So, why is the internet so weird to begin with? In the internet’s own words, “because the internet is just a reflection of the world.”

Weirdness exists regardless of whether the internet is or isn’t. But since it is a thing, the internet has essentially empowered the weird ones to come out of their shell and to share it with the rest of the world. And accept it too.

By getting a sense of anonymity, weird folks can now use forums, social media and other modes of virtual communication to show what life is like on their end.

So, it was only a matter of time until more or less official communities started forming around this weirdness. It’s places like Reddit, 4chan and others that empower people to be themselves and to find like-minded individuals.

Others in the Quora thread pointed out that the weirdness of people is not just empowered by the internet, but rather amplified. It is these communities that pave the way of how OK weirdness is and so your threshold is pushed forward for how weird(er) you can become. And, honestly, as long as it’s quality weirdness, the internet is all for it.

But, as you might have understood already, the internet isn’t a key factor in people channeling their weirdness. As seen on r/But_Why, a lot of weird things happen in the real world (a.k.a. away from the keyboard) as well.

And then you spin it off into either r/ThanksIHateIt, or r/ThanksILoveIt.

But the ante keeps getting pushed and folks are constantly testing out just how far you can get with your level of weirdness without it entering scary territory.

How would you rate people literally touching eyeballs? Or someone curl-ironing their eyelids? Or banana and fish salad? Not the weirdest things you can see on the internet, but there’s something that just discomforts you inside, right?

So, can you push it further? Always. Should you? It depends.

One of the reasons why weird, gross and scary things are so darned attractive, and thus empowering for those weirding everyone out is simple: evolution.

All that is grotesque and bizarre teaches us of the potential dangers out there, and we can’t help but focus on it, watch its every move, so as to learn how we can defend ourselves against it.

Another reason behind this is something called “benign masochism.” At least with things like the horror genre, humans have a tendency to seek out seemingly negative experiences so that they could enjoy controlled risks. Perfect examples of this are riding the roller coaster or eating super spicy foods. You know you might regret it, but the risk is relatively low, and you love the thrill.

And when you really think about it, it can become a certain psychological mechanism that empowers folks to enjoy things that have seemingly negative connotations. If you’re hardcore enough, you can crack the code and condition yourself to enjoy things that are seemingly bad, but without that belief that they are, leaving the arousal of it all. Now that sounds weird.

Whatever the case, we are here and here is a place where giving yourself a gauntlet of pictures to go through that are grotesque, uncomfortable or otherwise cursed (and in some cases blursed) has become a certain kind of norm. Or at least it is accepted enough for us to not feel like we’re giving up our humanity for a cheap thrill. It’s quite the opposite.

And, so, what are your thoughts on any of this? Have something wildly creepy yet you can’t look away from it to share? Do so in the comment section below!

And if you want more, there’s definitely that.