What massive overblown pop culture monstrosity/etc... are you deliberately and proudly ignoring?

The odor of "my taste is better than theirs" around that post is amazing.

I like the video for the story behind it. I have worked with a couple of young guys who model themselves on Korean Gangnam - not Gangnam-style - the real thing. The video is a terrific social commentary kick in context.

Gangnam Style, Dissected: The Subversive Message Within South Korea's Music Video Sensation


it's not random fluffy K-Pop

So ehBeth?! Do you have an infinite amount of time to listen to EVERY pop song? Watch EVERY single Youtube megasensation video? Read EVERY single bestselling novel and non-fiction books? Follow to the letter EVERY trending news story? Watch EVERY watercooler TV series? Etc...?

Due to the 24 hour a day clock and the human condition for needing sleep, I guarantee you can not do all of the things I mentioned above. You will miss out on a great majority of culture if you stay on target consuming only things that are in the ever changing pop culture radar.

The fact you dismiss my realistic view towards not being able to or wanting to go out and consume EVERYTHING in the immediate pop culture arena is just rude, overly simplistic, and unnecessary as I know you are a savvy culture consumer yourself.

I think it was probably the "deliberately and proudly" qualifiers, used together, that make it sound kind of snobbish.

There are a lot of things I deliberately stay away from -- Hollywood smash bang action films, clothing from Forever 21, Big Macs, etc., but I'm not particularly proud of myself for it.

I could say I proudly and determinedly stay away from off the shelf, over priced, spanking new house parts/wares/things but I'm not sure they would fall into the pop culture arena.

Of course I don't see/hear/read everything.

But I'm not proud of ignoring things that other people enjoy.

It's the same general disagreement that the Lightwizard and I always had. Movies vs film. Being popular isn't evidence of the quality of any form of art.

Proud is a human condition, and some of us who know some things about culture get that way, how else could there be columnists on this stuff?

Culture writers have - probably after being quite stupid for jolts of time - written arrogantly for endless years now.

Tsar is apparently crabby and speaks frankly.

I don't get the distaste for his distaste.

hey, tsar, I read the article in the Atlantic from ehBeth's cite,
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/08/gangnam-style-dissected-the-subversive-message-within-south-koreas-music-video-sensation/261462/
and the video is deeper than we get (as well as being hilarious) because we don't speak Korean. It's Korean rap and it's actually saying something, tho it's veiled. It's Korean social swatire and commentary. Suspend superciliousness for a few minutes and check it out. Try the embedded video of the translation, and look at the making of the video video too, which is pretty funny itself.

My use of proudly like most of my posts here at a2k was facetious. I've been a very prolific member here at a2k. I thought (wrongly) that most people here would have figured that out already. [animated shrug emoticon inserted here]

In answer to the original question:

serious speculation about who should be the new pope.

I know.....

Everyone seems particularly dour and literal right now, not just here but in the real world too -- myself included. I admit I first took your post as sort of pretentious but realized that probably had more to do with my mood than yours.

At first I wrote it off to election season but now I'm not so sure.

It is getting increasingly difficult to get a good debate or even have fun on A2K. Maybe it's the influx of spam and incest. I'm not about to bail out though. I like it here.

I studiously avoid Michelle Obama.

I don't think she's missed you.

I'm not saying what I ignore. I'm ignoring it.

I've been ignoring the world of computer gaming, not so much out of disdain but a bit in fear that I might be pulled into it.

I'm intrigued by the online multi-person game environments in which people actually start a buying/selling relationship which extends into the real world. But I'm hesitant to try it myself.

I ignore most of pop culture. It neither reflects my interests nor my tastes. I'm not totally unaware of it, I just don't partake of it.

I'm not particularly proud about that, and it's nothing deliberate, it's simply the way I react to what most of pop culture generally offers.

I don't know who or what Harlem Shakes is/are, but I like the music group Alabama Shakes.

I'm not familiar with Harlem Shakes or Alabama Shakes, but for myself, I like Milk Shakes, except in Massachussets they're only shaken milk, and you have to order a Frappe if you want Ice Cream in them..

As ehBeth mentioned, Gagnam Style is actually a commentary on part of Korean society. Gagnam is a district in Seoul where the very wealthy live. I also think that Psy is spoofing Korean pop music in general. Many Korean pop songs have their own signature dance (associated with that particular song only). Here is an example which I personally think is very cute:

Botox and brand name purses. (I will NOT pay that much money for a purse - are you kidding!!)

Willful cultural ignorance
http://www.avclub.com/articles/willful-cultural-ignorance,96100/