From my vantage point, this isn’t just cultural drift; it’s spiritual formation by other means.
When Adam Mastroianni names an “epidemic of the mundane” and Byung-Chul Han diagnoses a “smoothness society,” we’re seeing the same loss through a relational lens: the slow erosion of courage to be known.
Smoothness eliminates friction—but friction is where love, truth, and transformation actually occur. Union requires resistance: two real selves meeting, not polished surfaces sliding past one another. A world without edges may feel safer, but it cannot sustain intimacy, repentance, creativity, or faith.
From a Christian perspective, this is not progress toward peace but retreat from incarnation. Christ did not arrive smooth. He arrived interruptive, embodied, offensive to systems optimized for comfort.
If everything must be frictionless, then nothing costly can remain.
Captain Beefheart himself claimed, “I May Be Hungry But I Sure Ain’t Weird.” I suppose weirdness may be in the ear of the beholder. I’ve been listening to him since 1969 but never thought he was weird. I just liked his music.
Anything different is so very needed and welcome! I used to see Root Boy Slim at the Psyche Delly, a place in my neighborhood, where he played almost every week in the late 70's. He was weird in a good way. This was his hit, 'Put a Quarter in the Juke', but 'Someone Stole my Mood Ring was better.
Hmm...interesting. Different songs seem to hit different spots for listeners. When I visited California, friends took me to see Journey. I'd never heard of them.
My acid-dropping roommate at U of MD used to play 'Boogie til you Puke' every day, or, at least, it seemed that way. Anyway, Root Boy was always fantastic live. I found out he went to Yale and was in the same fraternity with George W. Bush. He got kicked out after a year!
During a recent summer visit, my oldest grandson saw "Trout Mask Replica" in a small set of LPs next to the turntable. He wanted to listen. I put it on after warning him that it's probably the weirdest thing he's ever heard.
I don't remember how far we got (maybe not past the first side) but he asked me to take it off because it was "too weird." Heh.
I can STILL recite nearly all of The Old Fart at Play… I truly wish I had kept strong hold on that weirdness all my life, but it got educated out of me and now I’ve had to claw it back in my 60s and 70s…
Back before I retired (software) I always had the "A Squid Eating Dough..." quoted on a piece of paper tacked to the office wall. Nearly everybody would read it and say "OK....what the 'eff is THAT?!" Ha!
A big part of this analysis is missing: weird is "in" in politics, and not in a fun way. Extremely fringe ideas are now mainstream and conspiracy theories that would have never been entertained at all in the media are everywhere. Fringe figures with cruel, racist, sexist and antiscientific ideas have huge followings and get massive public attention in ways that they rarely have done previously. The Sydney Sweeney thing was about those who are reviving "eugenics" and the cracker barrel thing was driven by bots. Lots of weird is out there, just not the kind we like and people are retreating into sameness where they can to cope.
That's right, but less weird and far more mendacious, ignorant, and stupid. Couple that with huge amounts of money, and you've got something beyond weird and well into fantastically dangerous.
I would add to that as well that they aren't weird at all. They're really feebly-imagined, overfed, and overgrown kids with too much goddamned money who think anti-Semitism, misogyny, racism, and xenophobia are cute and funny. At bottom, they're squares who think they're rebels, and their wealth insulates them from their stupidity and wretchedness.
The weirdo isn't likely to return in the near future. To understand the extent and power of conformity, you have to spend time with young people. I teach at the college level. The overwhelming majority of students dress the same, listen to the same music, consume the same entertainment, and use the same slang terminology, the most telling of which is "cringe." The demonstration of passion, or even enthusiasm, is subject to mockery and ridicule. Fear of appearing "cringe" is the primary reason why most students will not speak in class. Last semester, I had a student who wore his hair past his shoulders, painted his fingernails, and had a genuine love of punk rock and heavy metal. He was a joy to have in class. However, his breed is an endangered species. Few in his age demographic possess similar qualities of independence.
We can expect the dictatorship of the bland, under corporate authority, to continue unabated for a long time.
This is funny, Mark. However, I didn't say that my students are dumb. Many are astoundingly ignorant, thanks to the public school system and pop culture. What they are is, to a shocking level, incurious. It all sounds cliched at this point, especially in this sphere, but most of them really do spend all day scrolling social media and short form video. It has become increasingly challenging to get them interested in anything.
The point is that our brains (yes all of us, from geniuses on down to recovering tards like me) LOVE simplicity and "autopilot".
