Facebook Stalker — Penn Masala

The following video has already been viewed 3.2 million times on YouTube, so it hardly needs a link from me. But what the hell, it’s funny:

Penn Masala have a new CD out, and they were recently featured on NPR. But why do I have the feeling that they will now be best known — and beloved — by college students everywhere for “The Facebook Skit”?

294 thoughts on “Facebook Stalker — Penn Masala

  1. the hypocrisy charge was for anyone who castigated this facebook behavior, but found no harm in a girl “strategically” situating herself to be near someone she’s finds attractive, even if she’s only seen him “tangentially” which in my book constitues being a stranger.

    You assume that men and women are

    1) endowed with similar observational skills 2) respond to the same signals 3) those skills and receptors are normally distributed for both sexes 4) there exists a mono-cultural of norms

    …to which I say, NOT! Not every inanimate object needs to be hit with your Hypocrisy Hammer.

  2. How do I assume any of those? What I do assume is that we should live in a society that treats human beings equally. If you disagree with that at a substantive level, then I can see your quibble.

    As for your list:

    1,2,3 aren’t really of any relevance. How do difference of signals and relative observational skills relate to the use of a computer to facilitate ‘bumping into’ or just plain seeing someone in class?

    and 4 is too vague a statement to have any meaning ‘mono cultural of norms’?

  3. For the record, I’m with nala on this one. Maybe we’re in the same general demographic, maybe we’re not. There is a difference between wanting to get to know someone you’ve MET face-to-face versus someone you have never met save by looking them up on the internet. I definitely know guys who had seen a girl in a neighboring dorm and then wanted to “bump into” them by hanging around where they lived. In my opinion, that absolutely toed the border of “stalking” as far as I’m concerned.

    In my opinion that is just the pre-internet-days style of approaching someone you are too shy to go up to directly and introduce yourself, so you make it look like you “bumped into” them and then strike up a conversation. I’ve done it a few times in my awkward puberty days. It worked so I carred it into my teens. Sure it seems silly now, what with technology being able to bring people in contact with one another in a more “efficient” way, but whatever, it is still a way for shy people to approach their crushes.

  4. Hey puliogre and manju, get a frickin life already. How many one line posts are you two losers gonna inflict on us?

    who has less of a life, the guy that posts 1 line comments, or the guy who posts a 1 liner complaining about 1 liners?

  5. Woulda been funny if the post was:

    “Hey puliogre and manju, get a frickin life already. How many one line posts are you two losers gonna inflict on us?”

  6. I agree the facebook “stalking” described by JB is useless, but by no means harmful or threatening.

    why don’t we ask the girls who he sends messages to and ‘pokes,’ or the girls who his friends trail and stare at how they feel?

    /last comment, for real

  7. The guy has no social skills, lives at home, is almost 30 and has been a student for 7 or 8 years, but never even got his first-year degree.

    Living at home at the age of 30 is not unusual for desis, and in India it is the norm for a single daughter to live at home till marriage and for the the son of the family to live at home for his whole life, bringing his bride to live with her in-laws. It seems odd to us outside of India, but it’s a cultural norm there that is often carried over into other countries/cultures. This may or may not also contribute to the lack of social skills in other arenas. The student for 7 or 8 years thing though is odd for a desi.

  8. The student for 7 or 8 years thing though is odd for a desi

    Unless he was a PhD or med student, or some other type of graduate student.

    why don’t we ask the girls who he sends messages to and ‘pokes,’ or the girls who his friends trail and stare at how they feel

    I feel like I’ve stumbled on the fem-aggeration olympics. When did I ever mention the friend who trails? As for the pokes, how is it any different than a girl accidentally bumping into?

  9. As for the pokes, how is it any different than a girl accidentally bumping into?

    y’ know, poke is such a suggestive word.

    I would like to state for the record, that I am stalking everyone on SM. Puli is EVERYWHERE.

    puli, are you getting into hedge funds soon? are you into bondage? if so, poke me on facebook (if you know what i’m sayin’).

    for the rahul fans, “poke me on facebook”=what the kids are calling it these days.

  10. OH… MY… GOD there are 100+ comments about me!

    Nala – Please leave me alone. Fantasizing about me in this manner is…a little creepy…and stalkerish. I know you secretly want me ;).

  11. @121 Manju: hehehehe. who invented this word? heheheheheh.

    its mine! i even googled to check, and nothing came up. if there are any IP lawyers out there, please help me make a buck off this. (does anyone remember kobsayahi’s brilliant “frontlash” btw)

  12. ok one last comment, to defend my honor:

    HMF, I want to agree with you, but you make it so hard to do. I quoted what you wrote to just point out that perhaps we should ask the girls who are on the receiving end of JB and his friends’ attentions if they feel threatened. There have been comments on this thread along the lines of, ‘It doesn’t seem creepy to me, so it’s not creepy,’ notably #99 and the guy who asked if stalking is inherently creepy. I just feel like that kind of attitude invalidates other people’s experiences. I don’t really have the patience to discuss this with you anymore (and I am so tempted to get snippier, but I get the feeling that would just be thrown back into my face as a ‘fem-aggeration,’ so I won’t).

