# Very mild, but... the Dope isn't influencing popular culture **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 15, 2008, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986 "2008-10-15T01:24:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/61 "2008-10-15T21:51:47Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > If your OP has the word “mild” in it, it has no business in the Pit. This thread does not remotely belong in the Pit. Why is it in here? Because I consider it inappropriate to complain about other Dopers in any other forum. This forum allows those who disagree with me to express their disagreement without fear that they will be running afoul of the rules. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/62 "2008-10-15T21:58:13Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > If your OP has the word “mild” in it, it has no business in the Pit. This thread does not remotely belong in the Pit. Why is it in here? And if your title doesn’t say “Moderator”, you really don’t have business saying things like this. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/63 "2008-10-15T21:59:24Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I just put “bacon pie” in Google and got over 22,000 hits. How many were not porn sites? ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/59ef9b/32.png) [@Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_fight_the_hypothetical)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/64 "2008-10-15T22:11:30Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I’m with you **js**. The particular form of idiocy has been around for as long as I’ve been here. People think that because they saw it here first, that it must have originated here. There are a few phrases unique to here but none of them have caught on in popular culture. Maybe some dork added them to Urban Dictionary but that’s about it. Why idiocy? Why not ignorance? I don’t frequent any other boards and I’ve heard others comment similarly. I can see someone making that honest mistake. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/65 "2008-10-15T23:16:39Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Somebody on a podcast mentioning the SDMB isn’t demonstrating the SDMB’s influence on popular culture. If it doesn’t qualify as popular, it’s hard to qualify as popular culture. Yeah, somehow I missed that it was a podcast; I had a brain fart and thought it was a radio show. Still, they have 40,000-listeners according to **Randy** , which makes me think “wider world” still fits as in “they can’t _all_ be SDMB members.” > [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > I mean that’s it not a reference in the “wider world” and not a “shoutout” the way this thing is normally understood as. > > Podcasts are nice, but most of them live strictly in the world of geekiness. The same geekiness that would make someone want to post here in the first place. So a reference to the SDMB (and it was really more of a “I saw this funny thing on the net and I thought I’d share”) is really no different than when one blog mentions another blog. Is that considered a reference in the wider world? I dunno. I think with the current election and the explosion of awareness of YouTube and political blogs like Daily Kos and Huffington Post, to the point that they’re mentioned all the time on the 24 hour news channels, you could argue that certain corners of the internet have far more relevance to pop culture than they did even just a couple of years ago. If you weren’t on the internet, you didn’t hear the rumors about Trig Palin, for example, until residents of “the wider world” of TV realized they were getting scooped. The relative ease of creating a presence on the web (as opposed to becoming “somebody important” on TV or radio) is changing the nature of fame and pop culture, as well as the specialness of getting a mention by someone other than your friends. The wider world is paradoxically getting smaller and larger at the same time. It was estimated early this year that the podcast audience might reach 65 million by 2012. Will a reference or a shout-out on a widely-heard podcast have the same importance then, as a reference on a large-market radio station today? None of my replies, of course, are intended to suggest that I think the SDMB is the uber-repository of cool kids and everybody just WISHES they were us. That’s just silly, and I hope I haven’t given that impression. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/66 "2008-10-16T00:17:46Z")
Half the time, I think this board is a conspiracy affiliated and originating with the History Channel and Nat Geo. Which, considering Cecil’s old school Program on A&E is not such an extrapolation. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/67 "2008-10-16T00:39:45Z")
[QUOTE=Hazle Weatherfield] If your OP has the word “mild” in it, it has no business in the Pit. This thread does not remotely belong in the Pit. Why is it in here? [/QUOTE] Because of the high probability that heated disagreements would break out. I’m suprised by the sanity and reasonableness of the responses, actually. Your contribution, if it can be called that, is a definite low point for the thread though. Officious junior modding usually turns out really _well_ for the self-appointed Board Police. Quoth Veb, former Pit mod, who thinks the thread’s placement is fine and sensible. Where the hell ELSE would it go, MPSIMS? ATMB? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/68 "2008-10-16T01:00:31Z")
> [@Jenaroph](#): > > It was estimated early this year that the podcast audience might reach 65 million by 2012. Will a reference or a shout-out on a widely-heard podcast have the same importance then, as a reference on a large-market radio station today? But that’s for every podcast everywhere. How many thousands or hundreds of thousands of tiny podcasts are out there that only have a handful of listeners? And how many of those 65 million are spoken for by the major “old media” podcasts like those found at ESPN or NPR? Podcasts are a nice start, but they’re not popular culture yet. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/69 "2008-10-16T01:01:05Z")