By throwing something novel in their path, creating that little bit of conflict that forces the autopilot to go "wait what's going on here? This is different," and cut out, that's how you get attention.
Thanks for the observation, David. I have a young friend who laments her peers not being readers ("They don't read! No one does!"); another young aquaintance (a co-worker in the trades) told me that virtually all of her friends suffered from anxiety and other metal-health related maladies. She herself took anti-anxiety medication. One can't subtract the political and cultural milieu that these young adults live in from their common experiences and ways of trying to find their way.
Yes, the anxiety is seemingly off the charts. Many of my students descend into panic over grades, which would have been unthinkable for my friends and me in college. If it did happen, we would have felt incredibly embarrassed. It is routine for the current crop of college students. They all support each other through their grade stress and anxiety. The social support is endearing, but it is also cause for concern that they need it when receiving a 'B' on a paper.
I believe this weirdo renaissance will emerge from people unafraid to speak unpopular opinions in plain terms without fear of reprisal from whatever side of the fence they sit on. I think it will be a sort of counterculture from the middle.
In a polarizing world (political, economic, even colors are clustering into shades of charcoal and white…), the misfits and rebels will be the ones who refuse to “pick a side.”
I've noticed, for several years now, that the muddied green, peach, brown "earthy tones" are the only colors (tones nonetheless!) juxtaposed against the endless shades of gray everywhere. This phenomenon can be seen from artwork Ditto for the soft-edge furniture - you know what I'm talking about: the plaster tables with pillar legs and entirely upholstered chairs with animalistic shapes. To me, though, that has stood out as WEIRD. It's weird because it goes against the human spirit. Humans imagine and create; each human person has infinite dignity and has a unique mission. Conformity is the weapon of the devil you often write about. I have a dream of designing dresses with big twirly skirts in beautiful colorful prints in real, natural fibers. Each dress would have an optional embroidery kit so it can be customized and embellished. Did you know that in 1901 the average American household spent 14% of its household budget on clothing, and that figured plummeted to 4% by 2002? Yes, mass manufacturing has helped, but so has conformity, especially where clothing is increasingly "unisex." I wrote a 96-slide presentation on this topic for fun. I believe the antidote is a return normalcy: humans being imaginative creators. Maybe my dress company has a future, or better, would be just in time. Am I willing to make the bet? I wonder what your hypothesis is as fas as what will fill the void once the implosion comes about. Thanks for your excellent work!
One of my favourite new cafes has lots of dark wood, rich colours on the walls (scarlet or crimson), and heavy tables with what appears to be cast iron supports. There are four or five comfortable armchairs with bold patterns that wouldn't look out of place on-set for the Golden Girls. The ceilings are at least ten feet high and the beautiful old building has crown moldings. The walls are full of colourful art. People often walk in and say, out loud, stuff like: "this is charming" or "oh, cozy, I like it". It clearly hits home with people, and a restaurant or pub like this wouldn't have seemed so notable even 25 years ago.
The similar feel (texture, rich wood, colour, decorations) of Irish Pubs may be one reason they are so popular. There is at least one company in Ireland that designs and exports pub interiors from a pre-set list of themes. There's something nice about the minimalist Scandi or Brooklyn styles, but not as much when it is everywhere.
I agree, Sean. Another phenomenon that intrigues me are all the Facebook Marketplace listings for gorgeous antiques, as well as well-made furniture and home goods being "given away" by an ageing generation. I'm a value shopper and never hesitate to pounce of these finds. I often think of it as arbitrage, but the reason I don't run out to get a storage unit and stockpile my finds is the simple economics behind it: there's no taste, no demand, for these furnishings. I do think it'll make a comeback so it'd be a long arbitrage game which I'm not bold enough to undertake. In the meantime, our home is looking very posh for pennies of the dollar. :)
Yes, there seems to be no end of upright pianos, china, furniture, etc. going for little to nothing. We have a small house, a cat, and small kids - if we picked up nice stuff we'd have to hide it away in storage so it doesn't get trashed!
I'm a housepainter by trade, and I can tell you that three or so decades ago grey was an "in" color. I've noticed over 45 years that colors and the various combinations they work (and don't work) with cycle out and then in. Also, there is a cultural and class aspect to color choices made by people and institutions. It's a complex thing, this color business. I can tell you stories. . . .
