In the midst of the word he was trying to say,
In the midst of his laughter and glee
He had softly and suddenly vanished away –
For the snark was a Boojum, you see.

Hope I’m not the only one who finds this interesting.

Well you know that until American advertising executives get hold of something, and then use it to mass-market to the oh-so-savvy American adolescent, then that thing doesn’t exist. And then when that particular thing does spring into existence it’s all the invention of said coolest-ever-people-ever.

Like the stuffed shirts over at Television Without Pity? I’m sorry for assuming that the term is new slang; I’d never encountered it, either in print or IRL, anywhere but blogs and sites like the aforementioned. I didn’t mean to imply that making up slang constituted creativity, just special interest.

The way the whole lads mags/Tucker Max/GGW phenomena is marketed is an example of this. Anyone who finds these things objectionable will be greeted with “but it’s ironic”, as if that is the only measure of something’s worth, or renders the thing immune from examination.
“Irony” is now a mainstream mass-market tool, irony itself having being subverted, and turned into a buzz-word which can be used to justify a particular lifestyle and set of consumer patterns: Behave like The Man tells you to, people, – it’s ironic !

…So the hipsters don’t get to claim sui generis, but the multinationals can? Come on, now. “Lighten up! It’s all in good fun!” has been used in attempts to deflate criticism of viciously reactive insults for a lot longer than Found magazine has been in business. The only difference now is that ironic humor seems to have become more popular, and the defense of narrow-mindedness as specifically ironic humor is therefore more popular as a result.

Yes, but what is interesting about many of the modern claims to irony, is that instead of being used to counter the oppression of the mainstream, or to challenge the powers that be, it is used in service or defence of these powers.

The way the whole lads mags/Tucker Max/GGW phenomena is marketed is an example of this. Anyone who finds these things objectionable will be greeted with “but it’s ironic”, as if that is the only measure of something’s worth, or renders the thing immune from examination.

“Irony” is now a mainstream mass-market tool, irony itself having being subverted, and turned into a buzz-word which can be used to justify a particular lifestyle and set of consumer patterns: Behave like The Man tells you to, people, – it’s ironic !

Well you know that until American advertising executives get hold of something, and then use it to mass-market to the oh-so-savvy American adolescent, then that thing doesn’t exist. And then when that particular thing does spring into existence it’s all the invention of said coolest-ever-people-ever.

Cos, you know, no-one in the whole history of mankind anywhere ever used irony before. Not ever.

I like the drawing of connections between being queer and the use of irony and sarcasm. Being queer has left me with a certain degree of cynicism about the world. Sarcasm, irony and cynicism seem to be natural companions for me. I can’t quite explain why, but they feel connected.

I’ll have to mull this over some more.

I think it’s part of any outsider indentity or status. The queerer you are, the more outsider you tend to be in this society. Irony is the language outsiders use to subvert mainstream discourse. (God, that sounded way more academic than it needed to.) It’s more or less intended only to be understood by hip people. In some way, it’s a bit of a secret handshake — make an ironic crack about something, and you can tell the people who get it by who cracks a knowing smile.

Having grown up with so few amenities, this family’s difficulties seem minor and their frustrations seem silly. Whenever I hear about people going on a “camping trip” where they’re going to end up living better than I did for the whole of my childhood/adolescence, my skin crawls.

Most of my adult life has been spent living on the edge of the low edge of poverty, starting with my ex who had us from camp sites to cars to on a regular basis. My leaving him with my kids graduated me to a long stint on welfare. I would have had higher status if I had been a prostitute.

Just had to put in, I know exactly the feeling you speak of. It is disturbing to say the least that a leading liberal national newspaper routinely assumes that the only people’s lives worth discussing are those of the white middle and upper middle set.

The rest of us apparently don’t exist. Nothing new.

Irony and sarcasm are such touchy topics sometimes—especially when talking to someone who just doesn’t get it. Dry sarcasm is one of my favorite forms of humor, but I occasionally find that it gets me in trouble with people who are a wee bit too literal. I often have to throttle back on my sarcasm for fear of confusing or hurting other people.

I like the drawing of connections between being queer and the use of irony and sarcasm. Being queer has left me with a certain degree of cynicism about the world. Sarcasm, irony and cynicism seem to be natural companions for me. I can’t quite explain why, but they feel connected.

I’ll have to mull this over some more.

I clicked on the asterisked link, and I suppose I got what I asked for. All the world needs is a ski trip to Tahoe! With our own cabins! Then, no more violence!

Yup. It was the kind of thing I expect to see in The Onion, not in earnest.