41 thoughts on “i was OFFENDED by this AWFUL Wall Street Journal article!”
oh lmao i forgot,, actually i HAVE been gatekeeped for my less childish collections…. i was told i wasn't allowed to buy the Lilo&Stitch soundtrack CD when i was in highschool bc i was "too old for that"…. first of all, NO. second of all, that CD is like 98% Elvis… is elvis too childish!????? so confusing and i still dont have that cd smhhhh
I wanted an American Girl Doll back in the day. Samantha to be exact but we didn't have that sort of money in my family. Today, I am very much an adult, and I play the sims and collect Dr Who and Nightmare Before Christmas items. I have gotten more picky about the items I put in my collection since I don't have a ton of space. I would love a Dr Who Build a Bear but I'd worry if it fell off the shelf that my dog would eat it.
I got a lego botanicals set a few months ago and had a lot of fun building it. 10/10 would like to get another one. I have a few plushies for the simple fact that they're cute and I like looking at them.
Mostly though- I've been obsessed with Scooby Doo since I was 6. Last year, a friend got me a little hot wheels version of the Mystery Machine. Scooby brings me joy. Why wouldn't I indulge that interest as much as possible when I'm stressed from work or grad school?? It's not harming anyone and I'm still paying my bills. This article is as dumb as a bag of rocks.
Never had American girl dolls here, they were super expensive and I hated those rich kids who had them and showed them off. Anyway what do “they” expect us to be doing then? If not having some fun hobbies? What are more “adult” things to these people?? Drinking and going to sports events? Ok but what else?
I’m 36 and certainly do not feel like a real adult that’s for sure, but also don’t have or want kids so I can do whatever hobbies I like then. Puzzles games and endless trips to Disneyland. They make fun of Disney adults too 🤦🏽♀️
I'm also bothered by the HP dress for the doll, not because it's not Americana (I'm neither American nor British) but because ew, promoting & giving money to Rowling in 2022…
It's the Wall Street Journal. It's written by and for people who are 'adults' that have no interests other than acquiring more wealth. Or maybe getting laid. They don't know anything about real people. So does it surprise you that they got this so wrong?
I was also a large child! I became full grown at the ripe old age of 10. I gained maybe 1-1.5 more inches after but that is like nothing when you're 5 feet tall. That was approximately 20 years ago…
You've never heard the horror of "kidult" before? I remember hearing that word like 10 years ago used to describe "irresponsible millennials still living in their moms' basements" and all that. I'm not sure why this derogatory term is being resurrected and redefined now to mean… adults who like toys. Either way, it's dumb.
19:27 – 19:56 being looked at by another man's eyes could never make me feel more seen dude i remember in elementary school when i tried to sell art for the stupid fake currency "bird bucks" in the back of the classroom it's a shadow of cringe that haunts me to this day
Is somebody who comes from the tech industry this is just bizarre . The prevalence of small desk toys is so large that the entire janer of Funko Pop and the technical software writing technique called "rubber ducky" ( in which programmers will try to work out a problem by trying to explain it to the rubber ducky they keep on their desk for that purpose ) happened . I have seen multiple high-tech executive army officers in high-ranking people of all types get plushies as gifts from official sources . I don't think the defense Force is run by people you could describe as particularly childlike . Not only that I find that adults who play with toys to be actually better parents because they remember the children are small people and I don't think being a good parent is something children do
It's ageism. Here's a good quote from CS Lewis about it:
“Critics who treat 'adult' as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence. And in childhood and adolescence they are, in moderation, healthy symptoms. Young things ought to want to grow. But to carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”
This article sounds like those people who are really offended that other people have hobbies that aren't exactly the same as theirs. Like, "oH nO! yOu LiKe MoViEs/dOlLs/MiNiAtUrE tRaInS/insert any hobby? ThAt'S fOr ChiLdReN!" Anything they don't like is for children, and that makes the person who enjoys them a child or something. Some people like collecting dolls, other people like collecting dolls no wait "action figures" that's different and better somehow, other people like collecting sewing supplies and then never actually finishing all the projects they bought those supplies for (It's me. I am other people. My pile of unfinished projects is… anyway, moving on), others watch movies, others watch people run around with an egg. It's a hobby. You don't have to do the hobby for it to be a hobby. It doesn't make anyone a child. Let people enjoy things.