I'd love to hear them! I specified colors for private homes for some time. I am definitely aware of my own biases when it comes to color. I'm a huge stickler about undertone, but mostly, I just want the place to "glow," which doesn't at all mean I only use yellow or white. :)
We hired a man to come tune my son's piano. He works in the music department at a local college. He compared what he sees now to when he was in college about 25 years ago. He said, "Back then, you had troublemakers. There was always some guy who disrupted the class or making problems. It's not like that now. Everyone is 'good' technically. No one gets in trouble. They have their heads down and are just on their phones, scrolling. It's all just so... " and he trailed off. I said," Soul less . It's soul less." He replied," Yeah, that's it. Soul less. "
Great observation - but I want to be weirdo in this comment section:
I typically enjoy your articles (they’re wonderful) but this sentence made me pause:
“Sydney Sweeney wears jeans in a TV commercial, and people have a meltdown.”
I had this same thought before I saw the commercial. Then I saw the commercial - it’s appalling. So, it is not just Sydney Sweeney wearing jeans. The whole commercial is a racist dog whistle. People should have had a meltdown. Some things deserve an outcry. 😬
The only thing racist about the commercial was the uproar surrounding it. People would have been fine if the ad featured a sexy black or brown woman. Heaven forbid anybody other than a black or brown person mentions any sort of pride in their background, appearance, heritage, etc. etc..
Sorry, but pride from minorities is not the same as talking about supremacist dog whistles. I understand you might not notice, but the thing is, talking about "good genes" carries historical weight, and not in a good sense.
Exactly. I was among those who previously believed she deserved the benefit of doubt, but after actually seeing the thing (and her interview when asked about it and being given the opportunity to comment), it is really clear the whole thing wasn't just something silly.
On seeing this oddly named person,well she definitely isn't the alluring sexually desirable siren all the critics were describing in the written words I'd read of her. I was expecting a Marilyn Munroe or a Jayne Mansfield and she turned out to be a normal sized,plain but acceptable young woman not displaying a vast cleavage,in fact her top torso seemed decently covered,her hair was that mid-brown colour that can pass for "blonde" but isn't. She was not the Blonde Siren the critical words painted. It was of course the "genes/genes" play on words that hit the headlines. She is a pro actor,she got paid to say that,and in the way she said it. But the fact an advert was created and based on the idea of EUGENICS tells us that "behind the scenes" as it were,that IDEA is a thing. They like to tell us in covert ways.
I actually wish there MORE rounded corners. I keep bumping my shins into coffee tables, bed frames, and modernist fireplace ledges. I’m a collage of bruises.
Time to bring back the Beat Poets, e.g. Ferlinghetti's perpetual awaiting of a rebirth of a sense of wonder. Folk singer, Tom Russell's marvelous "Hotwalker" CD includes paens to the pre-1960s polyglot American culture, and decrying the age of the strip malls and big box stores.
I have to point out that the Beat Poets exhibited some pretty ugly sexism and general old-fashioned attitudes. Not only in their work and performances but also in their interactions with women. Not the sort of weird we want to come back. Leave that shit to the current crop of Repugnants. There’s more than enough of that disgusting behavior to go around.
Astute observation, Ted. Once you notice this pattern, you’ll see this everywhere. Even the most bland thing ever produced would be celebrated as the most innovative now. We have to resist this conformity.
“Corporations didn’t intend to make the culture stagnant and boring,” I recently explained. “All they really want is to impose standardization and predictability—because it’s more profitable.”
Bingo!
Follow the money.
Institutional greed and salacious procurement of resources have increased in the wake of the digital economy's condensation of information. Greed only amplifies the suffocating restraint of originality.
This is probably a more important article than we think. Thanks for publishing it.
From my vantage point, this isn’t just cultural drift; it’s spiritual formation by other means.
When Adam Mastroianni names an “epidemic of the mundane” and Byung-Chul Han diagnoses a “smoothness society,” we’re seeing the same loss through a relational lens: the slow erosion of courage to be known.
Smoothness eliminates friction—but friction is where love, truth, and transformation actually occur. Union requires resistance: two real selves meeting, not polished surfaces sliding past one another. A world without edges may feel safer, but it cannot sustain intimacy, repentance, creativity, or faith.
From a Christian perspective, this is not progress toward peace but retreat from incarnation. Christ did not arrive smooth. He arrived interruptive, embodied, offensive to systems optimized for comfort.
If everything must be frictionless, then nothing costly can remain.
And love—by definition—costs.
I couldn't agree more.
I have found myself listening to Captain Beefheart a lot in the last couple years… just sayin’…
I was just about to say that, and add - viewing the art of Basil Wolverton and MAD Magazine's Don Martin.
