Another nerdfighter Tumblr

(Source: pro-tearbender, via appaandfriends)

Haters gonna hate. That’s the first thing that really comes to mind. The second thing that comes to mind? Why do haters have to hate? When I first heard about the tumblr page StopJohnGreen, I was in total shock. I thought: “This has to be a joke.” But is it? The posts go on and on about how John Green is pompous, how his followers are pathetic, and how he is sexist and his female characters suffering from that. These issues have never really been anything I’ve thought about, but now that they’ve come up, you have to ask: Can John Green be trusted? Is he sexist? Are we blind followers? Seriously, everything that I trust in is being uprooted. How do I respond to that? Well, a little like this:

The blog often states how John Green looks down on all who aren’t intelligent. Although I guess it can look like that somehow, what I understand it to be is that he is encouraging intelligence. He wouldn’t despise you if you act stupid, he would only want you to better yourself, to where you don’t act stupid anymore. And let’s be honest. We all look down on stupid people, whether its somebody at work, a politician in office, or a sibling, we all think we can do a better job then they can. Why can’t John Green be at fault?

But the blog isn’t just an attack on John Green, its on every single one of his followers, his nerdfighters. As the blog states, They’re just as sad and pathetic as One Direction, or Justin Bieber fans. Entirely blinded by their obsession with some guy just because they don’t know any better than they can’t even recognize when there are things wrong with him.Now, I’m sure all the nerdfighters out there are foaming at the mouth when they read this, but the real issue is right in front of our eyes: Just what is wrong with Justin Bieber?! Now, I’m not a Justin Bieber fan. But there’s nothing wrong with liking Justin Bieber then there is liking the Beatles! Geez! Now that that’s out of the way, let’s refocus: I am not blinded by my obsession with John Green. There are certain beliefs he has about religion that I disagree with, and there are certain things that he believes about sex that I disagree with. Yet I am a nerdfighter. I really don’t think I’m the only exception, I’m sure plenty of other people could tell you the same thing. But the followers of John Green don’t really do it because they like John Green, but because of his core belief, because of what makes him a good person: His fight to decrease World Suck, and to increase Awesome. And its not just his fight. It is the nerdfighters’ fight. Its the world’s fight.

But perhaps the most important thing the blog talks about is John Green’s apparent sexism. The blog often talks about the recurring character of John Green’s “Manic Pixie Dream Girl.” But I really don’t think the writer is thinking about the entire picture, here. While it is true that the Looking for Alaska & Paper Towns leading ladies can fit the description of Manic Pixie Dream Girl, the entire point of both was the mystery behind them. The young women put on images of themselves that were fake. That were illusions, that were not the real them. Why did they? What was the real them? How does one unlock that? Those were the big questions of those two books. Of course, books like An Abundance of Katherines and Will Grayson, Will Grayson (which he wrote with David Levithan) had female characters that I think were very real, very original, very modern, very likeable, and very….normal. They were characters that did not fit the “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” character at all. But perhaps the biggest example is the heroine of The Fault in Our Stars, a book in which the main character is, in fact, a girl! There are no big, fancy, images or gigantic drama fests from this girl either; just a girl trying to get through life with cancer. While TfiOS, PT, & LfA, do have characters that are either sick, manic, or getting killed off, we can always go back to the AoK & WGWG argument, to where the female characters are not crazy or in any danger at all. I could go on and on about this subject alone, but I hope I have my point across: John Green has written many books, with many female characters. And while there might be some similarities here and there, there just isn’t enough connections to make the claim that he’s a sexist.

Another quick thing I want to address: The blog at one point states: I wish his wife had had an abortion, because people like him shouldn’t be able to reproduce and continue allowing their sexism onto other generations. What?! ….What?! ……………WHAT?! This is such a hateful remark towards John, his wife Sarah, and a mouth-dropping attack on two-year-old Henry. You should never wish for a completely innocent life to be taken, especially that of an unborn child, especially for the reason that their parent is a bad person! Even if John Green was, you should never. EVER. Wish for the death of an innocent life.

So if you are a supporter of John Green-whether you are a nerdfighter, or just a fan of his books- you can take this blog and its themes with a grain of salt. Although it may be frustrating to think that someone you are a fan of is hated by someone else, this is a problem as old as time itself, seen in circumstances like Republicans vs. Democrats, Unionists vs. Confederates, and Kataang vs. Zutara. But if its still bugging you, just remember the simple, yet effective phrase: Haters gonna hate.

I opened my eyes. The day had begun. Oh joy. I quietly got out of bed and went upstairs to see if anyone else was awake.

I saw Morgan on the couch watching the news. She was already dressed and ready to leave.

“Hey Mog,” I said, sitting on the couch next to her. I made sure not to sit too close. We weren’t dating after all.

“Good morning, Nama,” She said quietly. She smiled nicely at me, trying to hide the fear in her face.

“You got dressed fast. How long have you been up?” I asked.

