The AYBABTU backlash continues. Is the blogging community (surely most responsible for perpetuating the meme) just a bunch of Nathan Barleys?
posted by ecvgi (39 comments total)
I am so bored with this topic.
I am also bored with the word meme. posted by pracowity at 4:40 AM on February 26, 2001
While Nathanism is plainly rife among the 'blogging community' I think the main thrust of the righteous abuse this week is against those who calibrate the meme and discuss its out-of-dateness...like...um...oops. Damn.
Anyway real Nathans are much too thick-skinned to care about such things: I got sent an invite this week to a launch of a "retro-gaming" club at a place called the "Bluu Bar". It's beyond parody now, really. posted by freakytrigger at 4:42 AM on February 26, 2001
I'm more bored with the alleged 'backlash' than I am with AYB... posted by harmful at 6:10 AM on February 26, 2001
i agree, harmful. "Backlash alerts" are self-fulfilling prophecies. posted by jpoulos at 6:37 AM on February 26, 2001
I think its rather nice to see people quoting some old video game rather then the latest assault on our brain from advertisers. posted by bytecode at 7:40 AM on February 26, 2001
I'm more bored with the alleged 'backlash' of the alleged 'backlash' than I am with AYB... posted by geek of the week at 9:35 AM on February 26, 2001
All your boredom are belong to us. posted by rodii at 9:42 AM on February 26, 2001
I'm so bored with the use of AYBisms to reference the boredom backlash of the backlash to the backlash of AYB - much too bored to say ALL YOUR BACKLASH ARE BELONG TO US!
Much, much too bored.
Oh wait, I'm not bored at all! I find memes, specifically recursive memes, infinitely humorous.
ALL YOUR ALL YOUR BASE REFERENCES ARE BELONG TO US! posted by CrazyUncleJoe at 9:57 AM on February 26, 2001
Exactly how far do you kids think the "peace" sign would have gotten, meme-wise, if, every time some hippie flashed it, a wannabe-hipper-hippie rolled his eyes and declared the symbol to be boring and unhip?
Most of the people who know about AYBABTU (myself included) have known about it for about two weeks. Is that the maximum time that we're allowed to find something funny? Hell, I still laugh at Bugs Bunny cartoons I first saw twenty-five years ago. No wonder the youth of America (and the world) lack any sort of common culture. We're too busy trying to beat each other to the "I found (insert mildly fun thing here) boring before you did" button.
This is not to say that we should deliberately run it into the ground. But when it does truly get old, it will do so organically. This will probably happen LONG before Sprite tries to gain artificial "hip-cred" by altering the graphic to read: "All Your Base Are Obey Your Thirst" (or something equally lame), an attempt that we will see right through, view with scorn, and mock them for. However, since they will, no doubt, premiere the ad during next years Super Bowl, WE will be in the minority. The majority of those seeing the ad will think that the Sprite campaign is edgy, and clever. They will then begin repeating the catchphrase around the water cooler, and on the telephone answering machines of their friends. Think you're sick of it now?
Point is, we have a narrow window of time in which to appreciate this kooky little thing. I say we have a little fun with it, and when everyone's tired of it, it will die a natural death. We will bury it peacefully, bidding it a fond farewell. Shortly thereafter, of course, it will be dug up and skull-f*cked mercilessly by the writhing, drooling dogpile that is the advertising industry. Obey your thirst.
