Ig’nunt Renoites…
…I… really… don’t want to be negative. It is a sweet, sweet drug that gets out of hand, is useful, but can get quite addictive at times.
However, sadly, like most things, it only takes one or very few in a crowd to ruin it for the rest of us. So I’m being forced to be negative. What a sweet rush it is!
Before I begin, I realize that the following situation is probably not any different (regionally/situationally speaking) in any other town, circumstance or populous. It just pisses me off that it has to do with this website, my town, my people, and my efforts as a whole.
I personally believe that Reno has a nice-sized population of intelligent, quirky and observant individuals. Progressive folks (not referring to political affiliation…), artful folks, people with ideas. People that are not only able to speak their minds, but have thought out these things they speak and with good resolve on top of that. But is there enough of, I’ll go ahead and say it, US? Assuming I’m not delusional?
On the other hand, we once in a while have the kinds of people that have contacted me both in-person and through email. They’re not numerous, maybe four.
One guy messaged me through the Craigslist advertisement that I have up. I wanted to post it all, but I got pretty upset only because the guy was so, so so, SO SO SO stupid.
Essentially he sent a message that said, “go bak 2 kansas you inbred fukers.”
Okay, game on.
You can imagine what happened. I did my best trying to explain who we are in an intelligent, forthcoming and decent manner. This, as you can further imagine, must have came across that I was speaking Turkish.
Eventually, he said any negativity was MY fault for having such a name.
Like I said, so, so SO stupid.
I eventually linked him to the definition of the word “lout,” asked him to memorize it if that were possible, explained that I had one person and one family that I knew that was killed in Iraq (whose funerals were the original to be protested), and the purpose of this website was a positive reinforcement of our fine town (not a protest/opposition site), took away any domain rights from the crazy funeral protesters. I concluded that I was actually doing something for this town rather than this shotgun, emotionally-charged, thoughtless witch-hunt towards anything that might spark an assumption. I spelled it out for him, much to my chagrin, so he wouldn’t have to stop burying his car outside his mobile home and read the origins of GHR on this site.
Okay, fine.
Cue the GHR T-shirts. They get many compliments, get questions asked, normal conversation, especially about the people in the images, which are in fact, striking. That’s the point.
Second dummy remark.
Older woman, sitting at a table with a cohort of mine eating pleasantly. She eyes my GHR “Pandora the Drag Queen,” shirt about 300 times and won’t look directly at me.
“So. God Hates Reno. What does THAT mean?” She asks, staring at her plate. The tone and the attitude said it all. It said, ‘… I’m a pissed white lady, who finally reached her limit, so I’m passively-aggressively going to confront you in a VERY displeased manner.’
My brain says, fuck off, fuck off fuck off. My mouth, contentedly said with due candor:
“Well, you tell me what a shirt with a gaping drag queen and casino letters that says ‘God Hates Reno dot Com’, might mean.”
“Well, are you a part of THAT awful church.”
I pause and laugh a little. I shake my head.
“Well ARE you?” She asks again.
I take a breath, “Would a homophobic, ridiculous spastic church have weird shirts with drag queens on them? Take a moment to think about that.” I sit there and look at her like a child. Disrespectful, sure but really. I’m trying to enjoy my meal, and this woman is ruining my appetite with her idiocy.
She looks at me. “Well I suppose not, but who ARE you?”
“I’m known as Gay Rodeo on the site. If you’re so inclined, and can use a computer, go there and find out. I do enough for the site that I can’t recite everything I’ve worked on there and think for you at the same time.”
She just stares at me. My cohort is a bit amused at my treatment of her. Everyone stops talking. That’s just fine with me.
Final situation, my boyfriend. My GAY boyfriend (as if there’s any other type…)
He’s at Truckee Meadows Community College. Presumably getting an education without interruption. Wearing his own drag queen GHR shirt, which he finds amusing.
Now he’s not the type that gives a shit as much as I do about Reno, what I write, etc, he just wears the shirt because he likes the image. He wants to go to school. He’s not political, he isn’t confrontational, in fact, he gives a flying rat’s ass.
Girl comes up to him. Cue his meaningless educational interruption.
“What does THAT mean?”
He replies, “Go there and find out.”
“No, tell me what it MEANS. Is it about BRIANNA???”
“Look, I don’t really care what you’re after, if you aren’t dumb, go there and find out. It’s just a shirt.”
He mutters something about her being a retard.
Well done! Which is why I love him.
Now, he could have pulled what I pull, you know, the “gay card,” the “…why would crazy religious zealots have drag queens on their shirts…” all that, gone on and on and on… Like right now. But he is far more simple in his confrontation than I, and I am jealous. I tend to ramble myself down to their level when I could have had swift, decisive and deadly words.
So here’s my take on it all.
People can be really, downright, unabashedly DUMB. No big surprise since laws in the civilized world have practically not allowed and made illegal the dumb ones to Darwin their asses right out of the gene pool.
What I can’t stand is the laziness and the emotional reactive type “witch huntery,” if you will.
Take Brianna for example, which the TMCC girl brought up so eloquently.
I’m going to take on Brianna, so get ready.
Brianna was a tragedy. There is no bones about it. The crazy protesters knew damn well they were in the hornet’s nest by coming here and protesting her funeral, and we ate it up. It was the most fascinating, angriest most emotional thing to bring us together in a long time.
Brianna’s case was unique, however. Her gracious family, very well-off, put up more advertisements to her behalf than anyone else that I’ve ever personally seen that was done wrong as a victim in this area. Again, the town ate it up. People who never met her were falling to their knees in tears because the pretty, innocent girl was put on a pedestal and her murder is still no closer to being solved today than when her body was found.
Therein lies the problem.
