Aquariess Today

R.J. from Virgina (who posted via email) writes:

I am of course partial to pirates...butt pirates that is!

(What is wrong with you people?!)

See, the problem is that the question is a little vague. Is it who would win in a fight? Obviously ninjas 'cause they'd just kill the pirate before he even knew the ninja was there. And while being better in a fight is a factor in coolness, it's not the only thing.

Now is coolness a function of individuals? If so, then pirates win hands-down. There are plenty of cool, famous pirates (real and fictional): Blackbeard, Long John Silver, Captain Hook, Dread Pirate Roberts, Jack Sparrow, etc. The list goes on and on. But now I dare you to name a single famous ninja that isn't camp.

Or is it just a generic pirate against a generic ninja? Historically, both were looked down upon: pirates for that whole looting and pillaging and ninjas for their sneaky assassinations without honor. But are we talking present culture? In the nineties, I'd say ninjas had the upperhand. But thanks to Johnny Depp, I'd say pirates have more cachet today.

If you wanted a larger sampling, I could poll readers of my blog. I'm sure such a discussion will lead to many a hilarious comment.

No. I guess what I'm asking is which has more appeal to you in general. The question is not who would win in a fight, although, that could be the premise for you choosing one over the other. The question is simply which one you prefer.

Yes, there are not many specific Ninjas, but did we forget the Teenage Mutin Ninja Turtles?

Now, this is exactly why random questions are so cool- they get people thinking!

At least pirates have a nifty catch phrase: Arrgh! Ninja catchphrases amount to: "..."

No, "Cowabunga" doesn't count.

Easy answer: Pirates.

(No, I don't understand my unnatural fondness for pirates. Yes, I'm seeking professional help.)

Pirates!
because they are so much cooler. They have fun pasttimes and are way more famous. They also have cool pets, peglegs and neato clothes.
and now for the important part. There are famous women pirates. Can you name any famous women ninjas?
Also, pirates have some cool sayings like 'Shiver me timbers', 'yer gonna walk the plank', 'yar', 'arg' and so on.
...and how could you not like using the word booty every chance you get?

i have to go with pirates because i had a huge crush on professor shannon in college and he made me read books about them.

Who is professor Shannon? What department was he in? There weren't enough cute professors.

history!!

Oh you see, we didn't have any cute profs in the English Dept. Fee had a great personality, but he wasn't cute. The writing prof was a little cute (when he kept his hat on, b/c he was bald)- but I can't remember his name right now.

The thing is, his wife worked there too, and she was good looking. So all the guys wanted to bang her. I mean, my friend told me once that he really wanted to bang her hard (b/c he could be vulgar) and then it was hard to even look at her. I was like "Oh no Katherine, you're going to let him do that to you!" (Funny, I remember her name.) Vulgarity is charming, isn't it?

But my boyfriend is a teacher, and I was his student teacher, and that had all the allure of being so wrong. It's amazing that we're still together, now that it's less wrong. But, I guess I like him anyway:)