Basil was a true master of the weird. Now mostly forgotten. We who know that body of work are indeed fortunate.
well done! 🥳
check out captain beyonds first album, lol...
👍
Captain Beefheart himself claimed, “I May Be Hungry But I Sure Ain’t Weird.” I suppose weirdness may be in the ear of the beholder. I’ve been listening to him since 1969 but never thought he was weird. I just liked his music.
i think that makes you fairly weird… 😂
You may very well think so, but I couldn’t possibly comment.
Sam was a basket case. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36dsHYkOjEg
Anything different is so very needed and welcome! I used to see Root Boy Slim at the Psyche Delly, a place in my neighborhood, where he played almost every week in the late 70's. He was weird in a good way. This was his hit, 'Put a Quarter in the Juke', but 'Someone Stole my Mood Ring was better.
https://youtu.be/roC_JLOcnxE?si=IbgP_og3LA9Znp4l
I thought (from the West Coast) his signature tune was “Dare to Be Fat”
Hmm...interesting. Different songs seem to hit different spots for listeners. When I visited California, friends took me to see Journey. I'd never heard of them.
My acid-dropping roommate at U of MD used to play 'Boogie til you Puke' every day, or, at least, it seemed that way. Anyway, Root Boy was always fantastic live. I found out he went to Yale and was in the same fraternity with George W. Bush. He got kicked out after a year!
https://bethesdamagazine.com/2016/07/25/when-bethesda-was-cool/
During a recent summer visit, my oldest grandson saw "Trout Mask Replica" in a small set of LPs next to the turntable. He wanted to listen. I put it on after warning him that it's probably the weirdest thing he's ever heard.
I don't remember how far we got (maybe not past the first side) but he asked me to take it off because it was "too weird." Heh.
I can STILL recite nearly all of The Old Fart at Play… I truly wish I had kept strong hold on that weirdness all my life, but it got educated out of me and now I’ve had to claw it back in my 60s and 70s…
Back before I retired (software) I always had the "A Squid Eating Dough..." quoted on a piece of paper tacked to the office wall. Nearly everybody would read it and say "OK....what the 'eff is THAT?!" Ha!
fast and bulbous my friend, fast and bulbous… happy holidays
"Turn and face the strange." ~ David Bowie
A big part of this analysis is missing: weird is "in" in politics, and not in a fun way. Extremely fringe ideas are now mainstream and conspiracy theories that would have never been entertained at all in the media are everywhere. Fringe figures with cruel, racist, sexist and antiscientific ideas have huge followings and get massive public attention in ways that they rarely have done previously. The Sydney Sweeney thing was about those who are reviving "eugenics" and the cracker barrel thing was driven by bots. Lots of weird is out there, just not the kind we like and people are retreating into sameness where they can to cope.
That's right, but less weird and far more mendacious, ignorant, and stupid. Couple that with huge amounts of money, and you've got something beyond weird and well into fantastically dangerous.
I would add to that as well that they aren't weird at all. They're really feebly-imagined, overfed, and overgrown kids with too much goddamned money who think anti-Semitism, misogyny, racism, and xenophobia are cute and funny. At bottom, they're squares who think they're rebels, and their wealth insulates them from their stupidity and wretchedness.
What looks like an exaltation of weirdness is, at its core, the same psychological structure that generates MAGA.
The weirdo isn't likely to return in the near future. To understand the extent and power of conformity, you have to spend time with young people. I teach at the college level. The overwhelming majority of students dress the same, listen to the same music, consume the same entertainment, and use the same slang terminology, the most telling of which is "cringe." The demonstration of passion, or even enthusiasm, is subject to mockery and ridicule. Fear of appearing "cringe" is the primary reason why most students will not speak in class. Last semester, I had a student who wore his hair past his shoulders, painted his fingernails, and had a genuine love of punk rock and heavy metal. He was a joy to have in class. However, his breed is an endangered species. Few in his age demographic possess similar qualities of independence.
We can expect the dictatorship of the bland, under corporate authority, to continue unabated for a long time.
The rule of the “6-7” can be broken easily.
“Meh, 6-7”
‘Says the ‘4 on a good day’.” or “Thanks for announcing your IQ, let's move on with the discussion.”
The tyranny of the moronic masses can be vanquished by intellectual IEDs and asymmetrical warfare of wits.
This is funny, Mark. However, I didn't say that my students are dumb. Many are astoundingly ignorant, thanks to the public school system and pop culture. What they are is, to a shocking level, incurious. It all sounds cliched at this point, especially in this sphere, but most of them really do spend all day scrolling social media and short form video. It has become increasingly challenging to get them interested in anything.