Brianna was put on a pedestal. Probably 20 more people have been murdered in this area since she has, and I still see blue ribbons, signs and other blue “things,” fading and falling as fast as the towns passionate love for her.
It all ties back in to stupidity. Yes, Brianna was a tragedy. No, she was not a god. She was just caught up in some really, really unfortunate and bad shit, and I’m hoping she’s resting in a better place. In fact, she’d probably be embarrassed by the worship (and evil “protesting,”) done on her behalf.
A lot of Reno however, didn’t care, Brianna was THEE THING. If you even QUESTION Brianna, you’re a devil. Such passion. Like she is any more or less sacred than any other victim. Who are we, not knowing her, besides close family and friends, to use this judgment? Dumb, dumb dumb! Sheep-like! Hop on the local happenings bandwagon! Wheee! Pretty embarrassing.
Furthermore, who is this girl to instantly, ignorantly and suspiciously, not to mention emotionally and irrationally, question God Hates Reno dot com? Especially without first investigating her assumptions, or even without attitude asking the shirt-wearer what it might mean? Is SHE a witch-hunter? Are WE the witch?
Of course not. It is pure, simple human stupidity. It is not example by far of many Renoites, nor of readers of God Hates Reno, nor of mourners of Brianna, haters of the crazy protesters… just ludicrous stupidity…
…or fiery passion, or over-stressed? Bored maybe?
What good came from Brianna was awareness for females of all kinds to be more careful. Not paranoid, not scared, not hiding, but careful. Concealed-carry permits for weapons, martial arts and self defense products all were very interesting to people. Which is not a bad thing. As they say, don’t be a victim! That could have been accomplished without the Brianna Worship. Maybe take a class. Learn to shoot. Take action.
Too progressive? Who knows.
Back to us. 99% of the response to this site and its products is ranging from pleasantly critical to VERY, VERY happy with what we do. It probably does not merit me making such a scathing article about the few and the hopelessly stupid-proud, but lo, I decided to make another stand to those that may happen by with their pitchforks and torches ready because the have NO IDEA what they may find here!
We’re not light and happy here all the time, we’re probably a bit too honest about what Reno goes through, including criticizing the minority.
If anything, not only a brass placard towards the spirit of this site (justifying like only something Reno can, and evidently has to, forcibly…), I’m here to entertain the people of above-average intelligence and spirit who DO come here. Especially since I challenge anyone who still thinks differently at this point of who we are and what we do, who I know is NOT reading this like you are, to further your comments below. No really, we’d all LOVE to read them. I’d love even more to RESPOND to them.
Perhaps you might have a witch hunter’s fire burning within. Do you, Renoite, have some kind of emotional, un-relaxed way of looking at things that just makes your guts writhe? Are you TOO straightedge? TOO vegan? TOO Christian? TOO political? Or do you further your questions with rational judgment and searches to find your objective point, even without giving in to your (presumed) opposition?
I’d like to think Reno is better than this, but I’m not so sure at times. There is still a very insecure nature to people in this town from punk shows to wine walks that seems to not only declare who they are constantly, but stare down and judge others constantly while they do it. As if they’re so “with it,” that they can’t have someone, anyone, outside the extreme of their clique, around them. Maybe you’ll avoid a bar because of the people to see a band, just because of the bar’s “scene.” Like you don’t belong. Else, you better have some thick-ass skin to get past the looks, the ideals the fashion, and the attitude to just have a fucking drink or see a band.
It only becomes more apparent to me when I leave town and I’m very “Reno,” and realize I’m pretty uptight and edgy, only to have people kind of lean back a little, eyes wide, like, “What’s THIS guy’s problem?” Sorry, it’s the Reno in me. And I have to mellow out a little. It also happens when people from outside Reno (and not from similar circumstances) asks me, “Why are people so uptight here?”
Good question. It isn’t just Reno, in fact, but we’re just sticking with the Reno theme. We ARE uptight here.
But why? Why are we judgmental? A bit too cultishly reactive towards a pretty dead girl? Maybe even wonder why people stare at each other so hard like unsociable beasts, or make comments from moving cars so often about who they think you are? Why?
Small town shit, sadly. The “Biggest Little,” sometimes shows its “little,” far too often. Places like Fallon, Redding, Elko, even Salt Lake City, have this thing going on, which just reeks small town. Like walking down the street in an old western with the salty locals spitting and saying, “Your KIND ain’t WELCOME here.” I mean, really. Are the dummies in cars that shout “FAGGOT,” at me when I take pictures of Reno at night really concerned I’m gay? Do they really know? The answer is no, especially with the Internet making them quite aware that yes, fags exist, and without true fact, I *could* e a faggot, so therefore, shout “FAGGOT,” at every person they might see, by the numbers, one has to be right sometimes? And for what, boredom, again?
Sure, whatever. Definition of “lout(s),” surely comes to mind, like the gentleman who messaged us originally.
Okay, so perhaps you’re not an “Ig’nunt Renoite.” I’m betting you, reading this, are very NOT. So, being very “Renoexistential,” I’ll quit asking questions by asking the REAL question:
So how do we make Reno less… uptight? Less cliquish? Less socially separatist? How do we do that?
I’m surely not in a position to legislate such huge undertakings, and maybe Reno just needs to grow. Then again, spreading the seeds of idealism to what I’d like Reno to be (very NOT uptight, cliquish and separatist) and more progressive, fun, relaxed and open.
I suspect any solutions would make Reno more artistic, more social, more defined than it is now. People not worried about image so much, not concerned what their friends think of them, maybe even more adult.
Imagine that.
Suggestions and discuss below. Or just babble with unending stupidity so we can get very Reno on your ass.
- Gay Rodeo
