Post by Heightism Report on Mar 20, 2017 18:35:53 GMT
For those who have seen us use the word "Garmin" and aren't aware of its meaning, a few years ago, we started using the word to describe short men who accept their second-class role in society by constantly finding ways to demonstrate to the status-quo that they have accepted their role and won't cause any trouble.
The hallmark of most Garmins is self-deprecation. A Garmin will always make pre-emptive jokes about his height, even to complete strangers. Garmins do this for a few reasons. One reason is because they know that they are viewed as inferior and instead of resisting inferior treatment, they opt to vocalize their inferiority so that those in attendance can relax knowing that the Garmin will serve them and won't cause any trouble. When I say "cause trouble," I mean that they won't do anything to upset the status-quo such as demanding to be respected like a tall man or do anything to diminish the amount of social perks tall men will receive in that particular setting. Instead of being like most other adults and finding their niche in social groups by contributing expertise and views about various topics, Garmins want to establish that they are eager to serve. They're not eager to serve in the typical hospitable ways though, their service is such where they volunteer to serve as the designated punchline or whipping boy. This type of subservience is the cornerstone of Garminism.
Another reason Garmins self-deprecate is because they believe that if they make jokes at their own expense, others will opt not to ridicule them. Garmins also believe that self-deprecation makes them appear secure in their skin. This is not how heightism works though. More often than not, self-deprecation of this type is interpreted by talls and women as an invitation to see how far they can push the envelope in every social situation by constantly intensifying efforts to degrade and emasculate the self-loathing fool. A Garmin will often become the office whipping boy or will become a prop for tall men to degrade in front of women in order to enhance the social standing of the tall man. Once this type of scenario gets out-of-control, the Garmin can't resist any of the related behavior because he has already given the green light for this type of ridicule to occur.
Garmins are also constantly begging for social scraps. Think of a lapdog that stands timidly-anxious around a dinner table. This particular dog doesn't even bark as a means to beg, he either passively waits for scraps to be dropped, or occasionally, stands gingerly up on his hind legs to try to "perform" for those who are enjoying the feast. This analogy describes the reasoning behind a Garmin's behavior. They know that tall men get the lion's share of the feast in society and they've accepted that they aren't going to ever have a seat at the table, but think that if they stand on their hind legs enough, their masters will eventually become endeared by their helplessness and charitably give them some table scraps. In addition to self-deprecation, another way Garmins beg for scraps is by proving that they're "One of the good ones." You can see them in every anti-heightism dialogue because when someone is discussing an egregious act of heightism, a Garmin will always show-up to prance for the tallers by shifting the blame back onto the short guy who reports the heightism, and will offer a helping of pseudo-positivity so that maybe the tallers will throw him some scraps for taking the heat off tall men or women, and subsequently shifting the blame back onto short men. They placate the status-quo by acting as agents who ensure that short men remain marginalized by counteracting short men who dissent. Garmins are also eager to see that the tall man remains comfortable by ensuring that his social perks are "justly" delivered
The fundamental flaw that Garmins make is they go far beyond "having a sense of humor about themselves" by creating a scenario where they can only be viewed as punchlines. They never get taken seriously, and they only have themselves to blame. Garmins are probably our number one obstacle in-regard to moving forward with anti-heightism efforts because they always flaunt their subservience by making every conversation lighthearted and goofy instead of allowing a serious discussion to transpire. Every media interview that speaks of heightism invites a comedian or some other short guy who prescribes self-deprecation as the remedy for those who experience heightism. Garmins are proverbial bootlickers and do not have a place in anti-heightism dialogue other than to be framed as examples of what every short man should aspire "NOT TO BE."
For those who need a more concrete example of what a Garmin in action looks like; Just take a look at Kevin Hart's entire career. Every role of Hart's depicts him as a socially incompetent, angry short male. On a yearly basis, he volunteers to be part of NBA All Star Weekend to have his height mocked, and his movie Ride Along was basically a two hour punchline about his height. However, Hart is rewarded for sacrificing his dignity because he acts the way a short man is supposed to act, so Hollywood accepts him. The world applauds short men who know their role by making a mockery of themselves and Hart sacrifices his dignity for fortune and fame.
