Neurodiversity, Weird Al Style

I have to confess: Weird Al cracks me up.

The guy has been doing hilarious music video parodies for more than two decades, poking fun at everyone from Michael Jackson to Madonna. As Lori mentioned in a recent post, Weird Al has a new video, White & Nerdy, which parodies the hip-hop song Ridin' Dirty.

The video is chock-full of nerd stereotypes, from wearing a pocket protector to being equally fluent in JavaScript and Klingon, as well as exaggerated autistic body language (such as walking stiffly in time with the music). But even though Weird Al makes fun of the nerdy main character in just about every way imaginable, the stereotypes don't come across as insulting. The humor in the video doesn't come from nerd-bashing, but from the clash of cultures (and total mutual incomprehension) between the nerd and the "gangstas" to whom he cheerfully waves as he zips by on his Segway scooter.

It's clear that from Weird Al's point of view, nerd/geek/autistic culture is no more or less valid than gangsta culture, and any subculture is fair game for a parody. He has a refreshingly egalitarian attitude in his choice of targets; nobody's immune from being lampooned. I have no doubt that when Weird Al was in high school, he wasn't one of the popular kids who tormented the nerds, but was one of the nonconformist outsiders who had friends from all social groups. Human diversity, to him, is an endlessly fascinating source of amusement and creative inspiration.

What a contrast between Weird Al's lighthearted humor, which shows that nerds are just as funny and just as human as everyone else, and the politically correct epidemic-mongers with a pickle up their butts who piously declare that autistics must be called "people with autism" while otherwise denying the humanity of the autistic population.

I wish I could send the "combating autism" folks out to have a beer with Weird Al. It might improve their attitude.