Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Ambrose of Milan (person) 1 — Fourth-century Catholic bishop who wrote to Roman Emperor Theodosius urging repentance after a massacre and advocating f...

Desiderius Erasmus (person) 1 — 16th-century Dutch Catholic priest who wrote The Education of a Christian Prince, advising Christian leaders to pursue p...

The Education of a Christian Prince (book) 1 — Book by Desiderius Erasmus that advises Christian rulers to pursue peace, leniency, clemency, and forgiveness in their e...

Pristiq (concept) 1 — An SSRI antidepressant medication mentioned in the context of tapering off with severe physical withdrawal symptoms

Tegan and Sara (person) 1 — Musical duo mentioned as part of stereotypical lesbian/queer women's music

Western Protestantism (concept) 1 — Religious tradition critiqued as combining individualist hustle culture, therapy speak, and hostility to refined intelle...

Dave and Busters (place) 1 — Entertainment venue referenced in a parody of Glengarry Glen Ross's famous speech

Scott Alexander (person) 1 — Rationalist writer criticized for absurd AI predictions including world leaders consulting AGI for statecraft by 2030

Bayes theorem (concept) 1 — Mathematical theorem used by rationalist community as a marker of intellectual sophistication

Rastafarianism (concept) 1 — Religious movement mentioned in relation to Bob Marley and its unique form of Zionism

Steve Cohen (person) 1 — Congressman mentioned as being part of a storyline in The Rehearsal about airline safety

Chase Strangio (person) 1 — Trans male ACLU lawyer who argued before the Supreme Court on trans healthcare bans for adolescents and wrote a confessi...

Graza (concept) 1 — Olive oil brand that packages Spanish olive oil in squeeze bottles labeled 'Sizzle' and 'Drizzle,' criticized for rebran...

Native (concept) 1 — Soap and body wash brand criticized for charging double the price of regular soap.

Olly (concept) 1 — Vitamin gummy brand offering neon supplements for sleep, beauty, and energy with similar ingredients to regular vitamins...

Magic Spoon (concept) 1 — Protein cereal brand priced at $20 per box, criticized for being overpriced compared to buying chicken for protein.

Lesser Evil (concept) 1 — Pastel-packaged popcorn brand owned by a Zionist and criticized for being high in saturated fat despite health marketing...

Ocean's Eleven (film) 1 — Heist film that a user believes does not belong on the New York Times' 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century list.

Guardian (place) 1 — News publication mentioned as not having the same annoying comment section vibe as the New York Times.

Pearson (concept) 1 — Company that sells expensive textbook access codes, criticized as a burden at community colleges.

KMT (concept) 1 — Kuomintang political party that the poster predicts will somehow win the Chinese Civil War before the 21st century ends.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (person) 1 — Actor referenced in explicit sexual context on a gay sex Twitter account.

Abenaki (concept) 1 — Indigenous people referenced in satirical context about performative land acknowledgments in corporate settings.

Lenape (concept) 1 — Indigenous people referenced in satirical context about performative land acknowledgments and corporate diversity practi...

The Hurt Locker (film) 1 — War on Terror film criticized by a viewer who fell asleep during it, representing the disappointing state of GWOT protes...

Forest Lawn (place) 1 — Cemetery where dying deer gather, site of meditation on death and animal pilgrimage in a surreal narrative.

Tonawanda (place) 1 — Location in Western New York where deer properly go to die in the forest outside the town.

Cognitive Security (concept) 1 — Emerging concept of protecting one's cognitive capacities from colonization by AI and LLMs, described as the new OPSEC i...

Cognitive Offloading (concept) 1 — Process of delegating cognitive tasks to AI that leads to memory leak and degradation of critical thinking and problem-s...

Folie à deux (concept) 1 — Shared psychotic disorder referenced in context of collective online delusion and arguing with non-existent people on th...

Basques (concept) 1 — Small ethnic group numbering around 60,000 in the Roman Empire that survived Indo-European invasions, Roman assimilation...

NRSV-CE (book) 1 — Translation of the Bible (New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition) used for a collection of favorite Bible verses

Mark (book) 1 — Gospel of the Bible cited for verses about evil coming from within the human heart and having eyes but failing to see

Luke (book) 1 — Gospel of the Bible cited for the verse about good and evil coming from the heart's abundance

Romans (book) 1 — Epistle of the Bible cited for Paul's reflection on sin and the struggle between wanting to do good and doing evil

Galatians (book) 1 — Epistle of the Bible cited for the verse about all being one in Christ Jesus regardless of ethnicity, social status, or ...

Nana Grizol (album) 1 — Band whose hidden song is listened to in reflection on sincerity as an antidote to modern irony poisoning

Miss Vickie's (place) 1 — Canadian mass-produced chip brand praised for varieties like jalapeño kettle cooked and sea salt & vinegar

Hamburg Ballet (place) 1 — German ballet company that performed Die kleine Meerjungfrau (The Little Mermaid) choreographed by Neumeier.

The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb (film) 1 — Masterpiece altarpiece painted by the brothers van Eyck in 1432, notable for having a stolen panel that remains lost.

van Eyck brothers (person) 1 — 15th-century Flemish painters who created The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb altarpiece in 1432.

Express Yourself (album) 1 — Madonna song described as a Paglian empowerment anthem

Neoconservatism (concept) 1 — Political ideology discussed as destination for former leftist intellectuals in middle age

Bennington College (place) 1 — College referenced in a post expressing affection for someone from there

House Party (film) 1 — An 'absolutely unhinged' film featuring a scene where the main character has to rap his way out of getting raped in pris...

Drawn Together (film) 1 — An adult animated show featuring controversial content including racial caricatures and stereotypes that the poster beli...

The Many Saints of Newark (film) 1 — Sopranos prequel film with structural flaws but notable for Michael Gandolfini's strong performance as young Tony Sopran...

Michael Gandolfini (person) 1 — Actor who played young Tony Soprano in The Many Saints of Newark and was a strength rather than liability in the film.

New Witness (place) 1 — Publication that printed G.K. Chesterton's poem "The Rolling English Road" in 1913.

The Second Coming (book) 1 — Poem by William Butler Yeats depicting the collapse of civilization and the birth of a rough beast slouching towards Bet...