As JRR Tolkien famously said, the the desire to appear grown up at all costs is in itself a childish trait. The flaunting of "immature" hobbies without care of judgement is actually the more mature path 🤣
As an adult who played magic the gathering before the pandemic, I can pretty confidently say that the pandemic all but killed magic the gathering tournaments
People need to chill. If your interest isn't hurting anyone, why does anyone else care? Toys are for everyone. I've collected dolls for a long time, and they make me happy. It's not about my inner child at all!
I think the Pleasant Company tattoo would be pretty cool! Especially done in a riotgrrrl style font, a bit dingy cause it would look like the stamping on dolls and add an edgy look with a cute message. I say go for it! It means a lot to you, so why not?
This article is very ableist because Autistic and Asperger’s people like collecting toys and playing video games. I found a seahorse stuffed animal at Ripley’s Aquarium and got it because I liked it. Articles should be covering how elitist and ignorant Disney Adults are than whine about adults who just happen to love toys.
The thoughts like this expressed by the article are why I don't feel like an adult despite almost being 30. It's why I sometimes feel like I need to hide those hobbies so people take me more seriously. And that shouldn't be the case. I wish the article had taken the direction you suggested at the end.
These publications are always on about millennials "killing" industries but when we give money to things we actually enjoy they try to psychoanalyze and infantilize us. The Wall Street Journal just hates that we are choosing to spend money on things they didn't tell us to want.
The fact that some people see a very human activity like play as being only appropriate for kids says a lot about modern society. One of the hardest parts of being a parent was shifting my attitude on play.
I honestly regret giving away like 99% of my HUGE childhood Barbie collection (to my younger cousins) because I wish I still had them. Don’t be like me. Don’t give up your hobbies for nobody.
Yeah no I agree with savy completely. One of my special interests is early childhood education AND I love collecting and setting up Playmobil, so I combine the two and make developmentally appropriate early Ed classroom setups with my playmobils. It's relaxing, it's something creative I enjoy, and I like to help real life teachers figure out classroom setups using my playmobil. It's super fun and WSJ has no clue what they're talking about.
I've collected old books, linens, and household items since small childhood. Those were my favorite "toys" of everything I had. I was a weird kid, apparently (whose family was happy to give lamps and bookcases and electric kettles to at Christmas). So now I keep collecting my favorite toys and no one blinks? People get to like anything they like, as long as they aren't hurting others.
As an autistic person plushies are the most important part of my life. I collect them, I crochet them, I gift them to people I care about and sell them through commissions. Without plushies I would have way less joy, creativity, and drive in my life and it is horrifying that there are neurotypical asshats trying to insist that their way of living is the only "correct" way to live. If you want other people to be robbed of their happiness to conform to you then you are not a good person and there is no way you are actually happy if you are so bothered by other people's lives.
I was a kid back in the early 90s, and Lego were already doing build competitions that drew adults and kids alike. One of my favorite Technik sets when I was 9 was a helicopter model that was targeted at a teen or adult builder.
It was GenX who popularized playing with toys into adulthood. We grew up with DnD. We created MTG (for grown ups). We are the ‘Big’ generation. FAO Schwartz died because they didn’t create cocktails for us. This WSJ article was written by a Millennial who would have shoved you into a locker, had she felt empowered to do so. Remember the poor daughters who were forced to dress like American Girl dolls in Laura Ashley to match their Boomer mothers. We’ve forgotten more than you have yet learned. And forget the vile coiner of the K-word, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about and isn’t worth your notice. Really enjoy your content. Long time lurker, first time poster.
Honestly, I collect dolls just because I like them but I think it also helps my inner child bc I was VERY poor as a child that couldn’t get a lot of dolls and accessories for them.
oh lmao i forgot,, actually i HAVE been gatekeeped for my less childish collections…. i was told i wasn't allowed to buy the Lilo&Stitch soundtrack CD when i was in highschool bc i was "too old for that"…. first of all, NO. second of all, that CD is like 98% Elvis… is elvis too childish!????? so confusing and i still dont have that cd smhhhh
yeah this article is just as ableist as the hate that "disney adults" get about liking disney "too much" "for an adult"
Having fun has no age. There is nothing wrong with being playful and enjoying toys
I wanted an American Girl Doll back in the day. Samantha to be exact but we didn't have that sort of money in my family. Today, I am very much an adult, and I play the sims and collect Dr Who and Nightmare Before Christmas items. I have gotten more picky about the items I put in my collection since I don't have a ton of space. I would love a Dr Who Build a Bear but I'd worry if it fell off the shelf that my dog would eat it.
