hmm, yes, very wise
I spend a lot of time in the Kissimmee/Orlando area. Spend enough time there and the cringe reflex is burnt right out of you. So many people embrace cringe so hard that it ends up becoming almost wholesome. It is infectious too. At this point, when I see a Dodge Challenger fully wrapped in Naruto and matching colored wheels, I focus on the craftmanship and catch myself imagining my car in a full Dexter’s Laboratory wrap. I’m 51.
Just make you happy. Happy is contagious.
I used to cringe every time I saw an itasha car. But hey, not my car. If it makes them happy and it’s not disproportionately negatively affecting others’ safety, then it’s actually kinda sick.
I couldn’t do it myself. I also haven’t been into anime for several years, but I do love me a JDM neoclassic.
I miss my home town so badly right now. Fuck Ron DeSantis. Fuck the Republicans. Fuck all those ghouls in Tallahassee.
Edit: go grab some Tako Cheena next time you’re in Orlando. Thank me later.
Oooohhh, that looks amazing. I think I am going to hit that tomorrow.
I HAVE JOINED THE WAR ON CRINGE ON THE SIDE OF CRINGE.
I may be covered in vomit, but you are covered in poo
I might have seen that porn.
Two girls, lots of poo and vomit
Memories…
Wow, way to make me feel bad about myself
Being mean is willfully making people around you feel worse. Being cringe is negligently making people around you feel worse. Once you’re aware you’re cringe, if you do nothing to mitigate it, you’re being willfully negligent, which is just as bad as doing something intentionally.
Edit: I’ve posted the same joke as a response each time I’ve seen this meme, and this is the first time it hasn’t been well-received. Just in case that’s down to people thinking I’m being mean instead of making a joke, I’ll clarify that I am in favour of letting people enjoy things.
Doing something that brings me joy but makes you cringe sounds like a “you” problem.
Being cringe is enjoying things that people think is embarrassing or lame. If someone likes Sonic the Hedgehog enough to wear sonic shirts every day, should they stop wearing them because it’s “cringe”?
Being mean is willfully making people around you feel worse. Being cringe is negligently making people around you feel worse. Once you’re aware you’re cringe, if you do nothing to mitigate it, you’re being willfully negligent, which is just as bad as doing something intentionally.
Cringe is just vicarious embarrassment. You are feeling embarrassed on behalf of someone else. Unlike empathy, where you share the emotion someone else is experiencing, cringe is generally embarrassment for the actions of someone else who is not embarrassed.
I suspect this is an instinct that helps us create social norms. We are embarrassed that someone else is acting in a way that would embarrass us, so we are encouraged to let them know that what they’re doing isn’t right. This is helpful if someone has toilet paper stuck to their shoe, or their fly is down, or they have some food stuck in their teeth.
But it isn’t helpful if the thing they’re doing is intentional, harmless, and they’re owning it. Let people live their lives, and work on your response to their behavior or appearance rather than policing them to make yourself feel better.
NB: I am not a psychologist.