    JB – You’re only kind of right, I secretly want Matt Damon as Jason Bourne. p.s. Please don’t flatter yourself by thinking that I ‘fantasize’ about you simply because I’m discussing something that you said on an online forum.

  13. its mine! i even googled to check, and nothing came up. if there are any IP lawyers out there, please help me make a buck off this.

    i don’t know any IP lawyers, but bookmark this page so that you can quote it as your ‘prior art’ and sue anyone else who tries to use it without royalty. 🙂

  14. puli, are you getting into hedge funds soon? are you into bondage? if so, poke me on facebook (if you know what i’m sayin’). for the rahul fans, “poke me on facebook”=what the kids are calling it these days.

    i used to be anti-networking sites. now, i just HAVE to get facebook…

  15. Its a shame that desi girls are so damn fugly that desi guys have to lust after white girls to the point of stalking. Innit?

    Date White, Marry Desi – simple.

    I can date/f*ck a white/asian girl without worry of ‘indian girl drama’ or family reputation. I can get Desi girls but I choose not to. Ok folks, I must study and work now.

    hides in bombshell

  16. ask the girls who are on the receiving end of JB and his friends’ attentions if they feel threatened.

    and riders on the NYC subway might feel threatened by the guy wearing a turban, but that doesn’t necessarily make him threatening. Assessing threat in any sphere, cannot simply be done by “does so and so feel threatened” although, it’s a fair question to ask, but cannot be taken as the sole indicator.

    but I get the feeling that would just be thrown back into my face as a ‘fem-aggeration,’

    are you denying that you added the “friends trailing/stalking” when I had made no reference to it whatsoever?

    HMF, I want to agree with you, but you make it so hard to do.

    What can I say? I keep it real.

  17. I can get Desi girls but I choose not to

    But of course you dont, because they unfortunately are not blessed with the white skin and pink nipples that drive desi guys to distraction ( and stalking).

  18. Its a shame that desi girls are so damn fugly that desi guys have to lust after white girls to the point of stalking. Innit?

    So I guess that’s why all the white and black men I know are crazy for desi girls? Because they are so fugly?

    You might want to consider that perhaps the desi girls are not interested in your type, and that is why you are so bitter.

  19. I can date/f*ck a white/asian girl without worry of ‘indian girl drama’ or family reputation. I can get Desi girls but I choose not to. Ok folks, I must study and work now.

    And that’s one of the reasons many of us desi girls date white or black, not brown, too avoid all that Desi Hungama. Not to mentione size (black) and skills (white).

  20. ok one last comment:

    But of course you dont, because they unfortunately are not blessed with the white skin and pink nipples that drive desi guys to distraction ( and stalking).

    all brown people must worship white skin and pink nips.

    So I guess that’s why all the white and black men I know are crazy for desi girls? Because they are so fugly? You might want to consider that perhaps the desi girls are not interested in your type, and that is why you are so bitter

    .

    Edit: hot white girls are not interested in my type, that is why i am so bitter. i love desi girls as friends in college, but i would never date them.

    And that’s one of the reasons many of us desi girls date white or black, not brown, too avoid all that Desi Hungama. Not to mentione size (black) and skills (white).

    these type of actions/comments are the reason why ABD guys go to India for a wife. American women, in general, are messed up in the head.

  21. 141 dravidian lurker said

    so, do facebook employees poke members they like, just look them up and find them in IRL (yes, i’m with it), or just date other employees?

    haha, actually she did ask him that and he said that they are not supposed to.. If they do or don’t, is entirely up to debate.

  22. and riders on the NYC subway might feel threatened by the guy wearing a turban, but that doesn’t necessarily make him threatening. Assessing threat in any sphere, cannot simply be done by “does so and so feel threatened” although, it’s a fair question to ask, but cannot be taken as the sole indicator.

    sorry, but that is completely different. JB and his friends actively made contact with the girls, whereas a guy in a turban is simply just there. I think the ‘it’s not creepy because I say it’s not’ attitude is more similar to ‘it’s not racist because I’m not offended.’

    are you denying that you added the “friends trailing/stalking” when I had made no reference to it whatsoever?

    read what i said again. i wasn’t responding to you only, but to the ‘it’s not creepy because I say it’s not’ attitude. i’m not specifically accusing you of anything. except for…

    What can I say? I keep it real.

    …making me ‘LOL’ with this.

    also, i’m convinced by now that JB is a troll.

  23. all brown people must worship white skin and pink nips.

    Well said Jason. Your attitude is admirable. Whites are indeed superior to desis aesthetically (and in most other ways too) and deserve to be worshipped.

    white girls are not interested in my type, that is why i am so bitter

    Well you cant really blame them for not finding desi guys attractive. Can you?

    these type of actions/comments are the reason why ABD guys go to India for a wife

    Come on Jason, you know why desi guys go to the desh for a wife. Any desi living abroad is a catch in the marriage market there and has the pick of the litter. White girls may consider you too fugly and dorky but you and I know that in India most any girl would jump at the opportunity to be your wife and get a green card to paradise. Am I right or what?

