I think some people are confusing park rat posers with true gapers here. In my mind a gaper is someone new to skiing who doesn't really have a clue, from how they carry their skis, to wearing stupid clothing, to hitting the jumps next to rails and thinking they are the shit. These gapers are not neccessarily a negative thing, everyone enjoys mocking them, and the revenue they bring into town allows more people to live in the mountains. I was a gaper once, I am pretty sure that I'm not any more.
Park rat posers are people who have good gear, but a bad attitude. Just because a kid has good gear but no skills doesn't mean they deserve hate, the same for people that can't make a turn outside the park. Either way, they aren't gapers.