, but I'm simply finding something I like and embracing it. No harm in that right? So, why is it that when some fellow movie geeks do it in San Diego, they get laughed at, but when other geeks do it at the Trop, not only are they celebrated for their geekery, but if they aren't geeky enough, their loyalty is questioned? There is a tremor in the force, indeed.

There are countless blogs that talked about the geek Mecca that is Comic Con that just recently ended. They talked about the previews, the comics and, of course the costumes. There seemed to be the quiet, and sometimes not so quiet laughter at movie and anime and comic geeks coming together. There were jokes about how they are sweaty, fat slobs, and that these people need to get a life. I personally love Comic-Con, and think geeks coming together to celebrate a common interest in art is something that should be embraced, as it's much healthier than comparing differences.

On the other side of the country, we have St. Petersburg, and Tropicana Field. It's an arena of baseball where fans go to cheer on their favorite players, and hope for a win, as fans heckle other fans, and question their loyalty to the game of baseball if their trivia isn't up to par, along with those who don't wear the jersey of their favorite player (and it must be the "home team") less of a sports geek. And don't get them started if you weren't a fan from the beginning, or aren't supporting the team you grew up with. Apparently, doing so will get people killed, and not role-playing killed, killed killed.

I'm not picking just on Baseball, even though I think their "passion" is probably the most celebrated. There are people who dress up to go to football games all the time, and are even put on TV for it. Those people are something to aspire to in the football world. There are people who dress up and have legacies in stadiums, much like the pig ladies or the Raider Nation.

So, here's the problem I have; why do these baseball loving people who celebrate their love for a sport any different than the comic-con fans celebrating their love of art? Society seems to think them quite different, as baseball is encouraged, while events like Comic-Con are often laughed at. As a man, society will judge you less harshly if you are seen at a baseball game, over a movie or comic convention.

Maybe we should all just come together and celebrate our geekness together. You start!