In real life, Garmins are the guys who dress like leprechauns and elves for Christmas and St Patty's parties respectively, but more commonly, you'll see them in social settings making self-deprecating remarks about themselves to tallers and women. They think that these efforts are a way of gaining respect, but these idiotic displays of foolishness serve to accomplish nothing more than them being granted group whipping boy status and they'll never progress beyond this role within any given social group.
Where did the word Garmin come from? The word is the title of a Portlandia sketch where a short fool who compulsively uses the catchphrase "I'm a little guy," goes to painstaking efforts to classify himself as the group comic relief, wants everyone to know that he's fine with the notion that he doesn't rate manhood, and wants to present himself as an innocuous being who embraces subservience. He does so in a manner that is so intense that it makes everyone else uncomfortable. Even though no one even thought of making his height an issue, other than using it as a physical descriptor in the beginning of the sketch, he constantly brings it up to the point of ridiculousness.
Here's the link to Porlandia's Garmin sketch
streamable.com/yloke
In essence, Garmins are the main reason why we can't address heightism effectively. They do everything they can to reinforce the notion that short men are goofy court jesters who are available for comic relief at their own expense. Garmins are also perpetually focused on soothing the concerns of bigoted tall people who are in danger of being scrutinized for their discriminatory beliefs and actions. Every short male will receive cues, advice, and signals stating that he should make a mockery of himself if he wants to "fit in," but this is nothing more than snake oil sold by the status-quo. The only scraps a Garmin will ever receive is maybe tallers(if they're so inclined) will not mock him as much, or maybe the talls will let him tag-along during social outings where short men are generally not welcome, but these Garmins will never be taken seriously as an integral part of any social group. Their sole purpose is comic relief at their own expense, and this both begins and ends their role in the group. Don't be a Garmin, short men. Don't buy into your own subservience, and don't stand in the way of other short men who are advocating for a society where short men aren't expected to degrade themselves to the delight of those who do not respect them.
Feel free to add other Garmin behaviors that I left-out.
The hallmark of most Garmins is self-deprecation. A Garmin will always make pre-emptive jokes about his height, even to complete strangers. Garmins do this for a few reasons. One reason is because they know that they are viewed as inferior and instead of resisting inferior treatment, they opt to vocalize their inferiority so that those in attendance can relax knowing that the Garmin will serve them and won't cause any trouble. When I say "cause trouble," I mean that they won't do anything to upset the status-quo such as demanding to be respected like a tall man or do anything to diminish the amount of social perks tall men will receive in that particular setting. Instead of being like most other adults and finding their niche in social groups by contributing expertise and views about various topics, Garmins want to establish that they are eager to serve. They're not eager to serve in the typical hospitable ways though, their service is such where they volunteer to serve as the designated punchline or whipping boy. This type of subservience is the cornerstone of Garminism.
Another reason Garmins self-deprecate is because they believe that if they make jokes at their own expense, others will opt not to ridicule them. Garmins also believe that self-deprecation makes them appear secure in their skin. This is not how heightism works though. More often than not, self-deprecation of this type is interpreted by talls and women as an invitation to see how far they can push the envelope in every social situation by constantly intensifying efforts to degrade and emasculate the self-loathing fool. A Garmin will often become the office whipping boy or will become a prop for tall men to degrade in front of women in order to enhance the social standing of the tall man. Once this type of scenario gets out-of-control, the Garmin can't resist any of the related behavior because he has already given the green light for this type of ridicule to occur.