I got a lego botanicals set a few months ago and had a lot of fun building it. 10/10 would like to get another one. I have a few plushies for the simple fact that they're cute and I like looking at them.
Mostly though- I've been obsessed with Scooby Doo since I was 6. Last year, a friend got me a little hot wheels version of the Mystery Machine. Scooby brings me joy. Why wouldn't I indulge that interest as much as possible when I'm stressed from work or grad school?? It's not harming anyone and I'm still paying my bills. This article is as dumb as a bag of rocks.
Never had American girl dolls here, they were super expensive and I hated those rich kids who had them and showed them off. Anyway what do “they” expect us to be doing then? If not having some fun hobbies? What are more “adult” things to these people?? Drinking and going to sports events? Ok but what else?
I’m 36 and certainly do not feel like a real adult that’s for sure, but also don’t have or want kids so I can do whatever hobbies I like then. Puzzles games and endless trips to Disneyland. They make fun of Disney adults too 🤦🏽♀️
Love matching dolls and costumes! That does sound super cute!
NGL, American doll always seemed super American protestant to me but Savy is making a convincing argument 🤔😅😜
Edit: I'm 36😑 does that make me like cringe infinite by this logic?
I'm also bothered by the HP dress for the doll, not because it's not Americana (I'm neither American nor British) but because ew, promoting & giving money to Rowling in 2022…
I would love to get a list of what people like this author think are acceptable hobbies and interests for adults.
Ya know, I have never heard of anyone being killed by someone wielding an AG doll or a BAB.
It's the Wall Street Journal. It's written by and for people who are 'adults' that have no interests other than acquiring more wealth. Or maybe getting laid. They don't know anything about real people. So does it surprise you that they got this so wrong?
I was also a large child! I became full grown at the ripe old age of 10. I gained maybe 1-1.5 more inches after but that is like nothing when you're 5 feet tall. That was approximately 20 years ago…
Nintendo's demographics are: casual gamers and hardcore gamers.
You've never heard the horror of "kidult" before? I remember hearing that word like 10 years ago used to describe "irresponsible millennials still living in their moms' basements" and all that. I'm not sure why this derogatory term is being resurrected and redefined now to mean… adults who like toys. Either way, it's dumb.
It seems like this article was targeted towards boomer readers
19:27 – 19:56 being looked at by another man's eyes could never make me feel more seen dude i remember in elementary school when i tried to sell art for the stupid fake currency "bird bucks" in the back of the classroom it's a shadow of cringe that haunts me to this day
Is somebody who comes from the tech industry this is just bizarre . The prevalence of small desk toys is so large that the entire janer of Funko Pop and the technical software writing technique called "rubber ducky" ( in which programmers will try to work out a problem by trying to explain it to the rubber ducky they keep on their desk for that purpose ) happened .
I have seen multiple high-tech executive army officers in high-ranking people of all types get plushies as gifts from official sources .
I don't think the defense Force is run by people you could describe as particularly childlike .
Not only that I find that adults who play with toys to be actually better parents because they remember the children are small people and I don't think being a good parent is something children do
It's ageism. Here's a good quote from CS Lewis about it:
“Critics who treat 'adult' as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence. And in childhood and adolescence they are, in moderation, healthy symptoms. Young things ought to want to grow. But to carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”
This article sounds like those people who are really offended that other people have hobbies that aren't exactly the same as theirs. Like, "oH nO! yOu LiKe MoViEs/dOlLs/MiNiAtUrE tRaInS/insert any hobby? ThAt'S fOr ChiLdReN!" Anything they don't like is for children, and that makes the person who enjoys them a child or something.
Some people like collecting dolls, other people like collecting dolls no wait "action figures" that's different and better somehow, other people like collecting sewing supplies and then never actually finishing all the projects they bought those supplies for (It's me. I am other people. My pile of unfinished projects is… anyway, moving on), others watch movies, others watch people run around with an egg. It's a hobby. You don't have to do the hobby for it to be a hobby. It doesn't make anyone a child. Let people enjoy things.