“Oh, I’ve been up for five minutes. I just never got ready for bed.”

“You slept in your clothes? Why?” She couldn’t have been that tired.

“I wanted to be ready in case we needed to run,” She said, like it was obvious. She looked at me, and then turned back toward the TV.

Breakfast that morning was quiet. Tyler and Josh had been on guard all night, and they were napping. They hoped to sleep more on the bus. After we ate, we had bacon and eggs, we all got ready for the trek to the school.

The public school is a little farther then our past journies. Four blocks is a long way to go when zombies populate the streets.

We had Iggy and I blazing the trail with our swords, and Dan and Tyler holding the back. One thing was for sure: We definitely needed more weapons for everyone. Preferably guns.

Arriving at the public school showed us the wasteland. There were no bodies however. They had all quickly risen. But the traces of bodies- blood, hair, pieces of skin- all remained, and Katie threw up. I almost did too.

There was one school bus along with a few other cars in the parking lot.

“Just how exactly is there a bus here, again?” I asked.

“Our dad’s a bus driver. Don’t be stupid, Nama,” Dan looked at me like I was accusing him. I knew he was teasing.

“He was just getting back from a field trip, and parked it here to take kids home in an hour,” Iggy explained. There were a few questions, but I decided to just accept this Deus ex Machina

We all got into the bus. It was about half-full (or half-empty?) when we all piled in.

“Okay, now we gotta go look for survivors,” Calvin jumped from where he was sitting.

“You mean you’re coming?” I asked, surprised.

“Yeah, I’m coming,” Calvin said, giving me an Are-you-kidding-me look.

“Me too,” Kenna sat up. She used to go to school here, so that made sense. She wants to try to find some of her friends.

“All right, but we can’t all go. Its too risky. Tyler, I’m locking the bus, but you gotta protect everyone anyway,” Iggy ordered.

“Aw, do I have to?” Troll smiled.

Iggy glared.

“Aw, does he have to?” Everyone in the bus said, not sarcastically.

Iggy sighed, “Josh, Jason, watch over them too.”

“You know, we are perfectly capable of watching over ourselves!” I hear Calyn say as Iggy closes the door.

“Man, your ex is annoying, its a good thing you left her,” Iggy told me, as we were sneaking around the halls of the public school.

“Huh-huh, yeah. Calyn’s something else,” Calvin chuckled, what seemed to be loudly. Probably because it was so quiet in the building.

“Guys! You better stop being mean to Calyn, or I’m telling!” Kenna said like a little girl. As if there were parents to tell on to.

“Yeah. Stop. Besides, she dumped me,” I said. Although I really don’t want to be talking about this right now.

“I agree. Get your heads back in the game, guys, or we’re going to-!”

“BLECHHHAREEECHUH!!!” A zombie jumped out of the corner! Dan was caught off by surprise, but I quickly reacted. That sword cut its head off pretty quick.

There was some heavy-duty breathing going on after that, to which Kenna whispered:

“Can I go back to the bus?”

After we regained our senses, Iggy motioned for us to continue.

“Come on. No, we have to stay together. I don’t know how many have actually survived though. This place is empty,”

“Other then the wandering zombie of course,” Calvin pointed out.

“Yeah, no telling how many are in here,” I said. I really didn’t know whether this was a good idea or not.

“We should probably head back,” Dan pointed outside with his butcher knife. I wondered why he hadn’t traded weapons at this point, and I realized-That’s all we had. We needed more weapons.

“No. We came in here for survivors. We’re gonna find survivors,” Iggy said so. So we continued.

Our search pretty much went through the entire building. No sign of anything. Of course, It was probably easy for teachers to take cars and cars full of kids to safety, not to mention the students that could drive themselves- so it was pretty much more likely then not that no one was here. But there was still that “then not.”

“…I really don’t think anyone’s hear,” Dan said. “We should just go, I’m sure the guys are worried.”

Iggy sighed. “Yeah, we’ll go out the closet door we find,” Upon entering into the light though, we came to find three zombies in the room, and they came to find us. Perfect.

I don’t know why I feel so used to this. Its only been a day. Maybe its because of all those video games. Or all those movies. I decide its both. Both is probably right.

“AAAAHHH!!!” I screamed, for I knew the end was near.

Calvin shouted, “Nama, gosh! You’re gonna explode my ear!”

Iggy shouted commands. “Turn the corner! No left left left left LEFT! Okay, now turn right. Yes, right! Thank you!” I trusted that he was going the right way. I mean, he walked through these halls for four years, and I’ve been here what, once?

“Where are we going?!” I shouted. It seemed like this was going nowhere, but we couldn’t fight them. With me only acting on instinct, we couldn’t handle three zombies!

“To the teachers lounge!” It is not Iggy or even Dan that said this, but Kenna. I’m surprised she still remembers everything.

When we get to the door, we can’t open it. Its liked its locked or barred. Kenna and I begin to shout, “Open the door! Open the door!” As if someone was on the other side. But almost as if it was a miracle, and much to our surprise, the door opens.

