It all depends by what yardstick you are trying to decide whats normal and whats weird.
Who gets to define the measure, gets to define normal and weird.
Abby Normal?
The best weirdos think they’re normal. I get really tired of all the self-conscious, “Look at me, I’m so weird!” types.
“You are not special. You’re not a beautiful and unique snowflake. You’re the same decaying organic matter as everything else. We’re all part of the same compost heap.”
― Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
Certainly true where I work - a bunch of weirdos. In fact, I’m the only normal person there.
Example from my sociology class - about 90% of the population heterosexual. The clear majority makes it “normal”.
Something different, like homosexuality, deviates from that “norm” and hence is “deviant” behavior.
Deviance, in general, is not necessarily with negative connotation.
Commenting as a lifelong, relatively harmless weirdo, I do not welcome these new wannabe weirdoes. Dyeing your hatr green, wearing temporary tattoes, or just occasionally behaving or dressing oddly just won’t cut it. It’s a long-term committment.
As a bystander, I agree with this poll, but normal and weird seem to be subjective. I used to be able to put a Bonzo Dog Band playing “We are the Normals”, for emphasis.
I think, in a lot of ways, this has always been true.
“weirdo” or “snowflake” or “attention whore”? Aren’t those all pretty much the same thing these days?
Proof.
The mirror.
White (black, Asian, or regular racial makeup), heterosexual, conservative person that does not have a deviant sexual or societal belief or practice = “Normal”.
That’s the best I can come up with. We who populate FR, in my opinion are considered ‘Normals”.
Nowadays, being normal is an act of rebellion.
In a nation that has touted ‘personal sovereignty’, ( not to be confused with sovereign citizen), society, through definitions deemed ‘suitable’, has always demanded conformity, and has frowned on said sovereignty.
Parents have parrotted through time, “Why can’t you be like ...?” Pastors have railed against this sovereignty, in their pleas/demands for that citizen, to let go of himself, and be a humble member of the flock. Political leaders are suspicious of anyone being sovereign of their own thoughts. Old IBM attempted to wipe out that sovereignty, down to black suits, wingtip shoes, white shirts with thin black ties, black framed glasses, and crewcuts.
An old comment on ‘normal’ was: “Honor the gods, love your woman, and love your country.” Anything else was ‘not normal’. Simple, and leaves a lot of roo m to operate and be ‘normal’.
Unlike today, where whatever you do is thought of being unnormal by ‘somebody’.
Even now, a reader thinks me unnormal, because I used the term ‘gods’.
I hold so many ideas, thoughts, and opinions contrary to 2021/05 ‘normal’, that, yes, I state: “I am not normal, and would suffer greatly, if I attempted ‘normal.”