Tuesday, December 2, 2008

I Learned a New Word . . .

And I'm probably worse for it. The word is pretty offensive. Of course, I found it quite amusing. I overheard its use in an employee's conversation at the theater.

"...he's kind of a Christfag, but he's all right..."

I had never come across this particular conflation of words before, but I confess, I think I know exactly the kind of person the term is intended to describe. I've frequently met people (especially in Indiana) that I would have pegged for gay, only to discover that they are, shall we say, flamboyantly devout, effeminately excitable, gay-for-god Christians (not that the two are mutually exclusive).



Pastor Ted Haggard preparing to receive, er, something from the Lord

The incident reminded me of a comedian's joke about the similarities between church services, papal attire, sex scandals, fraternities and certain elements of a stereotypically gay lifestyle, but I can't for the life of me remember the bit or the name of the comedian. Sound familiar to anyone else?

Bah. In somewhat related and also quite hilarious news, a clergyman has been hospitalized after a potato became stuck in his anus.

The clergyman, in his 50s, told nurses he had been hanging curtains when he fell backwards on to his kitchen table.

He happened to be nude at the time of the mishap, said the vicar, who insisted he had not been playing a sex game.


Rigghhhttt Father...You're a regular Frank Costanza...


6 comments:

Jay said...

lol, I'm just trying to imagine the likelihood of the priest's story. Hanging curtains...naked...and you fall so squarely that a potato...lodges itself...up there? It's so wonderfully improbable! It would take a suspension of the natural laws of physics for such an occurrence to...

Egad! It's a miracle! Quick, extract the blessed spud and add it to the collection of holy (holey?) relics!

SuiginChou said...

I think you're too biased regarding the term "fag" and to unfamiliar with net culture to appreciate the issue for what it really is. Christfag is in no way, shape, or form meant to imply "one who initially strikes you as homosexual but as it turns out is fact merely overly religious, so much so that he seems 'gay for Jesus'." The use of the term fag here is for its degenerate slang usage, synonymous with the word "loser" as in the sentences "What a fag!" or "What a loser!" In this sense, "Christfag" is less synonymous with "Gay for Jesus" (despite what Urban Dictionary told you) and more synonymous with "biblethumper."

The term, no doubt, has its origins on 4chan, where the -fag appellate suffix was first popularized and is today a mainstay of the imageboard's "culture." Its use is associated with people who frequent the /b/ ("Random") board, no doubt the most vulgar and offensive portion of the site. It is commonly seen in the following 4chan neologisms:
- newfag (the commonest one of all, this term is used in place of "newb" or "newbie" and holds the same meaning. It is usually used when voicing frustration with a new visitor's unfamiliarity with and subsequent violation of the board's rules.)
- namefag (someone who fills in the "Name" field rather than leaving it blank and thus being "Anonymous." 4chan prides itself on its Anonymous culture, one it inherited from Japan's 2chan. Only when a regular contributor requires identification, either for his own sake or for the community's, does the membership refrain from calling that person a "namefag.")
- tripfag (someone who uses a tripcode, a variant name in which only the user who created it can go by it. Its usage is the similar to that of "namefag.")
- moralfag (someone who tries to impose his morals onto the board; commonly used in arguments about internet piracy when a fellow pirate hypocritically scolds others for their behavior and acts Holier-Than-Thou)

Less commonly, we have terms like "rulesfag," "newsfag," etc. You can pretty much attach "-fag" to anything except for Japan, anime, etc. as the term weeaboo already exists to cover Japanophiles.

As for "christfag" itself, it would be used on 4chan to describe somebody who either:
a) even remotely revealed that he was Christian, or
b) flaunted his religiosity in other people's faces

He need not bleed Jesus to be labeled a "Christfag." Someone as religious as Homer Simpson would, if he alluded to personal belief in Christ, be labeled a Christfag. Yes, the epitome of the Christfag is in fact Ned Flanders; but to give you a sense of Homer's candidacy, consider this: anyone who posted on 4chan and wrote "I think we've lost sight of the true meaning of Christmas in this country" (and that's all he writes) would be called a "christfag" by the majority of 4channers.

