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Biohazard Effect
The Biohazard Effect is something I noticed, which is why I’m coining it.
It’s named after the biohazard symbol. For those unaware, the symbol was designed to have no previous meaning that could be gleamed just by looking at it, yet still memorable. It needed these so that a new meaning could be assigned to it after the fact, which would make it an effective warning.
I’ve observed something similar with a lot of music nowadays too, the pre-eminent example being Little Dark Age, though you could certainly think of other candidates. The lyrics themselves are so abstract and ‘vibe-y’ that they are, in a practical sense, basically meaningless. Sure, there’s a subtext intended by the authors, but that’s pretty irrelevant when it’s hard to see that meaning.
Apparently, the creators intended the song to be about depression (which you can kinda see) and an anti-Trump song (something you cannot see at all).
The song itself, though, has basically been colonized by the chuds. Co-opted by the dissident right to represent the decadent decline of Western Civilization.
Notice how this was only possible because people of…a certain inclination tend to avoid clarity of any kind. Everything needs to be vague and vibes-based. That makes it easy to co-opt.
This is the fate of all such content.