As JRR Tolkien famously said, the the desire to appear grown up at all costs is in itself a childish trait. The flaunting of "immature" hobbies without care of judgement is actually the more mature path 🤣
As an adult who played magic the gathering before the pandemic, I can pretty confidently say that the pandemic all but killed magic the gathering tournaments
People need to chill. If your interest isn't hurting anyone, why does anyone else care? Toys are for everyone. I've collected dolls for a long time, and they make me happy. It's not about my inner child at all!
me just starting the video : HO SHE'S TALL!!!! <3
I think the Pleasant Company tattoo would be pretty cool! Especially done in a riotgrrrl style font, a bit dingy cause it would look like the stamping on dolls and add an edgy look with a cute message. I say go for it! It means a lot to you, so why not?
Dear Rachel Wolf,
On behalf of all Rachels everywhere,
1) Do a better job when writing and publishing articles and
2) You HAVE permission to play, imagine, be creative, and even work on your Inner Child when playing with toys, dolls, cards, etc
You’re giving Rachels a bad name
This article is very ableist because Autistic and Asperger’s people like collecting toys and playing video games. I found a seahorse stuffed animal at Ripley’s Aquarium and got it because I liked it. Articles should be covering how elitist and ignorant Disney Adults are than whine about adults who just happen to love toys.
The thoughts like this expressed by the article are why I don't feel like an adult despite almost being 30. It's why I sometimes feel like I need to hide those hobbies so people take me more seriously. And that shouldn't be the case. I wish the article had taken the direction you suggested at the end.
Throw cringe out the window and do what you love, I think that's an awesome tattoo idea!!
These publications are always on about millennials "killing" industries but when we give money to things we actually enjoy they try to psychoanalyze and infantilize us. The Wall Street Journal just hates that we are choosing to spend money on things they didn't tell us to want.
The fact that some people see a very human activity like play as being only appropriate for kids says a lot about modern society. One of the hardest parts of being a parent was shifting my attitude on play.
I honestly regret giving away like 99% of my HUGE childhood Barbie collection (to my younger cousins) because I wish I still had them. Don’t be like me. Don’t give up your hobbies for nobody.
The Gut Milk reference omg
Yeah no I agree with savy completely. One of my special interests is early childhood education AND I love collecting and setting up Playmobil, so I combine the two and make developmentally appropriate early Ed classroom setups with my playmobils. It's relaxing, it's something creative I enjoy, and I like to help real life teachers figure out classroom setups using my playmobil. It's super fun and WSJ has no clue what they're talking about.
I've collected old books, linens, and household items since small childhood. Those were my favorite "toys" of everything I had. I was a weird kid, apparently (whose family was happy to give lamps and bookcases and electric kettles to at Christmas). So now I keep collecting my favorite toys and no one blinks? People get to like anything they like, as long as they aren't hurting others.
As an autistic person plushies are the most important part of my life. I collect them, I crochet them, I gift them to people I care about and sell them through commissions. Without plushies I would have way less joy, creativity, and drive in my life and it is horrifying that there are neurotypical asshats trying to insist that their way of living is the only "correct" way to live. If you want other people to be robbed of their happiness to conform to you then you are not a good person and there is no way you are actually happy if you are so bothered by other people's lives.
What a shock, they made up the term “kidults”, too. 😮/s
I was a kid back in the early 90s, and Lego were already doing build competitions that drew adults and kids alike. One of my favorite Technik sets when I was 9 was a helicopter model that was targeted at a teen or adult builder.
Capitalist child Savy is hysterical
It was GenX who popularized playing with toys into adulthood. We grew up with DnD. We created MTG (for grown ups). We are the ‘Big’ generation. FAO Schwartz died because they didn’t create cocktails for us. This WSJ article was written by a Millennial who would have shoved you into a locker, had she felt empowered to do so. Remember the poor daughters who were forced to dress like American Girl dolls in Laura Ashley to match their Boomer mothers. We’ve forgotten more than you have yet learned. And forget the vile coiner of the K-word, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about and isn’t worth your notice. Really enjoy your content. Long time lurker, first time poster.
Honestly, I collect dolls just because I like them but I think it also helps my inner child bc I was VERY poor as a child that couldn’t get a lot of dolls and accessories for them.