Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Suez Crisis (concept) 3 — Historical reference point used to describe potential terminal decline of US power after Iran invasion

F1 (concept) 3 — Formula 1 racing, discussed as surprisingly popular with women on dating apps despite being considered boring even among...

Tropic of Cancer (book) 3 — Novel by Henry Miller known for its explicit sexual content and autobiographical style

The Jetsons (film) 3 — Animated sitcom with running joke about George complaining his boss makes him work two hours a day, referenced to descri...

Grand Canyon (place) 3 — Natural landmark in the American West cited as an example of natural beauty that many East Coast residents never see.

Chris Cunningham (person) 3 — Famous music video director known for Aphex Twin videos who disappeared from public view in the early 2010s and was rumo...

Dome of the Rock (place) 3 — An Islamic shrine in Jerusalem that some evangelicals believe Israel will bomb as part of events triggering the rapture.

Papua New Guinea (place) 3 — Country where the prion disease Kuru is endemic, mentioned in debunking conspiracy theories about Epstein.

Sex Pistols (album) 3 — Punk rock band referenced through members Sid Vicious and Johnny Rotten in satirical punk reinterpretation.

John Williams (person) 3 — Author of Stoner, praised for capturing the quiet mediocrity of American life

Harold Bloom (person) 3 — Literary critic whose endorsement of Blood Meridian makes it not a hot take for the Great American Novel

Leave it to Beaver (film) 3 — 1950s television show the poster watched on repeat during their 1950s phase, emulating the character Beaver Cleaver

Kung Fu Panda (film) 3 — A film that turns off a poster when a romantic interest lists it in his top ten movies.

Blockchain (concept) 3 — Decentralized database technology underlying NFTs, discussed as potentially enabling restrictive content control.

Accattone (film) 3 — 1961 film by Pier Paolo Pasolini, available on Criterion and DailyMotion, selected for a gay-themed movie club

SSENSE (place) 3 — An online fashion retailer mentioned as a place where women buy clothes that men don't care about as cultural signifiers...

As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (concept) 3 — A newsletter on modern and contemporary art that features works by artists like John Divola.

Patti Smith (person) 3 — Musician who performed with Sleater-Kinney opening in Seattle where the mostly white crowd chanting looked like a Klan r...

Avatar 2 (film) 3 — James Cameron sequel criticized for poor writing and plot despite impressive animation and visuals, with flat characters...

Ancient Greece (concept) 3 — Historical period cited as a time when people could speak about multiple disciplines while being accomplished artists, p...

Megadeth (album) 3 — A metal band whose CDs are being purchased from Polish grocery stores as part of a renewed interest in physical music me...

Conor McGregor (person) 3 — Irish MMA fighter who attempted to run for Irish President as a far-right candidate but failed to get the required signa...

Emma Watson (person) 3 — An actress in The Perks of Being a Wallflower criticized for being too conventionally attractive to be believable as an ...

GAP (place) 3 — American clothing brand positioned as complex Kanye-style prep fashion in Japan according to poster

Northern Virginia (place) 3 — Region experiencing significant electricity price increases due to data center electricity consumption for AI and crypto...

Kiev (place) 3 — A city someone was advised to visit in 2019 before conflict made it inaccessible, mentioned in context of geopolitical p...

The Passion of The Christ (film) 3 — Film depicting Jesus that causes an emotional viewer to sob during the scene where Jesus tells his mother 'He makes all ...

Elena Ferrante (person) 3 — Author of My Brilliant Friend who is considered brilliant by one reader defending her work against criticism.

Skyrim (film) 3 — Video game referenced in context of men treating dating like character optimization in an RPG.

Hyperreality (concept) 3 — Baudrillardian concept where artificial experiences dominate to the point that claims to reality must be phrased in arti...

P Diddy (person) 3 — Hip-hop mogul discussed in context of allegations involving abuse and blackmail with victims being mocked.

8 Mile (film) 3 — A film about a rapper that popularized trite anecdotes about growing up working class, mentioned as a cultural touchston...

COINTELPRO (concept) 3 — FBI counterintelligence program invoked as comparison for what is perceived as psychological operations to undermine pol...

Ellen Pao (person) 3 — Former Reddit CEO who became a target of user harassment and protests during earlier, more confrontational era of Reddit...

Robert Smith (person) 3 — Lead singer of The Cure, praised for maintaining professional excellence, long marriage, good relationships with bandmat...

Birds Aren't Real (concept) 3 — A satirical conspiracy theory described as a psyop used to delegitimize actual conspiracies by ridiculing people who que...

Guided by Voices (album) 3 — Indie rock band founded by Bob Pollard that achieved breakthrough success with their fifth album Propeller after years o...

Vaginismus (concept) 3 — Medical condition involving involuntary vaginal muscle spasms that can make penetrative sex impossible, discussed in the...

World Series (concept) 3 — Baseball championship series featuring a Game 7 with a living legend on the mound, presented as true American cultural e...

Aaron Judge (person) 3 — Baseball player for the New York Yankees used as an example in a tutorial about keeping score in baseball, hitting a hom...

Jack White (person) 3 — Rock musician referenced as an example of adult male cultural icons in music that have disappeared from mainstream cultu...

Dalai Lama (person) 3 — Tibetan spiritual leader who was accused of pedophilia in a viral incident involving tongue-sucking, later defended as c...

The Idiot (album) 3 — Iggy Pop album mentioned as soundtrack for a planned suicide ritual.

Commodity Fetishism (concept) 3 — Marxist concept describing how commodities appear to have autonomous logic independent of human production, representing...

Friedrich Engels (person) 3 — Philosopher who said the proletarian movement is the heir to classical German philosophy after the bourgeois revolution ...

Theresa May (person) 3 — Former British Prime Minister referenced as representing a 'weird era' that is no longer relevant in retrospect.

Grey's Anatomy (film) 3 — Medical drama television show that allegedly influenced women to become nurses similar to how Wall Street influenced men...

Tretinoin (concept) 3 — Skincare medication commonly recommended in skincare subreddits as a cure-all solution, mentioned with exasperation.

Warren Buffet (person) 3 — American investor cited as an example of how low capital gains taxes allow wealthy individuals to pay less tax than work...

Lysistrata (book) 3 — Ancient Greek play by Aristophanes about women withholding sex to end war, referenced as template for predicted liberal ...