I applaud the people who say yes...but seriously guys being an Otaku is a bad thing, the term has become so loosely used it's annoying.

in my personal opinion its not but alot of people think it means you dont have a life (but i do have a life, so i dont think its bad)

^ then you are not an Otaku then. 'Otaku' is litrually translated to 'home' in japanese, meaning you are so obsessed with something that you never leave your house, the terms has become so loosely used...by non Japanese speakers.

i didnt say i consider myself otaku. i said i dont think its a bad thing

i guess it depends on who youre talking to..

^ oh i see i see, sorry for my misinterpretation.

no i dont mind. i totally understand the way you see it too.

not bothered by anyone being an otaku or care if some people think that its a bad thing

It's supposed to be used as a negative term but people warped the meaning.

It's supposed to be basically the same thing as a loser, except it has a more defined meaning.

^ finally someone who said yes!
it's an insult so by people calling themselfs otaku's they must have really low self esteem because they are insulting themselves XD

Well, depends what type of friend, cousins and family you have (MY OPINION) hehe........

Yes, it is
They doesn't have life

I think it depends, but I say no

Well I guess it depends on what exactly the person is doing,I mean I don't think there's anything wrong with showing off what you love and reading manga and watching anime every day..I mean all day..that's different,but I don't think it's problem as long as a person does what they have to do (like eat,drink etc and the basics),but if they don't do those things,while being one..then it's a completely different story..but overall I don't think it's bad a thing to be one.

Well, I don't think being an otaku is a bad thing. You said that otaku mean home, saying that the person is so obsessed with something that they never leave their home. That's an abstract meaning. It could simply mean that someone lves something a lot. For example, Konata Izumi from Lucky Star is definitely an otaku. Yet the fans adore her. Being an otaku isn't exactly bad. Otaku also means obsessed fan. Therefore, you can be an otaku with many different things. For example, I am an otaku with writing, anime, manga, drawing, and playing with small animals. I'm obsessed with all of those things, so I'm an otaku with all of those things. Otaku may have a bad connotation in Japan, but hey, we're American and other nationalities, not only Japanese. We should enjoy our ignorance. Besides, it's not like someone from Japan is going to look down on America because American otakus don't use the word correctly. Sure it's not culturally correct in Japan, but what about America? England? France? Germany? India? Mexico? Spain? So many nationalities are in the anime club. Not only Japanese. Therefore, since we don't go by the same language and cultural rules as Japan, Things that are bad there aren't bad in other countries. Sorry for rambling, and I probably sounded contradictory there. I hope you guys get what I'm trying to say.

also one more thing: why care? its their decision if they want to become an otaku, same as deciding other life choices.

@ everybody
Otaku is an insult, if you respect Japanese culture i wouldn't go round using the term so lightly. i probably don't like using the word as i speak Japanese myself and have many Japanese friends.
using it so lightly makes you look like a idiot who know's nothing about Japan except anime.

Obsession is a bad thing. i can understand if you have an actually problem, but to be obsessed with something is bad. a habit is bad and obsession is 10x worse.

not all obsessions are bad.. :)

^ this

its like me saying a sports nut has no life since he only focuses on that particular activity at the expense of others. its wrong insult said person because of said person's particular life choices. prove me wrong.

I'm obsessed with anime,i like staying at home nad not going anywhere and i don't have a life!!!!!And i don't care what others say!!!

@vampiressJazz
Well, I know plenty about Japan. I'm learning the language, I've visited before, I know plenty. I definitely respect that culture as well. But we aren't in Japan, so there's no need to follow the Japanese culture when we aren't in the country. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. We aren't in Rome, figuratively speaking, so what's the need?

i still hate it how people use the term so lightly.
i won't label myself as an otaku because i see it as a bad thing. obsesions as people have said are not always a bad thing but when people are really obsessed with it, to a point where it runs their life then that's a bad thing, it's unhealthy too!

that's why i don't like the word essentially that is what it means.

Otaku used to be used only as a strictly derogative term, but it doesn't have to be. Many words eventually develop to mean something else rather than the meaning actually derived from its roots.

When fans label them selves as Otaku's they are obviously not intending to use the negative meaning but the new meaning which was developed over time by anime and manga fans to express their love for this hobby.

I agree with Bananaadict but yeah, I still would use the term lightly. It's not as much of an insult anymore, and Otakus are usually just described as someone who watches a lot of anime and/or reads a lot of manga, even though that's not the original meaning.

How could it be?

Being a pedophile is wrong.
Being a murder is wrong.

Being a person who likes a certain kind of entertainment...animated...weird?
No.

I really don't know. but in my country yes:S