I don't think an argument about gender being carried on only by guys constitutes a 'gender war'. :P

I like to go to Poland to say hi to all the Polish GOGers in person :D, but I be a little shocked to find out you are all older than me...

That would be a gender war via proxy ;).

Not that different from legal battles really :P.

Good point. I don't know about Canada but down here all gender disputes are settled by old men regardless of the nature of the dilemma. Pretty screwed up if I may say so myself.

Actually, I'd say most issues are resolved by upper class white older men, which is a source for many woes.

For example, most decision about public transit will be made by people who will never or almost never take a bus in their life.

No gender war being fought here. What are you smoking?

somewhat surprised, but in a good way.

I actually find this more believable now than before.

On one hand most online gaming communities are mostly male (or at least appear to be).

The picture I get among real-life acquaintances is different though. I know of a lot of girls in real life who play video games. I'm single but I know a LOT of my friend's girlfriends also play video games.
It's not just casual games either. I know at least one who has a crazy TF2 obsession, another who plays a lot of adventure games and old-school RPGs, and another who plays ARMA 2 (proper ARMA 2, not DayZ, and you can't call that casual).

It's tempting to think gamers are mostly male from online forums, but I'm increasingly getting the impression that online communities often don't accurately reflect the total.

Then maybe........infiltrators?!

H.A.R.M. memo to all:

Be advised, a mandatory pants down test will be scheduled among the participants of this thread, please ensure your pockets are empty prior to the test, no pens nor pencils are to be carried during the test.
We don´t want false positives!

xoxo,
H.A.R.M. High Command.

Funny though how a more masculine name males it ok for boys to play with dolls, isn't it?



Somehow I doubt much changed since then.



It's quite possible that you've talked to/with more females online than you think - females more often than not don't reveal their gender on internet forums either.

..I think I'd like Poland. :)

And, while I can't speak for all groups/subgroups/cultures in the states - I have watched "mean people" (bullies) band together for the sole purpose of being mean. As to the "why" of all that, I've been told it makes them feel more in control of their own pathetic lives, gives them a sense of power. I don't get it, but social skills aren't my strong point :)

Hey - the weather's still nice, the summer's not yet over... You could probably check for yourself, if you wanted to (admittedly - somewhat superficially).

Maybe Americans are simply more organized and disciplined? Out here the motivation to band together needs to be strong, like religious conviction in a pilgrimage or club loyalty on a soccer stadium.
Hell - maybe Americans are simply more social (superficially)? One cliche I've encountered repeatedly is eating lunch together in high school. Aside from the fact that most people here don't really eat at school unless it's necessary, it's certainly not a social experience (aside from "vultures" who will pester you until you give them a bite ;P).
You also allegedly have institutions like "fraternities", that maintain the bond created through belonging to a common educational center. I've never been exceedingly social myself, but throughout my (obviously local and limited) observations I've only witnessed a sort of anarchy, nothing like the hierarchical structure prevalent in American fiction...

Guys tend to think everyone talking online is a guy unless stated otherwise (and even then some don't believe it). How does one know which gender each poster is? Especially when I know a lot of females who actively try to hide their gender to discourage harassement.

Edit: this reminds me of one time I made the mistake of using my given name in a strategy game forum. I tried to ask a question concerning the game, but everyone seemed too busy to tell me girls play The Sims, not strategy games. :-D

I'd argue that the truth is sometimes stranger than fiction :) I wouldn't call the bullying groups organized OR disciplined in any sense of the words; they are as likely to turn on each other as someone else as a target. I'm not sure how high schools handle lunch situations anymore, my time in those sorts of hellish places is long since done :) But yes, when I was in school it really did have an almost "ritual" feel to it. Who sat where and with whom, there really was a social pecking order to the crowd in the cafeteria (it didn't make sense to me then, or now though so I'm afraid I really cant explain it more than "it existed"). Sororities and Fraternities...those I understand a little better - well, one aspect anyway. I belonged to two in college, but they were service groups, not social. We didn't pay tons of money to live in a house off campus (service groups don't tend to have houses even, though that may have changed), and while I will admit to a few great end-of-semester parties, it really wasn't what we did all the time.

Odd you should mention religion, because here it seems that religion makes some of the meanest people around - I'm not saying *all* by the way, I know some very kind religious people too. I'm hoping its just a states thing though, I can't say I've seen it in the other countries I've visited (emphasis on visited, it may be a very different view had I lived there).