“Get in! Get in!” Is all I hear, and we all cram in and lock the zombies out.

I come to rest my eyes on who else? Nick! I look around and see other familiar faces. Steven! Justin! Daniella! Derek! All friends of mine!

“Guys!!” I couldn’t be more happy to see who was alive.

“Nama! Iggy! Dan! Kenna! Person I don’t know!” Justin was glad to see us too.

“I’m Calvin, and this time, we’ve saved each others lives,” He shakes Justin’s hand.

“Indeed we have, Sir. So glad to know!” I laughed. Justin and Calvin are both laugh-out-loud guys, but I never would have imagined the two in the same room. Well, maybe.

“Daniella? How long have you been here?” Dan asked. The two used to date. But they broke up a while ago too. I don’t know why though.

“Hi…..I really just followed Nick here,” Daniella turns to Nick, who’s too busy talking to me.

“Hey, what’s up, Man? Was wondering when you’d get here!” Nick and I exchange the secret handshake, and give a bro hug. We’re really good buddies, Nick and I.

“I would’ve gotten here sooner if I knew you’d be in the teachers’ lounge!” I said, smiling.

“Hey, where else would we be?” Steven says. He’s got a speech impediment that I’m sure girls find adorable. He sounds like a widdle baby!

“Yeah. This place is the only place with a couch, decent TV, and edible food in the fridge!” Derek said, smiling. He’s got a not-to-deep voice, that could be almost creepy.

“Ahem. I seem to be the only one out of the loop,” Calvin shrugs in an I’m-not-important-but-I’m-only-joking-please-pay-attention-to-me kind of way.

“Oh! Calvin, I am so sorry. This is Nick, Steven, Justin, Derek, and Daniella,” I say.

“Hi, Kenna,” Steven saunters over to Kenna awkwardly and smiles.

Kenna takes a few steps back. “Oh. Hi, Steven.”

“A’ight! Its nice that we’ve had a little chit-chat with everyone! But we need to focus! Nicholas, what’s the situation?” Iggy smiles, but he knows we need to get our heads back in the game.

Nick salutes. “Sir yes, sir!” He says in the most goofy way possible. “At 2:30 the zombies attacked, sir! Me and my group ran straight here, while many students ran away! We’ve been trying to think of an escape plan, but we don’t know where to go exactly sir! Perhaps you’d like to give us some advice?”

Iggy waved Nick down. “At ease! All right, listen. We’re gonna take my dad’s bus to Trevor’s. You know Trevor? Well his house is in the middle of nowhere, is really big, and his dad. Collects. Guns. We’re going there,” Iggy turns around, to see if the zombies are still outside of the door.

“Oh, and us catholic school kids are there, too!” Calvin said, smiling like an idiot.

“Wait, would these be including your ex-girlfriend?” Nick says, poking me in the shoulder.

I sigh. “Yes….”

“And all of her friends?”

“My girlfriend being one of them!” Calvin speaks up.

“Kinky,” Nick smiles. Justin, Steve, and Derek burst out laughing, while I face palm.

“Guys, I can hear you. I’m right here,” Kenna says, pointing at herself.

Calvin pats her on the back, saying, “Its okay, Kenna. We’ll get through this new kind of crazy together….”

We end up avoiding the zombies, and breaking through the window. This, of course, tips off more zombies outside the building, and about ten of them decide to follow us. Great.

“AAH! I can’t run!” Steven has a type of asthma that only works up when he’s running. And he has a bad knee. And he’s a little overweight. So that makes him as useful as a dead rat during the zombie apocalypse.

“Steven! Kick your lazy fat A** into high gear!” Daniella says, running faster then anyone.

I catch up to Dan. “Dude, we really gotta fight some of these off,”

“Right. Cool,” Dan’s a really laid back dude. I can’t imagine him being this laid back under zombie attack. Well, maybe I can.

We stop, and slice up maybe four of them, but they quickly surround us.

“Okay, uh, bad idea,” I look around, and see more zombies coming over the hill!

Iggy turns around, clears a path for us, and screams, “We have to make it to the bus!!”

But we can’t. Even if we run our fastest, there’s no possible way we can outrun everything. I feel all of the things right now. Regret. Relief. Fear. Wonder. But mostly regret.

But who would answer my prayers? Why, Tyler the Troll!

As if out of nowhere, a school bus comes out of nowhere and runs the twenty two zombies down.

Calvin turns around and raises his fist in the air. “YEAH!!!” He cries.

Tyler brings the bus over to us and opens the door.

“GET IN GET IN GET IN GET IN!!!”

We all climb in as fast as we possibly can, and all sit down in our seats. Iggy takes the wheel.

Justin shouts from the back, “Tyler! You, my Troll, get the prize for World’s greatest save!”

“Yeah…” breaks down in his seat. “Especially since I don’t drive….”