Rules of Thumb

[raineofblood]

Whoo! Another thread I'm likely going to get flamed for.

Many goths(myself included) have become touchy on many subjects because of all the abuse our subculture has been confronted with. So thinking rationally, I made a little thread with some rules we should understand before imploding. Or exploding. And this will contain some obvious shit just for the newbies and poseurs.

Regarding: Music:

1. Evanesence and Linkin Park are not goth. Neither is My Chemical Romance. They never even claimed to be. How the hell Linkin Park came to be known as 'goth' is beyond me. These to bands are rock. Because of their 'goth' misconception, many of us have become touchy on these bands. But, hey, listening to them is okay. It won't make you any less goth as long as you do not mislabel their genre as gothic.

2. For all you noobs: this doesn't mean you can listen to anything and be a goth. Goth was after all based on music.


Regarding: Hot Topic:

1. This store. This store has given us such a bad name because of the emos and mall goths who clad themseleves in HT. I've felt the pain when I've been accused of buying my DIYd pieces from HT. But shopping at HT is not wrong.

2. Cladding yourself in HT is wrong. Buying your clothes from HT is ridiculous. I never will buy clothing from Hot Topic even if I had a hundred dollar gift certificate to that place. It is much too mainstream and obvious. No originality. But this is not my rant thread so I'll shut up. But my dears, face it: Not all of us live next to Camden Town, Ipso Facto, or another unique little store. And another sum of us cannot buy on the Internet so Hot Topic is our last resort. My rule for this store:

2. If it is unbranded it is okay. As in, chains? Okay. Studded wristbands? Okay. Because there is no obvious Hot Topic embedded in such items. That is if you get ones that are quite plain. Just one thing: good luck finding something that isn't gaudy. :-P



SO yeah. I had a few other things in my head but I forget. Fell free to add on. Critisism cannot be discouraged but don't turn this thread into an argument. :P

[Vyvian Blackthorne]

G_G I wish I had some more energy to contribute to this article.

Very nice, Raine. Include me as well . Hope your well-written posts shall teach some newbies to our culture the order

Always nice stuff.
Goth Forever
Goth Forever
Goth Forever

[L'Oiseau Noir]

I agree, it is put together very nicely.

Unfortunately, I'm guilty of shopping at Hot Topic, but I don't go around with ridiculous band shirts and what not. I have one pair of Tripp pants, some tops, and a pair of boots (which lasted pretty long, and still looks new), though that's about it. The rest of my stuff I buy at thrift shops, since there's so many near me.

Haha, I feel so embarassed now.

But yes, nicely done! Kudos! =)

[honeythorn]

We don't have the stores here. Thankfully. I did see one store that would probably be it's UK twin though..It was called Blue Banana. I looked in the door....and carried on walking.

[L'Oiseau Noir]

Unfortunately I don't have much of a choice if I'm looking for a specific styled top. HT is the only place nearby that sells alternative clothing, but as I said, I don't go shop-crazy there. A few things and that's all. Plus, my friend modifies the clothes I get from there and adds stuff onto it like ribbons, lace, etc... so it ends up not even looking like a piece of apparel I bought there.

I'm no spooky kid, though. Gahh, how they annoy me.

Luckily I get to hit up some thrift stores sometime this week, so all ends well for me. n_n

[NachtSorcier]

Well-put, I think.

We don't have a Hot Topic around here, I've never even been in one. My gaudy "alternative" mall store of choice is Spencer Gifts, but I digress. From what I've seen of Hot Topic, from looking at people who buy *everything* there and from perusing their website, I can see that, much like a flea market, you might be able to find a few gems among the junk. So, if I ever had the opportunity, I might go into one and see if they have anything small and inconspicuous I like.

[raineofblood]

Originally Posted by Vyvian Blackthorne

G_G I wish I had some more energy to contribute to this article.

Very nice, Raine. Include me as well . Hope your well-written posts shall teach some newbies to our culture the order

Always nice stuff.
Goth Forever
Goth Forever
Goth Forever

Thankies.
Gah. I feel dumb. Include you? How so? :?


Oh. Haha. I just realized in my original post I said 'fell free' instead of 'feel free' . tee hee. O_o

[Vyvian Blackthorne]

Gah. Include me in:

Many goths(myself included) have become touchy on many subjects because of all the abuse our subculture has been confronted with. So thinking rationally, I made a little thread with some rules we should understand before imploding. Or exploding. And this will contain some obvious shit just for the newbies and poseurs.

Which I think's very well-written, representing us profoundly.
Goth Forever
Goth Forever
Goth Forever

[KontanKarite]

Hot Topic USED to be a great place for gothic attire. Then The Gap bought them out.

Like it or not, even if you DIY all of your clothing or mod most clothes you wouldn't even find at HT, you're going to be blamed for shopping at HT.

It's become a principal now. HT is selling "grills" there. I abstain, even for assecories, I fucking abstain from here on.

I was blamed for being decked to the hilt in HT gear by an old school goth when I was wearing my black poet shirt from Shrine, my pvc pants from a thrift store, my boots from the internet, and my long jacket... which was a product of HT. Damn fool child. Even the old school goths will blame you for shopping only at HT as if people stopped doing DIY.

