Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Jungian dream interpretation (concept) 1 — Dream analysis method invoked by someone seeking meaning in a nightmare about their girlfriend playing a podcast.

6ix9ine (person) 1 — Rapper described as an agent of pure malice and possibly the antichrist, exemplifying publicly evil celebrity behavior.

Slippery Slope (concept) 1 — Political and social theory arguing that progressive policies inevitably lead to extreme outcomes through incremental ac...

Therapy-industrial complex (concept) 1 — Critical term for the commodification of mental health treatment as replacement for family, friends, and religion to ext...

Postmodernity (concept) 1 — Cultural condition characterized by didactic and self-serious qualities that painting can potentially escape.

Avant-garde (concept) 1 — Artistic movement declared not dead if earnest people pursue painting and creative ideas.

Conversations with Friends (film) 1 — Television adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel that received critical commentary about representation.

Ted Gioia (person) 1 — Writer and cultural critic who wrote about the lack of counterculture in contemporary society and cultural stagnation.

Set Point Theory (concept) 1 — Theory about body weight suggesting that it takes significantly more exertion to get below a certain natural weight.

Xeomin (concept) 1 — Injectable cosmetic treatment similar to Botox used to reduce wrinkles and scowl lines.

The Hate U Give (book) 1 — A young adult novel that was assigned as mandatory reading in American high school language arts classes, discussed as p...

Modern Family (film) 1 — A sitcom criticized for having completely forced and fake dialogue where every line seems written backward from punchlin...

Belial (person) 1 — A demon that a woman on a date mentioned she practices invoking as part of her spiritual practices.

Vans (concept) 1 — Shoe brand mentioned as part of a basic, anonymous personal style.

Ray-Ban (concept) 1 — Sunglasses brand (Wayfarer model) mentioned as part of an intentionally basic wardrobe.

Higgs Boson (concept) 1 — A fundamental particle in physics criticized for being the only one named after a person and for the confusing concept t...

Lemonparty (album) 1 — A podcast consumed for an hour as part of daily media consumption.

Taoist Secrets of Love (book) 1 — A book read before bed as part of a detailed account of daily consumption habits.

Two Tickets to Paradise (album) 1 — A classic rock song mentioned as basis for a workout playlist as part of 'boomermaxxing' fitness philosophy.

Dominoes (place) 1 — Pizza chain mentioned as part of a detailed daily food consumption log.

No Doubt (album) 1 — Band fronted by Gwen Stefani in the 1990s, known for songs like 'Don't Speak', 'Sunday Morning', and 'I'm Just a Girl'.

Ra's al Ghul (person) 1 — Batman character whose practical advice about warming oneself is cited as unexpectedly useful

For Thunder Comic Collective (place) 1 — Punk comic collective praised for their art

Sonder (concept) 1 — Neologism dismissed alongside 'limerence' as a fake made-up word

The Coddling of the American Mind (book) 1 — A book referenced as a non-overtly polemical text to recommend in response to cancel culture at universities.

Gary, Indiana (place) 1 — A run-down American city used as an example of urban decay and population exodus.

Handel's Messiah (album) 1 — A great oratorio by Handel cited as an example of Christianity inspiring superior musical art compared to Christian film...

PureFlix (place) 1 — A Christian film production company whose movies are described as offensively bad with no artistic aspirations.

Angel Studios (place) 1 — A Christian film production company whose movies are described as offensively bad with no artistic aspirations.

Ladyballers (film) 1 — A Daily Wire movie described as having extremely low production values and being the worst made movie the poster sat thr...

ARFID (concept) 1 — Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, discussed critically in relation to adults who eat only basic foods and are r...

Dr. Bronner (person) 1 — Soap maker known for the philosophical and spiritual wisdom printed on his product labels.

Harbin (place) 1 — Northeastern Chinese city once known as 'Paris of the East' that has experienced population decline but recently saw tou...

Songhua river (place) 1 — River in Harbin from which ice is harvested for the city's annual ice and snow sculpture festival.

Gyouree Kim (person) 1 — Emerging fashion designer whose work is being followed in contemporary fashion circles.

Paula Einfalt (person) 1 — Emerging fashion designer whose work is being followed in contemporary fashion circles.

Paolina Russo (person) 1 — Emerging fashion designer whose work is being followed in contemporary fashion circles.

Diotima (person) 1 — Emerging fashion designer whose work is being followed in contemporary fashion circles.

Confessional poetry (concept) 1 — Literary form that emphasizes personal experience and helps readers empathize with the interior life of another person.

State capitalism (concept) 1 — Economic system discussed as potentially being China's 21st century alternative to social democracy.

Willie Mays (person) 1 — Baseball legend whose death in 2024 deeply affected MLB announcers and commentators across all teams.

King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival (place) 1 — Saudi Arabian festival where falcons are judged on speed, agility, hunting skills, training, breeding potential, and bea...

Reality-based community (concept) 1 — Wikipedia concept referenced in discussion of how people with charisma create their own reality and succeed through grif...

7/7 attacks (concept) 1 — Terrorist attacks in the UK whose mastermind Haroon Aswat was released from prison without monitoring

Haroon Aswat (person) 1 — Mastermind of the 7/7 attacks who was released from prison without ankle monitor or restrictions

LLMs (concept) 1 — Large Language Models discussed as overhyped technology that may not lead to superintelligence or the Singularity as pro...

Yellow River (place) 1 — Chinese river basin mentioned in context of historical conflicts over central plains domination

BCNR (album) 1 — Black Country, New Road, a zoomer rock band mentioned alongside Geese as being overrated

T.J. Clark (person) 1 — Author of "The Job" article in the London Review of Books discussing spectacle, Trump, and Gaza.

Sheldon Adelson (person) 1 — Las Vegas billionaire who made frequent trips to the White House to advocate for Israel.