I think this board is to Pop Culture as a Flying Ostrich is to Joust. Wettengrund. ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/70 "2008-10-16T01:04:54Z")
Why would I want this to be like /b/? I’ve got /b/ for that. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/71 "2008-10-16T01:30:40Z")
> [@Sarahfeena](#): > > I like the SDMB, but there’s nothing remotely cool about it. Sure there is. I’m here. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Some\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ad7895/32.png) [@Just\_Some\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Some_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/72 "2008-10-16T01:50:38Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > I think this board is to Pop Culture as a Flying Ostrich is to Joust. A vital component that always survives no matter what lands on it? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/73 "2008-10-16T02:11:29Z")
> [@Just\_Some\_Guy](#): > > A vital component that always survives no matter what lands on it? I can’t figure out the analogy, either. Maybe enemy? But you fly on an ostrich in Joust. _shrug_. I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/74 "2008-10-16T02:29:42Z")
Personally, I _like_ the fact that the SDMB is obscure. Most of the in-jokes fall flat for me for various reasons; although I do like the “Once, in 1960, for 20 minutes” thing because I’m a Bill Bryson fan and I saw the thread it started from. We’re a diverse lot here and that’s good. And frankly, if this place was really popular like Fark or Something Awful, a lot of the posts would look like they were written by hyperactive 15 year olds who can’t spell, punctuate, or form a coherent argument that doesn’t involve accusations of homosexuality- Just look at Yahoo Answers or the Comments on YouTube for some idea of what the level of discourse here would look like if we were the London Heathrow Airport of the Internet… ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/75 "2008-10-16T02:50:53Z")
> [@HongKongFooey](#): > > What if Letterman put _Hi, Opal_ in the 3rd spot on his top ten? Would we be cool then? Several years ago I remember someone posting that a fairly famous musician (John Mayer?) had said “Hi Opal!” between songs at a concert. Said poster seemed to think this was a clear shout-out to the Dope and not, you know, the musician _saying “hi” to someone named Opal_. I thought that was pretty funny. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/76 "2008-10-16T03:27:47Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I can’t figure out the analogy, either. Maybe enemy? But you fly on an ostrich in Joust. _shrug_. I don’t know. Um. The Straight Dope will continue to flap along after popular culture has been blown off it back by…a different culture, with a lance…riding a different message board? Obscure analogies for a thousand, please, Alex ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/77 "2008-10-16T04:51:52Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > This board is not even in the top 100 most popular boards on the net - didn’t even crack the top 20 in its heyday from what I remember - and no one thinks of it as some sort of elite online Mensa-type hangout except a few people on one side of the bell who are impressed by our mostly average babbling and a few insular snobs on the other side who don’t get intellectual stimulation anywhere else. Shit. I am on the impressed side of the bell. I got to admit though, jsgoddess, I do sort of cringe everytime I see someone posting something about getting a shot out by random celebrities on tv or whatever. Makes me feel all uncomfortable, like, hey, don’t pull the rest of us down with your desperation for inclusion in the cool club! Some of us are already cool, without John Stewert doing a secret Doper Sign on his show. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/78 "2008-10-16T05:45:00Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > But that’s for every podcast everywhere. How many thousands or hundreds of thousands of tiny podcasts are out there that only have a handful of listeners? And how many of those 65 million are spoken for by the major “old media” podcasts like those found at ESPN or NPR? > > Podcasts are a nice start, but they’re not popular culture yet. I did say “widely heard”. Insert whatever definition of “widely heard” within that estimate of 65 million in 2012 you like. And I’d argue that no, podcasts aren’t bastions of popular culture yet. But the potential is there for the future as it already is for blogs and YouTube. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/79 "2008-10-16T09:33:17Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > No one famous is shouting out to the SDMB. This isn’t the only group that likes bacon. . You realise of course that by posting this pit on this board that no one of any consequence is ever going to read your post or even know about it. Seems like a bit of a wasted effort really. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Some\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ad7895/32.png) [@Just\_Some\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Some_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986/80 "2008-10-16T13:08:46Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > Um. The Straight Dope will continue to flap along after popular culture has been blown off it back by…a different culture, with a lance…riding a different message board? > > Obscure analogies for a thousand, please, Alex Okay, then what’s the pterodactyl? And are the lava hands censors? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-mild-but-the-dope-isnt-influencing-popular-culture/467986.md?page=5)