Subject: Re: ny times article
From: mpax@pbs.org (Cool Bean)
Date: 1991-05-08, 07:22
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks

In article <1991May8.032410.18417@rodan.acs.syr.edu>, bwdavies@rodan.acs.syr.edu writes:
> > In article <1991May7.175126.11490@grebyn.com> fi@grebyn.com (Fiona Oceanstar) writes:
>> >>I'll tell you what I really objected to, in that article.  It was the
>> >>strong statement that Peakheads are elitists--that our interest in the
>> >>series wanes in direct proportion to how many others are getting
>> >>involved, that if it's not "hip" to a small select in-crowd, then we,
>> >>like the avant-garde art scene in NYC, will decamp for unsullied
>> >>pastures.  Yuk.  Didn't y'all find that comment offensive?
> > 
> > I don't know.  While I wouldn't consider myself to be an "elitist",
> > I'm still pretty disappointed when musical groups or literary movements
> > I'm interested in are suddenly "discovered" by the mass media and 
> > large numbers of people.  Maybe it's just me, but it often seems like
> > the quality goes down and many of the aspects that interested me
> > begin to be dropped in favor of a more general appeal.
> > 
> > Is it elitism to want something you've enjoyed to stay amazing,
> > even if a lot of other people hop on the bandwagon?

They picked the wrong word.  I don't like to follow the masses either.
My skin crawls everytime one of my favorite bands sells out and then
everybody loves it and I hate it.

Maybe it's just that we don't buy into all the marketing bullshit and don't
like things diluted for the "general audience".  There's something
intriguing in the unusual and the original that is lost when it goes
commercial.  When something then gets that popular they forget about
the original fan and only seek to please the masses.  i.e.  Duran Duran,
Pet Shop Boys, Billy Idol, etc...

I wouldn't call that elitest.  It is abandoned by the fan, because the
fan was already abandoned.

Just because I'm not the average American pinhead and don't go gaga over
America's Home Videos, Danielle Steele or New Kids on the Block, doesn't
make me or anyone else an elitest.  I'm offended because they said that
because we don't fit into their idea of the average American.  Who says
we have to like what everyone else likes?  What happened to freedom of
choice?  Once again the "moral majority" passes judgement.

At least we're not wienies and pretend to like something just because
everyone else does.

--Cool Bean
-- **This is not cultural.