Washington State LUG to Hold "Nerd Auction"

elrous0 writes "As part of a PR stunt, a Washington Linux user group is holding a "Nerd Auction" and appealing to local sororities to exchange dates and makeover advice for their computer skills and homework assistance. 'The problem is that we're all still nerds. Let's face it, guys. If anyone's going to bid on us, we'll need some spicing up,' writes Washington State Linux Users Group president Ben Ford on the group's website. 'And who better to help with that than sorority girls who like nothing better than a makeover?' So far there has been no comment on how a Linux user group is going to help sorority girls with their Windows machines."

Comments

Why do you all play up to this stereotype?

[Conspicuous Coward]

Why do so many people here play into this wretched stereotype of the Linux user as a socially inept weird guy whose only chance of procreation is if some dumb sorority girl offers him a mercy fuck after he fixes her computer...
I find it profoundly depressing that so many of you have internalized this kind of nonsense to the extent you actually repeat and propagate these stereotypes of yourselves.

This "nerd auction" simultaneously insults and stereotypes women(as sex objects who need a man for anything technical) and Linux users(as socially inept nerds).

I'd expect the former on a male dominated computer-user forum, depressing as it is. The way in which people here propagate these negative stereotypes of themselves is genuinely surprising to me though. Is this an American thing? Do all intelligent young people get beaten so badly in high school that they lose all self esteem? Or just what the hell is this all about Slashdot? I Demand answers dammit!!

Re:Some Answers

[The One and Only]

The support has been so huge, that instead of a small fund-raiser like we were intending, the goal now is to raise enough money for a female scholarship in Computer Science.

Maybe you should raise money for not perpetrating sexist stereotypes. Oh, wait.