Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Elizabeth Holmes (person) 13 — Founder of Theranos on trial for fraud, described as a 'girlbossing' sociopath whose trial represents everything wrong w...

Keir Starmer (person) 13 — UK Prime Minister whose allies allegedly blocked Andy Burnham from running as parliamentary candidate due to fears of a ...

Tennessee (place) 13 — State where a woman was denied abortion after fetus had severe abnormalities, cited as evidence Republicans will lose el...

There Will Be Blood (film) 13 — A film used as a comparison point for how liberals might have hated it as a glorification of capitalism, analogous to ho...

The Adam Friedland Show (film) 13 — A show used by one viewer as an instructional guide on what behaviors to avoid in social interactions, particularly focu...

The Strokes (album) 13 — Rock band whose music is defended as having a unique sound with consistently strong songs despite criticisms about their...

Wyoming (place) 13 — A U.S. state that one poster finds fascinating despite Americans generally finding it uninteresting and Wyoming natives ...

Freddie DeBoer (person) 13 — Writer and commentator who authored an article arguing Jordan Neely's life could have been saved by involuntary treatmen...

The Handmaid's Tale (book) 13 — Dystopian TV series that entered its fifth season, outlasting other Trump-era dystopian shows like The Man in the High C...

Jean-Paul Sartre (person) 13 — French existentialist philosopher referenced in a joke about ordering coffee without cream at a cafe, illustrating exist...

Idaho (place) 13 — State where massive labor organizing among woodworkers occurred in 1917, context ignored by the film Train Dreams.

Notes from Underground (book) 13 — Dostoevsky novel discussed as a critique of defeated liberal dreamers who preached goodness while living in moral squalo...

East Village (place) 12 — Lower Manhattan neighborhood where a bar confrontation occurred over an Aaron Hernandez t-shirt.

Mozart (person) 12 — Classical composer whose pieces are reframed by competition culture as milestones to be reached before piano competition...

Maoism (concept) 12 — Communist ideology that hearing about wealthy bourgeoisie exploitation in developing countries can turn people toward, p...

Rupi Kaur (person) 12 — Contemporary poet whose work is referenced as a social deterrent, implicitly critiqued as lowbrow or aesthetically quest...

DOGE (concept) 12 — Government initiative referenced in context of federal worker concerns about job security and restructuring.

Wicked (film) 12 — A theatrical production/film described as what happens when theater kids have parents who support their dreams, contrast...

Russell Brand (person) 12 — British comedian and media personality whose flamboyant style was used as an unflattering comparison that prompted self-...

Society of the Spectacle (book) 12 — A philosophical work discussed as something that makes the reader feel smart and pretentious, contrasted with reading Wi...

Korea (place) 12 — East Asian country described in the subreddit as a place characterized by elitism, classism, and rigid beauty standards ...

Jackass (film) 12 — A film and TV franchise featuring stunts and pranks, discussed as potentially deserving inclusion in the Criterion Colle...

Jimmy Fallon (person) 12 — Late night host who replaced Jay Leno and is described as unfunny and unbearable to listen to, marking a cultural turnin...

Ted Lasso (film) 12 — Apple TV+ comedy series whose first season is defended as actually good despite the show being generally hated within th...

Joni Mitchell (person) 12 — Singer-songwriter cited as one of four women a poster repeatedly gets compared to, representing a type of beauty that do...

Slack (concept) 12 — A workplace messaging application that serves as the primary medium of communication for many corporate jobs, characteri...

Uber (place) 12 — Ride-sharing service that includes passenger ratings, contributing to the gamification and metrics-based evaluation of e...

Anne Frank (person) 12 — Holocaust diary assigned in American schools, part of extensive Holocaust education curriculum discussed as potentially ...

LSD (concept) 12 — Psychedelic drug discussed in detail in a confessional narrative about extreme drug use combined with pornography addict...

Ella Emhoff (person) 12 — The stepdaughter of Kamala Harris whose unearned fame and aesthetic choices trigger both envy and impostor syndrome in t...

No Country for Old Men (film) 12 — Film that was in theaters at the same time as There Will Be Blood, described as a more significant cinematic event than ...

Jia Tolentino (person) 12 — Writer who edited her blog post to defend her parents against federal indictment allegations of usury and threats relate...

Incel (concept) 12 — Involuntary celibate community that originated on 4chan and systematically mapped out human insecurities, now influencin...

Belgium (place) 12 — European country discussed as having better labor market pathways and job security for early-career professionals compar...

Hong Kong (place) 12 — Former British colony and current Chinese special administrative region, described as having unique vertical density, fr...

Steven Universe (film) 12 — An animated children's show described as incredibly cringe yet obsessively watched by nonbinary people, possibly functio...

Egypt (place) 12 — Country discussed in relation to debates over modern Egyptian identity, genetics, and the relationship between Arab and ...

Hegel (person) 12 — German philosopher cited by Žižek as being among the first to see the geographical triad of Germany, France, and England...

Orlando (place) 12 — Florida city criticized as uniquely artificial and plastic, built on urban sprawl with little public transit and enterta...

Andrew Callaghan (person) 12 — YouTube journalist and creator of Channel 5 who gained fame filming crowds and conducting street interviews, but critici...

Apple (place) 12 — Technology company discussed in context of its VR headset with eye-tracking algorithms designed to maximize user attenti...

Mel Gibson (person) 12 — Actor and director known for Braveheart who had infamous recorded meltdown tapes that became entertainment material for ...

Pittsburgh (place) 12 — Pennsylvania city that left a negative impression on a visitor, contributing to general negative perception of Pennsylva...

Noam Chomsky (person) 12 — Public intellectual whose interviews from 40 years ago are cited as examples of when public intellectual discourse used ...

NEET (concept) 12 — Acronym for "Not in Education, Employment, or Training," used to describe a particular lifestyle or state of being that ...

30 Rock (film) 12 — NBC comedy series praised for making jokes about race and sex without self-awareness or immediate shame, existing in a p...

Amsterdam (place) 12 — European coastal city mentioned as a desired immigration destination by an American seeking to escape US urban life.

Mississippi (place) 12 — State that despite ranking low in most quality of life metrics became one of the best in the US on homelessness by imple...

Michigan (place) 12 — A U.S. state referenced as an example of traditional union Democratic voter base, contrasted with more alienated working...

Wellbutrin (concept) 12 — An SSRI antidepressant medication referenced in a satirical claim that such drugs keep people docile and would have prev...