I'm bored with posts that do nothing other than complain about how bored someone is with whatever is being discussed. posted by daveadams at 10:56 AM on February 26, 2001
AYBABTU eats my balls. posted by pracowity at 11:05 AM on February 26, 2001
Legal disclaimer: The "peace" sign and all related hand signals are Copyright 2001, Verizon Wireless. All rights reserved. posted by Optamystic at 11:06 AM on February 26, 2001
Pronounced Ver-uh-zawhn. posted by aaron at 11:43 AM on February 26, 2001
How I long for the simpler days when we could just rely on Mike Myers to give us our catchphrases every few years. Speaking of which, why didn't ...Axe Murderer do better than it did? posted by anildash at 12:04 PM on February 26, 2001
I love that this annoys people. Must suck to annoy so easily. posted by john at 12:21 PM on February 26, 2001
Right on, Optamystic. The thing I enjoy most about AYBABTU is its current purity from advertising shenanigans... well, the fact that I find it funny helps too. AYB is a silly little thread between people that didn't originate out of a need to sell something... an entelechy that seems all too prominant in society. Unlike ads, AYB doesn't ask anything of us; it doesn't even request that we enjoy it. AYB has an appealing passivity that will no doubt get brutally beaten out of it once Sprite (or whoever) gets their hands on it. Your description of this action was altogether more vivid and creative, and did bring a joyful tear to my eye. posted by Dane at 12:33 PM on February 26, 2001
AYB has an appealing passivity that will no doubt get brutally beaten out of it once Sprite (or whoever) gets their hands on it.
Interesting idea - what if this gets taken over by some corporate entity? You know it's gonna. "All your thirst are belong to us"? posted by hijinx at 12:34 PM on February 26, 2001
I'd just like to say that I've been trying to push the term skull-fucked as an epithetic meme, and I'm thrilled to see it here. posted by CrazyUncleJoe at 12:58 PM on February 26, 2001
I'm so hip that I'm bored of all future memes. Whatever they might be. posted by dithered at 1:15 PM on February 26, 2001
Frankly, I'm just surprised Rod's prescient parody didn't come to pass sooner. Six days? That's a lifetime these days. posted by bradlands at 3:32 PM on February 26, 2001
More wacky intermeme happenings here. posted by youhas at 4:22 PM on February 26, 2001
Yeah, it's almost impossible *not* to think of these things. posted by rodii at 4:26 PM on February 26, 2001
In my defense, I thought of the Am I AYBABTU or Not? thing but I'm far too lazy to have done anything about it.
All your skull-fuck are belong to CrazyUncleJoe posted by Optamystic at 12:24 AM on February 27, 2001
marry me, optamystic? ^_^ posted by pikachulolita at 1:43 AM on February 27, 2001
> Most of the people who know about AYBABTU (myself
> included) have known about it for about two weeks. Is
> that the maximum time that we're allowed to find
> something funny?
You are allowed to be amused by it if I am allowed to be unamused by it. Two weeks is a long time to be laughing at the same joke. About a week and six days too long.
> No wonder the youth of America (and the world) lack
> any sort of common culture.
I am corrupting the youth of the world by not laughing at AYBABTU week after week? I will have to be much more careful with my super powers. Maybe the world will explode if I say that everyone who likes Friends is a mouthbreather.
You are allowed to be amused by it if I am allowed to be unamused by it.
Ok, but do you have to be so conspicuously unamused by it? posted by Optamystic at 2:36 AM on February 27, 2001
marry me, optamystic? ^_^
Monsieur Humbert, please pick up the white courtesy phone....Monsieur Humbert, please pick up the white courtesy phone.... posted by Optamystic at 2:50 AM on February 27, 2001
> Ok, but do you have to be so conspicuously
> unamused by it?
Yes, as conspicuously unamused as you are conspicuously amused. posted by pracowity at 3:16 AM on February 27, 2001
It showed up in a slide at an NVidia tech preview last week about the new GeForce 3. posted by Steven Den Beste at 7:08 AM on February 27, 2001
Heh. I like how they're discussing Tarket Markets on the same slide. It appears that nVidia's marketers do indeed know their target audience. posted by cCranium at 8:38 AM on February 27, 2001
Looks like Illiad is getting in on the AYBABTU as well... posted by stew560 at 4:57 AM on February 28, 2001
Looks like AYBABTU has become one of the most popular search engine requests. Quick, everyone change your meta tags! posted by Aaaugh! at 7:12 AM on February 28, 2001
Subscribe
I am also bored with the word meme.
posted by pracowity at 4:40 AM on February 26, 2001