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[Fairportfan]

Setting out for the Gainesville Parks & Recreations (Really Badly Run) Easter Egg "Hunt":
 

[Jabberwonky]

EDIT: Motorcycle Img

So.
Lawyers that specialize in motorcycle law, or lawyers on motorcycles riding the land to bring two-wheeled justice to a four wheel society?

[Fairportfan]

I suspect it's lawyers who specialise in cases involving cycles - helmet laws, loud pipes, meth dealing, murder-for-hire...

[Fairportfan]

Mad Magazine used to be funny

[Catawampus]

EDIT: Motorcycle Img

So.
Lawyers that specialize in motorcycle law, or lawyers on motorcycles riding he land to bring two-wheeled justice to a four wheel society?

I'm envisioning something involving sentient motorcycles.

[MerchManDan]

(I find that one white whisker of Stitch's fascinating.)

That's happened to a couple of black cats I've known, too; what's up with that?

[Fairportfan]

Mad Magazine used to be funny

...and assumed a certain degree of literacy in its readers.

From MAD #68, January 1962):



The same article included parodies of Sandburg's "Chicago", Holmes' "Old Ironsides", Tennyson's "Charge of the Light brigade" and Oates' "Trees"...

...and it was typical, not exceptional.

These days, MAD seems to assume that its readers can barely read.

[shadowinthelight]

I only ever owned one copy of Mad:

[Fairportfan]

Gawd.

Using the unfunniest popular "humour" to set up a truly lame "joke"...

=========

...and this on the front of the magazine that once had a painting by multiple-Hugo-award-winning artist Kelly Freas on the cover every issue...

[scantrontb]

These days, MAD seems to assume that its readers can barely read.

unfortunately, with today's education system, they are possibly estimating their audience correctly...

[Fairportfan]

These days, MAD seems to assume that its readers can barely read.

unfortunately, with today's education system, they are possibly estimating their audience correctly...

What's really sad is that in a 60s piece on television, they rather mercilessly skewered the demographic that teevee programming was allegedly aimed at as "The Amazing Clod"

[Catawampus]

In line with Fairportfan's fine floral photographic offerings, here is the blossoming beauty of Springtime around my home!

As you can see, the trees are happily budding away, while lower down the various flowers are simply running rampant with their blooms taking on all sorts of bright and cheery shapes. Even the spiders are getting in on the act, and the robins are looking quite merry as they cavort in the grass. That grass is getting a bit wild and in need of a trim, what with the cattle being in the lower pastures at the moment and thus not keeping it nibbled down.

And here are a couple of scenic mountain views. In this first one, that mountain just across the valley is the tallest one in this entire state. If you look carefully, you might be able to see some members of the family of hawks who live just below that outcropping of rocks in the middle left. The other photo is looking off to the southwest, where you can see parts of three other states. That large and distinctive boulder pile in the middle distance is a very popular picnic spot for the locals, and that big patch of wildflowers just to the left of it is where many of the local deer like to sleep.

[Jabberwonky]

In line with Fairportfan's fine floral photographic offerings, here is the blossoming beauty of Springtime around my home!

...Even the spiders are getting in on the act, ...

That spider web is amazing.

[DinkyInky]

The lovely soft white frozen fluffy stuff has invaded in the middle of April. I swear I didn't ask for it! I'm not complaining, but I did not ask for it.

My son managed to chain toss quite a few hand made cold white projectiles at me before the bus picked him up this morning. He seemed to have quite a bit of fun before school that I figured all was well...

He was so rattled about Winter coming back, that his teacher had him write a letter to Winter, wishing it a fond fare-thee-well.

By the time school let out, it was 90% melted.

Gotta love global warming...[end]/sarcasm[/end]

[Atomic]

These days, MAD seems to assume that its readers can barely read.

unfortunately, with today's education system, they are possibly estimating their audience correctly...

