- Joined
- May 13, 2019
I can give you this answer. It's cause the VAs didn't give the community or fanbase any choice to ignore this. It's in the center of both, because of the VAs, they are the ones who fanned the flames of this whole mess. A lot of people don't know what to do with this. So there will be those "lost lambs" in the mess. This is what happens when all of a sudden there is a hurricane in the center of one or more places you went to relax at.So this thread is as good a place as any to pose this question that I've been thinking about for a bit.
What is with the bizarre neediness #ISWV and Nick Rekieta's fanbase? I've seen a lot of strange autism in a lot of online "movements" but this particular group just feels so desperate for something to latch onto.
My theory is that it all comes down to daddy issues. Nick and Vic (Ty, as well) are charismatic, successful, right-leaning older men with nerd centric hobbies. This particular combination of traits is positions them perfectly to serve as surrogate father figures for the generation of "latchkey kids" who spent too much time on the internet and are now coming of age (and economic viability.) No one understands the downsides of a lack of a strong father figure when they're young, it just seems normal, but men start to wonder about what they missed out on around 18-25, when the spectre of potentially raising a child in the future looms over them. I don't think it's a coincidence that so many men in this age group who have retreated to "nerd" subcultures seem to spend their time and money on this cause, spurred on by men who signify the types of masculinity that they likely wish they had in their lives in their youth.
The social reality of conservatism serving as one of the primary counter-cultures in 2019 also plays into their appeal because it makes them "The Cool Dad." It sort of reminds me of when I found out my friend's dad played guitar for an obscure hardcore punk group that I was into - except I was 14 at the time and entirely too many of Nick/ISWV fans seem to be grown, disillusioned and confused men looking for direction. It's all very strange to watch and something that I'll probably think about a lot more in the future.
There's also a discussion to be had about their levels of (apparent) sexual success and the appeal of casual Christianity among young men, but that's probably a bit too off-topic.