Anything popular must suck

(idea) by CaptainSpam (4.7 y) (print) ? 1 C! I like it! Fri Jan 21 2000 at 19:20:27

Common theory among the people who believe that Capitalism urges you to define yourself through your purchases. The theory goes that if anything is being enjoyed by the masses, it must suck horribly, solely based on the fact that it is popular.

(idea) by ukyoCE (2.3 y) (print) ? 1 C! I like it! Thu Apr 06 2000 at 1:32:10

Thought by many extremist non-comformists who are only "non-comformists" because anti-conformity is popular in their middle school or high school.

Some people asserted their individuality, perhaps did some things that weren't quite normal, and everyone else who wanted attention started doing the same thing.

Seeing how they are doing the right thing for the wrong reason, they don't know how to discern popular things which suck from those which don't.

Some popular things are popular because they don't suck!

Not every popular thing is popular just because some exec at MTV or Mattel wanted to make some money by starting a fad.

The moral: ignore popularity when judging things. Neither like nor dislike solely based on popularity.

(idea) by jop (1.5 mon) (print) ? I like it! Sat Apr 14 2001 at 10:07:37

Especially applicable to movies. Many people assume that popular movies cannot be good, because somehow they have been cheapened by all the constraints of Hollywood production. In their minds, only the small/independent films can have content that is of value.

I've reconciled this notion with the theory that popular movies can 'summon' already existing content. For example, American Beauty was based around rolling with the punches and not getting so worked up over everything. That's a philosophy that has always existed, the movie just brought attention to it. Just because American Beauty won the Oscar doesn't make a loose life style any less valid.

printable version
chaos

I'm glad I'm white	Capitalism urges you to define yourself through your purchases	Why C++ rules	Abercrombie & Fitch
bah weep graaagnah wheep, ni ni bong	Open letter from Saddam Hussein to the American peoples and the western peoples and their gov'ts	The difference between Everything2 and H2G2	Why underground music is "better" than commercial music
I may not know anything but I know I'm not American	It's better to be alone than to wish you were	Nonconformists for the sake of nonconformity	The Wit and Wisdom of Homer J. Simpson
American Beauty	ABBA	Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven	Gap
MTV	Suck line	Why Linux sucks	Indie Rock Pete
Don Quixote	I'm no better off with a car than I am without one	high school	middle school

Y'know, if you log in, you can write something here, or contact authors directly on the site. Create a New User if you don't already have an account.

Login
Password

remember me
password reminder
register

Everything2 Help

Nodes your sibling would have liked:
Dr. Seuss
Safe Passage Through the Night
Joseph Mallord William Turner
sashimi
Flapper
Tulipomania
Indian Recipes
Saint John's wort
Alcibiades
analytic/synthetic distinction
Boris Johnson
Sylvia Pankhurst
Behind the scenes at a supermarket produce department

Ouzo
PETA becomes you, a proposed future	(fiction)
Ereneta
Stone Soup, Part Two	(person)
jjen
Sorrier than I ever thought I would be	(personal)
locke baron
Moskva class antisubmarine cruiser	(thing)
Wuukiee
May 15, 2008	(idea)
locke baron
Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier	(thing)
_lesra
for abby	(thing)
Adaptive Child
Annie's garden salsa	(recipe)
Simulacron3
Zig-Zag	(thing)
Ouzo
Special Grilled Cheese	(fiction)
Noung
Tiananmen Square Massacre	(idea)
aneurin
Lord St Clair	(person)
artman2003
Assholes and Douchebags: A Comparison	(person)
locke baron
Tyan Thunder K8WE	(thing)
locke baron
Udaloy class destroyer	(thing)

This affordable entertainment brought to you by The Everything Development Company