One of my pet peeves is a person who claims to be an individual, yet neglects to learn the meaning of the word. Yes, I'm talking about those people who think that they are unique because they shop at Hot Topic, dye their hair various colors of the rainbow, pierce themselves until their faces are barely recognizable, and listen to crappy bands that they consider “real”. Then they claim that they are so different.
Yeah, you're really different. Just like the million other people that are exactly like you.
Now, I don’t have a problem with people dressing however they like, unless they wear soiled clothes that stink like a dead fish. But many of them defend their lack of style and taste by saying that they dress that way to express themselves. Sorry, but if you have to express yourself by your physical appearance, then you are a moron. *Real* people (heh, I had to use that term to throw off the poseurs/punks) are expressive and gain attention because of their words and actions. If you have to punch a ton of holes in your head to get people to pay attention to you, then you obviously need to work on your communication skills.
Let’s face it: you punks just want to be rebels and attempt to scare people off with your ugly clothes and god-awful music. There’s nothing more to it than that.
I also love how some people insult others for dressing at stores that are more conventional. Oh excuse me; I guess I can't be an individual because I own quite a few pairs of pants from Old Navy. If one wears preppy-style clothes, they must be doing it to fit in, right? Um, wrong. Did it ever occur to you that I may happen to *gasp* actually like their clothes (not to mention that the jeans on the clearance racks are dirt-cheap, yet good quality)? I'm not so shallow to wear what is popular just for the sake of being trendy. I wear what I like, regardless of who else likes it. If you avoid wearing clothes that you like simply because they are in style, then you are just as bad as the people who only wear trendy clothes because they are “in”. In both cases, you are trying to fit in with a certain group of people.
And how does shopping at Hot Topic make you any more "real" than those who shop at Abercrombie & Fitch? As far as I'm concerned, they both charge outrageous prices for their clothes. I know that the punk trend has kind of died out, but the real punks would laugh at people who paid $60 for a pair of jeans with pre-fab holes and safety pins. So just remember, when you are tripping over your huge-ass elephant pants from Hot Topic and making fun of the "preppies" at American Eagle, that you paid just as much for your clothes as they did. And they can at least walk properly.
Anyone who has to classify herself as anything (whether it be a prep, freak, goth, etc.) is doing herself a huge disfavor. If you classify yourself as a punk, then you are no better than the people who consider themselves preps. Basically, you are just grouping yourself into a category based on shallow things. "Punks" are no more of individuals than "preps" are. They have their own superficial and exclusive little groups, and they need to lose the holier-than-thou attitude.
Basically, if you are so asinine to label yourself and others, don’t get your panties in a bunch when you are stereotyped. To put it bluntly, you asked for it.
Individuals are people who do what they want to do and aren't easily influenced by other people. An individual is someone who has a mind of her own. It has nothing to do with how you dress or what music you listen to.
