My attention was caught by a recent post in a thread on one of this site's sub-forums; where the poster referred to a likely difference in approach re a certain rail-related issue, between -- by implication -- "us" = railway enthusiasts, and "normals", i.e the not-particularly-railway-conscious population at large. Another poster "called him out", objecting to his use of "normal(s)" -- seeing it as proclaiming that anyone with an interest in railways is "special" (implications felt by me, of suggestion of worse stuff -- abnormal, weird, despicable, etc.): stating that this particular labelling is inappropriate on a forum specifically about railways and for their devotees.
It would not have occurred to me to feel offended over this matter; but conceivably, it perhaps should have done... My position about such things has long been: that our hobby / interest is one about which some who follow it do tend to get obsessive, and it's not one which appeals to and has the approval of the fashionable set; rather, the polar opposite. Folk as a whole, not afflicted by our bug, do tend to see railway enthusiasts as a bit goofily strange, and prone to harbouring our interest (in something which for most people is at best, a prosaic and not-enthralling part of life) to a wildly all-consuming extent; and -- IMO relatively mildly and with a fair degree of affection -- to poke fun at us. Many railway enthusiasts can see where the general populace is coming from, here; and -- in part to demonstrate good humour, and to show that they are not hurt by the far-from-terrible teasing barbs -- make a point of joining in the fun, and mocking themselves for their oddities.
Decades ago, I and my fellow-enthusiasts delighted in referring to travellers on passenger trains who were clearly ordinary folk needing to get from A to B, as "real people" -- implication: as opposed to weirdos like us who were using the trains to gratify our desire for our strange pleasure. I see the "railway enthusiasts / normals" dichotomy as essentially, "out of the same stable".
Would be interested in people's thoughts on these matters: where folk stand on the scale between -- as above -- "us / 'normals' is potentially insulting, and not appropriate on a venue such as this"; and "self-mockery on our part, is a healthy response to what is after all, usually only about the world at large finding us comical -- falling far short of their hating us".
It would not have occurred to me to feel offended over this matter; but conceivably, it perhaps should have done... My position about such things has long been: that our hobby / interest is one about which some who follow it do tend to get obsessive, and it's not one which appeals to and has the approval of the fashionable set; rather, the polar opposite. Folk as a whole, not afflicted by our bug, do tend to see railway enthusiasts as a bit goofily strange, and prone to harbouring our interest (in something which for most people is at best, a prosaic and not-enthralling part of life) to a wildly all-consuming extent; and -- IMO relatively mildly and with a fair degree of affection -- to poke fun at us. Many railway enthusiasts can see where the general populace is coming from, here; and -- in part to demonstrate good humour, and to show that they are not hurt by the far-from-terrible teasing barbs -- make a point of joining in the fun, and mocking themselves for their oddities.
Decades ago, I and my fellow-enthusiasts delighted in referring to travellers on passenger trains who were clearly ordinary folk needing to get from A to B, as "real people" -- implication: as opposed to weirdos like us who were using the trains to gratify our desire for our strange pleasure. I see the "railway enthusiasts / normals" dichotomy as essentially, "out of the same stable".
Would be interested in people's thoughts on these matters: where folk stand on the scale between -- as above -- "us / 'normals' is potentially insulting, and not appropriate on a venue such as this"; and "self-mockery on our part, is a healthy response to what is after all, usually only about the world at large finding us comical -- falling far short of their hating us".