It is clear to me (once again!) that for better or worse you would very probably be happy reading some of the threads and downloading some of the images posted on 4chan. Because it annoys me to no end to see you quote one 4chan-ism after another yet to plead almost total ignorance of their community and their ways, I'm going to link you directly this time. I understand that you have doubtless visited the board on previous occasions, but I cannot help but to link you. Seriously: it seems like you breathe 4chan expressions and inside-jokes, Jay!
Main Page
4chan's Random board (NSFW!)

SuiginChou said...

I would like to add: I believe that if you are not already familiar with /b/ and you visit it today or in the near future, you will find why I become so frustrated with your mirth and amusement at 4chan's inside jokes. It is because I know that if you use adopt these jokes and sayings into your common parlance that you will reveal to others that you go to and enjoy 4chan, even if you do not. And in so doing, you will be damaging your character. They will perceive you as the stereotypical /b/tard. They will think that you are doubtless bigoted and absurd. They will think of you, "He called Adam 'Adam' but what he was really thinking in his head was 'n-i-*-*-*-r' because Adam is black and Jay goes to 4chan." Why? Because that's what 4chan does: it calls all black people n****rs. Because 4chan thinks it's funny and that either (a) it hurts no one or (b) those who hurts can be written off as "butthurt" individuals whose feelings need not be further considered.

This is why I am frustrated. Yes, they do post funny jokes sometimes: jokes which I have shared with you guys on numerous occasions in the past. I'm not saying they're all bad. What I am saying, though, is that you need to be aware of what you're getting yourself into when you keep blogging or (God forbid) talking to people in Zionsville in person while using these terms and in-jokes. People who are not familiar with 4chan may find them amusing, but people who are familiar with 4chan will judge you on the spot.

I would prefer that you would consider a politer community like Wakachan/iichan, but then again, WE DESPISE 4CHAN CULTURE, so if it's 4chan culture you find fascinating, then it's 4chan you best be investigating. Also, Wakachan is decidedly much moreso of a "weeaboo board" intended primarily for anime & manga fans' usage. 4chan, on the other hand, could theoretically be enjoyed by individuals who either no longer enjoy or who have never much enjoyed anime & manga.

fulleju said...

blogfags...


like that?

Jay said...

I've only visited 4chan once or twice before. I do find it difficult to stomach. But it's culture permeates the entire internet -it's a meme factory. It's no surprise that it's spilling out into the "real" world (eg. the conversation at the theater or the lolcat book I found at the bookstore)

However, you and I both know, words take on a life of their own and in this case, it seems, "Christfag," has found a more fitting niche not just as an amusing 4chan shock-insult but as an alternative to monikers like "Jesus Freak" with added homosexual connotations.

SuiginChou said...

Fair on all accounts.

Regarding the "I Can Has Cheezburger?" book at the bookstore, it made me and my nerd friends at Purdue laugh.

a) almost all of the best Caturday macros are missing from it because most of them are famously & known-to-be NOT made by anybody on the ICanHasCheezburger.com website's staff, and
b) the few epics ones that are to be found in the book predate 2005 and are truly "Anonymous" in origin with next to no possibility for the true original creator to legitimize his claim. (Proving he owns the cat or took the picture doesn't prove he engineered the macro.) But most important of all?
c) The book costs $10 and has fewer than 100 pictures. You can find thousands of pictures for free on 4chan.


It's definitely one of those stocking stuffers that's best suited for the "geek Mom" or "geek Dad" and not for the bonafide 4chan nerd.

Which reminds me of this depressing news story and the conversation me (in the know) and my sister (not in the know) had about it when we bore witness to it on Thanksgiving Day: the RickRoll has also penetrated the public awareness. I think this person put it best:

"you know your [sic] late to the game when macys [sic] does it."

My sister knows more about American pop culture than I do by several orders of magnitude, so I can at least take some solace in the fact that she had no idea who Rick Astley was or what the term "rickrolling" meant.