  24. nala et al, now you can establish your supremacy over the identities of the bournes of this world. puli, still hot on all those networking sites?

  25. read what i said again. i wasn’t responding to you only

    you quoted me, then asked a question. If you included the example of the friends “stalking” then you shouldn’t have responded to me at all. That’s the heart of your exaggeration, somehow taking my statement and conflating it with an outright dismissal of anyone who feels threatened in any situation.

    but to the ‘it’s not creepy because I say it’s not’ attitude.

    likewise, the statement “it is creepy, because I say it is” is equally nonsensical. books will be written on how real I keep it.

  26. dravidian lurker – hee, that article (and accompanying evil-looking mug) cracked me up. i tend not to add many fb applications though, so i think i’ll have to pass.

  27. but you and I know that in India most any girl would jump at the opportunity to be your wife and get a green card to paradise. Am I right or what?

    maybe 20 years back, but not anymore.

  28. maybe 20 years back, but not anymore.

    I agree, it’s true. My parents sadly informed me. :'( I guess I have to join JB and poke strangers on fb.

  29. these type of actions/comments are the reason why ABD guys go to India for a wife. American women, in general, are messed up in the head.

    So what you are saying is that desi guys go back to India for a wife because they can’t deal with women who know what they want and are vocal about it? Because women in India will “settle” quietly for a less than ordinary sex life, whereas American born women are apt to vocalize their dissatisfaction and hurt the male ego?

  30. If you have such a low opinion of white American women, then why are you so desperate to date them?

    If you have such a high opinion of Indian women (or other non-American women) then why not be desperate to date them?

    If you prefer non-American women, no problem, that is no different than my friends preferring non-desi men, however even my friends do not stereotype all desi men as being the same and while doing so, express a desperate desire to date/bed them.

  31. will the bourne-watabe rivalry match the halcyon days of hmf-manju? bets are ON!

  32. And that’s one of the reasons many of us desi girls date white or black, not brown, too avoid all that Desi Hungama. Not to mentione size (black) and skills (white).

    By the way JB, when I wrote that above I had DESI girls in mind, both American born and those who are Desh born and relocate here later in life. We have our calendars full so if you and Bollyhood think we’re too fugly or too dramatic to date, believe me, that doesn’t mean we are sitting home Saturday nights. And guess what? We are NOT returning to India to find husbands. Any guesses why?

  33. If you have such a low opinion of white American women, then why are you so desperate to date them?

    Sexy time!

    -Borat

    If you have such a high opinion of Indian women (or other non-American women) then why not be desperate to date them?

    I respect them. This site says it all: http://www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Page19.htm

    We are NOT returning to India to find husbands. Any guesses why?

    Umm… perhaps no DBD wants a Desi girl who’s been with a black guy?

  34. “Umm… perhaps no DBD wants a Desi girl who’s been with a black guy?”

    “Damn. That’s f*cked up” -Dave Chappelle.

  35. here are what the eyes of all-American valley girls look like. As you can see, they look vacant, conceited, plastic, empty, and in love with money and illusion.

    So why on earth do you shamelessly drool over these ‘vacant, conceited, plastic, empty’ girls and feel so bitter that they find you repulsive???????????

    How about posting your own pic so that we can all see what the eyes of a social misfit desi stalker look like?

  36. HMF- i don’t really want to argue over petty details. peace out.

    uhh. yeah. because the difference between a facebook poke and showing up at your apartment unnannounced is like, well, the same thing, right?

  37. oh fucking hell. HMF, you really really make it hard for me to like you. by ‘petty details’ I meant going back-and-forth over shit like ‘you misquoted me’ and ‘no i didn’t i meant it within a different context.’ and no, a facebook poke is not the same thing as showing up at someone’s apartment unannounced. wtf do you want me to say?

  38. HMF, you really really make it hard for me to like you.

    didnt know you were tryin’

    by ‘petty details’ I meant going back-and-forth over shit like ‘you misquoted me’ and ‘no i didn’t i meant it within a different context.’ and no, a facebook poke is not the same thing as showing up at someone’s apartment unannounced. wtf do you want me to say?

    Well, fem-aggerations happen quite a bit. Just say that I

  39. We are NOT returning to India to find husbands. Any guesses why?
    Umm… perhaps no DBD wants a Desi girl who’s been with a black guy?

    I see what you mean. If I were a desi guy like JB I wouldn’t want to be compared to a previous black lover either, if you know what I mean. LOL.

  40. i yearn for the good old innocent days when nips used to mean the stealthy gulps from the hip flask during the middle of the work day.

  41. didnt know you were tryin’

    I don’t know many desis (even among politically liberal ones) who will recognize that things like ‘institutional racism’ and ‘white privilege’ exist. Which is why your hostility is disarming.

  42. I don’t know many desis (even among politically liberal ones) who will recognize that things like ‘institutional racism’ and ‘white privilege’ exist.

    Eh. its hard when so many are enrolled in university of texas.

  43. university of texas?

    aww, come on, don’t you know all graduates of the ut system are racists? you must be in the pay of the man, if you are not the man yourself.