Two Reactions to Being a Nerd

When I took another look at the idiocratic article I discussed recently, I noticed the following passage:

(Think back to when you were a marginalized nerd in high school. Yeah, you. Did the “popular kids” spend a lot of time arguing with you? Explaining why you were goofy and wrong? Getting upset when you said nerdy things? No. They paid no attention to you. Such are social hierarchies built and enforced. If you think public life is not just a larger version of the same thing—if you think it’s some kind of salon where the best facts and arguments win out—well, good luck.)

Some nerds react by trying to join the “cool kids” and even outdo them in being anti-intellectual … and some of us react by rejecting the idea of “coolness.”