Who cares about a buncha stoopid gurlz anyway?
by digby
In case there are any people left out there who doubt that men and women are treated differently on the internet (and in life) check out this post:
Nine months ago, a man posted this otherwise unremarkable photo of himself to the r/pics subreddit with the headline “This is me the being dope sick [sic] when i quit heroin. 6 months and counting of being clean“. It got 1450 total upvotes. The top 5 comments, in order (not counting one comment from the OP):
1.Congratulations man. Thats no easy feat. Heroin has taken many a life. Good to see somone beat it
(380 total upvotes)
2.“6 months and counting of being clean Datestamp 3/16/11″ Was there a relapse in there?
(268 total upvotes)
3.I know that look. I’ve made it myself. When everything hurts all at once, you can’t tell if you’re burning hot or freezing cold and every fibre of your being is shouting at you to stop being a fuckhead and feed it what it thinks it needs… stay strong, my man. if I can do it, you can do it. clean for a little over 20 years, now. a great job, lovely house, two beautiful boys and a superhero for a wife. it was worth every agonising second to come out on top and rebuild my life. I am consumed with respect and admiration for you. keep going.
(227 total upvotes)
4.Awesome job! I have 4.5 months clean. Just remember: that’s the last time you have to be dopesick.Ever (106 total upvotes)
5.I don’t know you, but I love you for staying clean. It gives me hope for my brother.
(75 total upvotes.)
Three days ago, a woman posted this otherwise unremarkable photo of herself to the r/pics subreddit with the headline “Been clean from heroin for 2 months and this is me today“. It got 608 total points. The top 5 comments, in order:
1.I’ve never done heroin, here is a picture of a pair of old shoes. [links to a random photo of shoes]
(2077 total upvotes)
2. Reddit just upvoted some girl’s mirror shot to the front page. Holy fuck, guys
(1785 total upvotes)
3. I’ve been clean from heroin for 24 years, nobody upvotes my mirror pics.
(1282 total upvotes)
4. I don’t get it. This is just a picture of a person. What is interesting about this picture?
(405 total upvotes)
5. 9 outta 10 would bang. With protection.
Having once been widely assumed by many on the internet to be male, I know this phenomenon intimately. My favorite personal illustration is the blogger who said that he just couldn't understand why my writing immediately went downhill the minute I revealed I was a woman.
It isn't all in our heads. Really.
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