[raineofblood]

Originally Posted by Vyvian Blackthorne

Gah. Include me in:



Which I think's very well-written, representing us profoundly.
Goth Forever
Goth Forever
Goth Forever

Ah. Right right.



Vyv. You still owe me an explanation about the art trade.

[Lapin]

(Looks up Blue Banana)
Yes indeed, that is the UK equivalent to HT.

Now, my thoughts on HT are complicated. I get along with the people who work there very well. I like to go in and talk to them, and since they look relieved on sight of me, I think they like having a bit of conversation every now and then that doesn't involve MCR.

When I first found them, at thirteen, I was in love. I didn't realize that such a place existed. It was very exciting for me to know that other people liked the same things I did. (Striped tights and the like)

As I got older though, HT changed. It became more commercialized. It was subtle, and a bit off-putting. I started seeing more scene; Vans, skinny jeans, retro stuff, and less of my swishy dresses and boots and doll-baby shoes. Granted, every now and then, I find something good in there (I wander in there purely out of habit), but most of the time, it's to say hello, then leave.

Funny story about an HT related thing though; there was a very good-looking man who worked at the local one when I was in Virginia. He introduced me to DIY a bit by showing me a modified shirt of his and a pair of boots. I assumed he was gay, for several reasons, and thought nothing of it.

I moved to Maryland, and a few months later, went down to visit. He was happy to see me when he noticed my hair, and we caught up. He started talking about a new shirt he'd made, etc. Then he complained that he wa spercieved as gay by a man who'd come in. Surprised, I said that I had thought he was.

His mouth dropped. "Is that why you never responded when I was trying to flirt with you?!"

Bit of a shock for both of us, but it was funny in retrospect.

[raineofblood]

Funny, the people who work at the local Hot Topic here are complete idiots. Twice they have argued over who would serve me. Another time, one left the people she was serving and switched places with the cashier who began serving the other people for no apparent reason.

Lapin, you live in MD? ZOMG there's more like me in my state? *enlightenment has begun...*

[Lapin]

I think I mentioned that to you before. Yes. I'm on Fort Meade, in MD.

Errr...there are plenty of Gothic clubs in Baltimore and D.C. you know. There are lots of goths all over here actually. Where do you live? The boondocks?

[raineofblood]

Actually, you never mentioned that. T.T

And yes. I do live in the boondocks. Seriously. I live in a very small town. Almost a village you could say ^_^. I'm actually pretty comfy here though. I like the peace. O_O It is slowly becoming a tad more popularized though with all the new house building and such but yeah. The boondocks

[Lapin]

Oh. Sorry. Oh well.

[raineofblood]

:P

No sorry required.

[Graveyard.Crow]

blah blah blah stereotypes are bad blah blah the culture is suffering
what about the children in Africa?

[raineofblood]

If you care so much about them go help them. Actions speak louder than typed up words.

[Godslayer Jillian]

Other rules of thumb, but not about goths, so much as rules of thumb for life:

1- Live your life as an example of your ideals. Nietzsche praised liars and thieves in that they were human. Sartre encouraged us to believe that our ideals were the right ideals. Whichever ideal a person possesses, if he lives his life in accordance to it, the passion of the actions will justify the feeling.

2- Live your life as if there were no god. A person is not as virtuous as she could be if her virtues are merely an obligation by a higher deity. If a person enjoys her life, there should not be any reason to regret it. God is either a crutch or a stop sign; neither of them good if a person wants to be perfectly free.

3- Live a life that takes whole responsibility of one's own actions. I had already talked about this on determinism. Even if one's actions were only determined by his upbringing and environment, they don't stop being his actions. A person's influence on throwing a rock doesn't end with the throw; it ends with the impact.

4- Live your life. Fairness is a relative term. Two people commit the same action, and they get different magnitudes of punishment. The person that feels got the worse punishment should not mope about this. Her punishment is her punishment, not her friend's punishment, and should take full responsibility of it. After all, responsibility doesn't mean submission; it means accepting it and doing something about it.

5- Live as if existence were eternal. Many people, particularly believers in a sort of Ragnarok/Apocalypse, do not care enough for this world because they don't believe it will last. Even atheists could brood about the futility of it all by mentioning heat death. This is not practical, nor fair, for future generations. Of course, this is only based on a subjective view of fairness, and this is why it's mentioned only as number five.

And an extra one, in honor of Sartre that inspires me to push my own ideals into the world, and Socrates that gave me the perfect word for the ideal:
6- If one wants to create a purer and more virtuous society, she should live and project the value of arete in her life.

[raineofblood]

O_o

Wow Jillian. Now those really are rules of thumb.

[kimaru]

My rule of thumb, although not nearly as profound as jillians is still very important...Never Ever wear bright yellow with brown and puke green tyedye on it!!!!

[raineofblood]

Uh...O_o. Ogly okay....

[kimaru]

I saw someone wearing a matching skirt and jacket set in those colors and it made me feel sick.

[raineofblood]

Ah. Thank you for sharing that helpful tip
But no worries about seeing most of us here in those colors

[Graveyard.Crow]

Originally Posted by raineofblood

If you care so much about them go help them. Actions speak louder than typed up words.

I'm saying it's better to care about than then keep bitching about something like this, that really will only resolve itself if everyone stops making such a big deal of it. And by the way, I could very well be helping, you don't know that.