Western Pimps vs. Asian Idols

Going to Japan, I noticed a stark difference between how the Asian Idols presented themselves, versus how it's done in the West. At the same time, at a deeper level, they both do the same thing. Of course I'll say in advance, there are exceptions to both rules, I'm speaking in broad generalities, etc. etc. etc.

In the West, pimps want to be seen surrounded by babes at all times. The more the better. Rap videos are famous for this. The idea here is to trigger jealousy patterns in the viewer. It's a technique built off the insecurity and lust which lie at the heart of human nature.

Asian idols do it completely different. They go out of their way to avoid being photographed with any girls at all. In fact, if they're caught with a girl, it has detrimental effects on their career. The idea here is to seem extremely approachable. With the great Asian idols there's a sort of "boy next door" image they're going for.


When either strategy is done intentionally and deliberately, it comes from a place of deception. The man presents a false mask to the world.

When that happens, it's part of a deeper problem in social interaction, one which I call "Smoke and Mirrors". Smoke and Mirrors is anything fake which is done to trick people socially. I've caught my own self doing this, and it scared me when I became aware of just how much my ego was in control. As a matter of fact, the realization came halfway through my Japan trip. Some of my photos are unusable because I was taking them in fake poses, surrounded by girls even though I didn't really even know them.

I'm not saying taking photos surrounded by babes is inherently bad. I'm only saying it can be dishonest if it's, well, dishonest.

With a fake Western-style player image, there are two types of viewers. Those who are in on the secret, and those who aren't. Among those who are in on the secret, the whole pose is transparent and the fact it's being faked is obvious. Among those who aren't, all the pose accomplishes is to stir up bad feelings, feelings of jealousy, insecurity and so on. That goes for guy viewers as well as girl viewers. So, if I'm not really surrounded by harems of girls, pretending like I am doesn't do anyone any good. I guess it gives me a shot of flimsy outer feel-good state, which lasts approximately no time at all.

I have less knowledge of the Asian "boy next door" type of image, not having as much experience with Asian culture. When it's faked, I suppose it's better than the Western style fakery, in the sense that it stirs up false feelings of hope instead of false feelings of envy. But if it's fake, it's still fake. Though, I guess outside of the actual famous idols, not that many people would fake this. That could be why I'm less aware of it among guys.

Here's the catch, though. I want to present my totally real, true self to the world. No more hiding behind fake masks of any kind or culture. That means, I can no longer attempt to hide my flaws behind superficial masks. So if I don't want to show a flaw, that leaves me just two other options. To either fix the flaw, or learn to accept it.

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Here are a few other articles I've written. One general pattern with the articles on the blog up til recently is, the later the publication date, the more "genuine" they tend to be. I guess that's a positive sign, it means my quest to provide you with real value is on the right track and I'm getting better.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: A Man Of Courage, Passion, and Freedom
The Language Tradeoff: Learning Language Through Travel
The Nimbus Quest: Introduction
Intelligent Design And Intelligent Video Games