What's really sad is that in a 60s piece on television, they rather mercilessly skewered the demographic that teevee programming was allegedly aimed at as "The Amazing Clod"

Indeed! MAD's contribution to culture was to skewer common cultural icons. That in itself requires commonly known cultural icons to skewer -- thus Groucho Marx could target "The Wreck of the Hesperus" in the 1930s, 1960s MAD could target "O Captain! My Captain!" in the cartoon above, and so on. It's how people like Tom Lehrer made merry in the 1950s by happily mangling those common touchstones of average life and society.

It's that common core of experience through the delight of all 3 channels of nations television at the time, and the daily newspapers (morning and evening editions! Really!) that came to you filtered through the eyes and motivations of AP, UPI, and NYT news services. It's not so much Groupthink that ruled the day, it's that you could go almost anywhere and NOT find someone who could comment on yesterday's L'il Abner or Pogo comic strips, Lassie or My Mother the Car.

So - MADs problem today in using that common culture targeting is that common culture is so diluted. Somebody familiar with Dr. Dre or Bo Diddly might not have a clue about Waylon Jennings or Ernest Tubbs. So that leaves aiming for the headliners in the various political and Hollywood venues, and, sadly, those people already verge on self-parody as it is.

Think of it -- How many poems do you actually know a full verse to, and what that poem is about? OK - now think of 10 people you know and do any of them know that poem, too? Thin pickings these days.

And no, not the man from Nantucket. That doesn't count.

[shadowinthelight]

And no, not the man from Nantucket. That doesn't count.

What about women from Venus?

[Jabberwonky]

And no, not the man from Nantucket. That doesn't count.

What about women from Venus?

Depends on what shape she's in.

[Catawampus]

So - MADs problem today in using that common culture targeting is that common culture is so diluted. Somebody familiar with Dr. Dre or Bo Diddly might not have a clue about Waylon Jennings or Ernest Tubbs.

Mmm, I'm not sure how much of an effect that really has. I don't think that people are necessarily being exposed to culture at a higher rate today. It's more that modern telecommunications lets them get exposed to culture that is not geographically restricted. Before, a greater proportion of the overall population was considerably more insular and parochial, being familiar mainly with what is going on in their geographical region and in their socially-mandated circle of peers. There was a huge number of different subcultures, but those subcultures were more clustered. Today, the subcultures are bound more by social ties and less by geographical restraints. In the 1950's, you'd know about one artist and not about another because of where you lived, what region and what neighbourhood; today, you'll still know of some artists and be totally unfamiliar with others but it's more likely just because of your social group.

Today as in the past, there are still only a limited number of cultural touchstones common among a wide range of subcultures. "Common" culture has always been a very small part of overall society. There are probably a lot of other factors causing problems for MAD magazine. Changes in social preferences (the majority of people today might not even see any "problems" with current issues of MAD), perhaps. Management taking a different direction. Alien mind control rays.

Plus, there's the fact that while MAD was groundbreaking and influential decades ago, the very pervasiveness of its influence could be hurting it today. So many other entities have taken on their current methods by copying MAD, and so MAD no longer stands out as original and has become cliché in its rebelliousness and nonconformity. That in itself might make it seem shallower, or its editors might be aware of the problem and be taking steps to try to "freshen up" the magazine. . .and those steps are changing the nature of the magazine's material and making it less attractive to people who are used to the old ways.

[Fairportfan]

From the Misfile board's "YouTube videos" thread:

Idiocy never dies.
 

Unfortunately.

He looks young enough he may not have spawned yet.

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It goes by pretty fast, so here's a frame-grab of the crucial moment.



Quite possibly prevented him from being injured or even killed.

He was shooting a selfie at what he thought was a safe distance from the tracks.

[Atomic]

One can only wonder what relatively soft projection was attached to the engine! Anything much harder than foam rubber would have done serious/fatal injury.

Plus, there's the fact that while MAD was groundbreaking and influential decades ago, the very pervasiveness of its influence could be hurting it today. So many other entities have taken on their current methods by copying MAD, and so MAD no longer stands out as original and has become cliché in its rebelliousness and nonconformity.

Same with "Modern Art," whatever that is these days. It's all so damn Avant Garde it's become cliché as well.