Hipster = Clone, Stepford, Sheep ...and No Originality

It scary to see the young generation become a host for the American Apparel/MTV alien pods. Everywhere I go, I see some poor child trying to keep up with the hot look. And although it's nothing new, this trendy bus seems to have more on board, going nowhere.

Today, after seeing more clones I jumped on the nets and ran into a couple of articles hitting on this subject. From Gawker, I was led to AdBusters. The article, Hipster: The Dead End of the Western Civilization, opened my eyes to more about this madness. The main line for me, was this statement:

Take a stroll down the street in any major North American or European city and you’ll be sure to see a speckle of fashion-conscious twentysomethings hanging about and sporting a number of predictable stylistic trademarks: skinny jeans, cotton spandex leggings, fixed-gear bikes, vintage flannel, fake eyeglasses and a keffiyeh – initially sported by Jewish students and Western protesters to express solidarity with Palestinians, the keffiyeh has become a completely meaningless hipster cliché fashion accessory.

I asked one of my students about this look. He told me that it's a statement. And I asked, what is the statement? He said it means we are independent and revolutionary, then I said, "yeah, right." Revolutionary? Independent? No sweetie, it's neither of those things. Following a crowd isn't a sign of independence and spending tons of money at American Apparel is far from starting a revolution. But how did those words translate to this?

Punk was a revolution, Real Rap was a revolution, burning bras was an act of social change, looking like Kayne West and Lauren Conrad are not. I feel that being a original is almost like being a pixie. A pixie doesn't exist and the act of being original is almost there as well. The idea of a hipster is a lost concept. These folks just blend in, fade in the sea of blah. Where's the excitement? What is the meaning and the reason behind this? Are they just lazy or is this the statement of this generation? I hope not.