Garmins are also constantly begging for social scraps. Think of a lapdog that stands timidly-anxious around a dinner table. This particular dog doesn't even bark as a means to beg, he either passively waits for scraps to be dropped, or occasionally, stands gingerly up on his hind legs to try to "perform" for those who are enjoying the feast. This analogy describes the reasoning behind a Garmin's behavior. They know that tall men get the lion's share of the feast in society and they've accepted that they aren't going to ever have a seat at the table, but think that if they stand on their hind legs enough, their masters will eventually become endeared by their helplessness and charitably give them some table scraps. In addition to self-deprecation, another way Garmins beg for scraps is by proving that they're "One of the good ones." You can see them in every anti-heightism dialogue because when someone is discussing an egregious act of heightism, a Garmin will always show-up to prance for the tallers by shifting the blame back onto the short guy who reports the heightism, and will offer a helping of pseudo-positivity so that maybe the tallers will throw him some scraps for taking the heat off tall men or women, and subsequently shifting the blame back onto short men. They placate the status-quo by acting as agents who ensure that short men remain marginalized by counteracting short men who dissent. Garmins are also eager to see that the tall man remains comfortable by ensuring that his social perks are "justly" delivered
The fundamental flaw that Garmins make is they go far beyond "having a sense of humor about themselves" by creating a scenario where they can only be viewed as punchlines. They never get taken seriously, and they only have themselves to blame. Garmins are probably our number one obstacle in-regard to moving forward with anti-heightism efforts because they always flaunt their subservience by making every conversation lighthearted and goofy instead of allowing a serious discussion to transpire. Every media interview that speaks of heightism invites a comedian or some other short guy who prescribes self-deprecation as the remedy for those who experience heightism. Garmins are proverbial bootlickers and do not have a place in anti-heightism dialogue other than to be framed as examples of what every short man should aspire "NOT TO BE."
For those who need a more concrete example of what a Garmin in action looks like; Just take a look at Kevin Hart's entire career. Every role of Hart's depicts him as a socially incompetent, angry short male. On a yearly basis, he volunteers to be part of NBA All Star Weekend to have his height mocked, and his movie Ride Along was basically a two hour punchline about his height. However, Hart is rewarded for sacrificing his dignity because he acts the way a short man is supposed to act, so Hollywood accepts him. The world applauds short men who know their role by making a mockery of themselves and Hart sacrifices his dignity for fortune and fame.
In real life, Garmins are the guys who dress like leprechauns and elves for Christmas and St Patty's parties respectively, but more commonly, you'll see them in social settings making self-deprecating remarks about themselves to tallers and women. They think that these efforts are a way of gaining respect, but these idiotic displays of foolishness serve to accomplish nothing more than them being granted group whipping boy status and they'll never progress beyond this role within any given social group.
Where did the word Garmin come from? The word is the title of a Portlandia sketch where a short fool who compulsively uses the catchphrase "I'm a little guy," goes to painstaking efforts to classify himself as the group comic relief, wants everyone to know that he's fine with the notion that he doesn't rate manhood, and wants to present himself as an innocuous being who embraces subservience. He does so in a manner that is so intense that it makes everyone else uncomfortable. Even though no one even thought of making his height an issue, other than using it as a physical descriptor in the beginning of the sketch, he constantly brings it up to the point of ridiculousness.
Here's the link to Porlandia's Garmin sketch
streamable.com/yloke
In essence, Garmins are the main reason why we can't address heightism effectively. They do everything they can to reinforce the notion that short men are goofy court jesters who are available for comic relief at their own expense. Garmins are also perpetually focused on soothing the concerns of bigoted tall people who are in danger of being scrutinized for their discriminatory beliefs and actions. Every short male will receive cues, advice, and signals stating that he should make a mockery of himself if he wants to "fit in," but this is nothing more than snake oil sold by the status-quo. The only scraps a Garmin will ever receive is maybe tallers(if they're so inclined) will not mock him as much, or maybe the talls will let him tag-along during social outings where short men are generally not welcome, but these Garmins will never be taken seriously as an integral part of any social group. Their sole purpose is comic relief at their own expense, and this both begins and ends their role in the group. Don't be a Garmin, short men. Don't buy into your own subservience, and don't stand in the way of other short men who are advocating for a society where short men aren't expected to degrade themselves to the delight of those who do not respect them.
Feel free to add other Garmin behaviors that I left-out.