Notice that I didn't say they're dumb either.
The point is that our brains (yes all of us, from geniuses on down to recovering tards like me) LOVE simplicity and "autopilot".
By throwing something novel in their path, creating that little bit of conflict that forces the autopilot to go "wait what's going on here? This is different," and cut out, that's how you get attention.
Got yours, didn't it? 😉
TikTok conformity.
Thanks for the observation, David. I have a young friend who laments her peers not being readers ("They don't read! No one does!"); another young aquaintance (a co-worker in the trades) told me that virtually all of her friends suffered from anxiety and other metal-health related maladies. She herself took anti-anxiety medication. One can't subtract the political and cultural milieu that these young adults live in from their common experiences and ways of trying to find their way.
Yes, the anxiety is seemingly off the charts. Many of my students descend into panic over grades, which would have been unthinkable for my friends and me in college. If it did happen, we would have felt incredibly embarrassed. It is routine for the current crop of college students. They all support each other through their grade stress and anxiety. The social support is endearing, but it is also cause for concern that they need it when receiving a 'B' on a paper.
If anyone is curious about my Substack, Absurdia Now, please take a look. I just launched it last week.
I can't be anything but weird. I tried. It doesn't work.
I believe this weirdo renaissance will emerge from people unafraid to speak unpopular opinions in plain terms without fear of reprisal from whatever side of the fence they sit on. I think it will be a sort of counterculture from the middle.
In a polarizing world (political, economic, even colors are clustering into shades of charcoal and white…), the misfits and rebels will be the ones who refuse to “pick a side.”
Ted, you always hit the bull's eye.
I've noticed, for several years now, that the muddied green, peach, brown "earthy tones" are the only colors (tones nonetheless!) juxtaposed against the endless shades of gray everywhere. This phenomenon can be seen from artwork Ditto for the soft-edge furniture - you know what I'm talking about: the plaster tables with pillar legs and entirely upholstered chairs with animalistic shapes. To me, though, that has stood out as WEIRD. It's weird because it goes against the human spirit. Humans imagine and create; each human person has infinite dignity and has a unique mission. Conformity is the weapon of the devil you often write about. I have a dream of designing dresses with big twirly skirts in beautiful colorful prints in real, natural fibers. Each dress would have an optional embroidery kit so it can be customized and embellished. Did you know that in 1901 the average American household spent 14% of its household budget on clothing, and that figured plummeted to 4% by 2002? Yes, mass manufacturing has helped, but so has conformity, especially where clothing is increasingly "unisex." I wrote a 96-slide presentation on this topic for fun. I believe the antidote is a return normalcy: humans being imaginative creators. Maybe my dress company has a future, or better, would be just in time. Am I willing to make the bet? I wonder what your hypothesis is as fas as what will fill the void once the implosion comes about. Thanks for your excellent work!
One of my favourite new cafes has lots of dark wood, rich colours on the walls (scarlet or crimson), and heavy tables with what appears to be cast iron supports. There are four or five comfortable armchairs with bold patterns that wouldn't look out of place on-set for the Golden Girls. The ceilings are at least ten feet high and the beautiful old building has crown moldings. The walls are full of colourful art. People often walk in and say, out loud, stuff like: "this is charming" or "oh, cozy, I like it". It clearly hits home with people, and a restaurant or pub like this wouldn't have seemed so notable even 25 years ago.
The similar feel (texture, rich wood, colour, decorations) of Irish Pubs may be one reason they are so popular. There is at least one company in Ireland that designs and exports pub interiors from a pre-set list of themes. There's something nice about the minimalist Scandi or Brooklyn styles, but not as much when it is everywhere.
I agree, Sean. Another phenomenon that intrigues me are all the Facebook Marketplace listings for gorgeous antiques, as well as well-made furniture and home goods being "given away" by an ageing generation. I'm a value shopper and never hesitate to pounce of these finds. I often think of it as arbitrage, but the reason I don't run out to get a storage unit and stockpile my finds is the simple economics behind it: there's no taste, no demand, for these furnishings. I do think it'll make a comeback so it'd be a long arbitrage game which I'm not bold enough to undertake. In the meantime, our home is looking very posh for pennies of the dollar. :)
Yes, there seems to be no end of upright pianos, china, furniture, etc. going for little to nothing. We have a small house, a cat, and small kids - if we picked up nice stuff we'd have to hide it away in storage so it doesn't get trashed!
