Immodest Proposals XI: A Play on Nerds

THE TOPIC (AND SPECIAL GUESTS):

For those of you older than fifteen, there was a time when comic books weren't cool, when not everyone knew what "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot," meant, and when a search engine company making its logo into a pac-man game might have gone unnoticed.

Obviously--if you're older than fifteen--the world of today is a hell of a lot more fun than what you're used to.

What we're talking about here is the huge tidal wave of nerd culture that has swamped the Western world since the advent of the Internet.

Now everyone knows what the San Diego Comic Con is. People who would've run you up a flagpole in the 80s go there to announce the hit movies they star in. People who would have been run up a flagpole in the 80s star in those movies, too.

But, what is a nerd? Don't look away now. We're not going to try to define nerdiness. You're a nerd, you're not a nerd: whatever, we'll take your word for it. The real question is, "What ARE nerds [as a group]?"

Are nerds a demographic? A culture? A political movement? Or are we just a sort of branding?

Those questions are going to be the main focus of the discussion. We'll be sharing:

What it means to be the nerd you are. How this affects your everyday life. And we'll be talking about some big implications of the "mainstreaming" of the American Nerd:

Do nerds bring other things to the table than an interest in certain genres of media? Can you be a nerd and NOT be fluent in said media? Do nerds have cohesive ideas about certain social issues? When is/was/will be the nerd revolution? Extra Credit: Design a nerd flag (Note: um...nothing here is 'for credit' anyway). To discuss these issues, we're going to have SPECIAL GUEST(S):

Elisa Hansen, part of The Nostalgia Chick entourage (Twitter @elisaintime). Nella from The Nostalgia Chick. (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nella-from-The-Nostalgia-Chick/361014072633) brentalfloss, musician/comedian of brentalfloss.com (http://www.brentalfloss.com). Dan Roth, a writer for both brentalfloss.com and buffyfest (http://buffyfest.blogspot.com/). Better Worlds started Immodest Proposals first and foremost to get people together, but also to get those people thinking about how to empower themselves and take part in shaping their cultural debate, so we're very excited about this one. We think you will be, too.

If you want some background reading, it's definitely worth taking a look at Patton Oswalt's piece from Wired a ways back: Wake Up, Geek Culture. Time to Die. (http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/12/ff_angrynerd_geekculture/all/1)

See you there!

THE VENUE:

We'll get together at The Waystation, an awesome bar in Prospect Heights, and discuss these questions.

Waystation is the only steampunk bar we've ever heard of, and for anyone who is a Doctor Who fan, it's also got a TARDIS restroom that's bigger on the inside!

For those of you who don't like British science fiction, the bar slings some excellent drinks and always has a good craft brew on tap.

THE COST:

$8 (+ $0.55 paypal fee) in advance/$12 at the door (no fees)

We've set it up so that you can pay in advance when you RSVP with meetup! Online RSVPs will be open though August 22nd at 5 PM.

If we get more than 20 attendees, we'll be raffling off a free Better Worlds t-shirt!

These costs go right back in to getting awesome opportunities and venues for Immodest Proposals meetings. Not a cent is wasted.

Sadly, we cannot offer refunds if you miss the event.