Playing Roles in Role Playing Games.

I'm a nerd.

Geek, dork, whatever term you want to use, I'm it.

In recent years, of course, nerd has become cool, in a way. Zac Levi, the titular nerdy star of the show Chuck runs a website called the Nerd Machine, and the Nerd shirt that they sell has been seen on plenty of people you wouldn't necessarily consider nerds. Even Miami Heat star Dwayne Wade.

By owning the title "nerd," it's become more acceptable. At Best Buy, the Geek Squad proudly owns its title. Levi and his compatriots wear Nerd on their chests like badges of honor. Video game tees populate not only Hot Topic but American Eagle. In ways, the counterculture has been turned into pop culture. 

Competition's Withering State

Recently, professional basketball player and life-long Ohioan LeBron James left his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, to play with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade on the Miami Heat. This is old news, but I'm not so much interested in the act itself as I am interested in motivations behind the act and the reactions to the act. In Ohio, fans claimed that in last year's playoffs, LeBron quit, that he was already looking forward to his impending free agency, despite the fact that the series between Cleveland and Boston was tied at two games a piece. After the series, James himself expressed disappointment with his team's decision making, particularly in regards to giving James other talented players to work with.

So, he left for Miami.