I'm a housepainter by trade, and I can tell you that three or so decades ago grey was an "in" color. I've noticed over 45 years that colors and the various combinations they work (and don't work) with cycle out and then in. Also, there is a cultural and class aspect to color choices made by people and institutions. It's a complex thing, this color business. I can tell you stories. . . .
I'd love to hear them! I specified colors for private homes for some time. I am definitely aware of my own biases when it comes to color. I'm a huge stickler about undertone, but mostly, I just want the place to "glow," which doesn't at all mean I only use yellow or white. :)
Apologies for the typos - a "fat finger" hit send before I was done. :)
We hired a man to come tune my son's piano. He works in the music department at a local college. He compared what he sees now to when he was in college about 25 years ago. He said, "Back then, you had troublemakers. There was always some guy who disrupted the class or making problems. It's not like that now. Everyone is 'good' technically. No one gets in trouble. They have their heads down and are just on their phones, scrolling. It's all just so... " and he trailed off. I said," Soul less . It's soul less." He replied," Yeah, that's it. Soul less. "
Great observation - but I want to be weirdo in this comment section:
I typically enjoy your articles (they’re wonderful) but this sentence made me pause:
“Sydney Sweeney wears jeans in a TV commercial, and people have a meltdown.”
I had this same thought before I saw the commercial. Then I saw the commercial - it’s appalling. So, it is not just Sydney Sweeney wearing jeans. The whole commercial is a racist dog whistle. People should have had a meltdown. Some things deserve an outcry. 😬
The only thing racist about the commercial was the uproar surrounding it. People would have been fine if the ad featured a sexy black or brown woman. Heaven forbid anybody other than a black or brown person mentions any sort of pride in their background, appearance, heritage, etc. etc..
I kindly disagree but that’s okay. 👍🏽
Sorry, but pride from minorities is not the same as talking about supremacist dog whistles. I understand you might not notice, but the thing is, talking about "good genes" carries historical weight, and not in a good sense.
Exactly. I was among those who previously believed she deserved the benefit of doubt, but after actually seeing the thing (and her interview when asked about it and being given the opportunity to comment), it is really clear the whole thing wasn't just something silly.
On seeing this oddly named person,well she definitely isn't the alluring sexually desirable siren all the critics were describing in the written words I'd read of her. I was expecting a Marilyn Munroe or a Jayne Mansfield and she turned out to be a normal sized,plain but acceptable young woman not displaying a vast cleavage,in fact her top torso seemed decently covered,her hair was that mid-brown colour that can pass for "blonde" but isn't. She was not the Blonde Siren the critical words painted. It was of course the "genes/genes" play on words that hit the headlines. She is a pro actor,she got paid to say that,and in the way she said it. But the fact an advert was created and based on the idea of EUGENICS tells us that "behind the scenes" as it were,that IDEA is a thing. They like to tell us in covert ways.
We are living in a time of homogenized mediocrity… yawn…
I miss Frank Zappa!
I do want fins or something on my car.
Hood ornaments
OOH something to look at while I'm driving:-)
That's what your phone's for, silly. (JK)
I had to cut down I kept missing my exit.
I actually wish there MORE rounded corners. I keep bumping my shins into coffee tables, bed frames, and modernist fireplace ledges. I’m a collage of bruises.
Mee too!
Time to bring back the Beat Poets, e.g. Ferlinghetti's perpetual awaiting of a rebirth of a sense of wonder. Folk singer, Tom Russell's marvelous "Hotwalker" CD includes paens to the pre-1960s polyglot American culture, and decrying the age of the strip malls and big box stores.
Merry Christmas... Christ Climbed Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jz78npvSZvo
I have to point out that the Beat Poets exhibited some pretty ugly sexism and general old-fashioned attitudes. Not only in their work and performances but also in their interactions with women. Not the sort of weird we want to come back. Leave that shit to the current crop of Repugnants. There’s more than enough of that disgusting behavior to go around.
Astute observation, Ted. Once you notice this pattern, you’ll see this everywhere. Even the most bland thing ever produced would be celebrated as the most innovative now. We have to resist this conformity.
“Corporations didn’t intend to make the culture stagnant and boring,” I recently explained. “All they really want is to impose standardization and predictability—because it’s more profitable.”
Bingo!
Follow the money.
Institutional greed and salacious procurement of resources have increased in the wake of the digital economy's condensation of information. Greed only amplifies the suffocating restraint of originality.