16 October 2007

Flashmobbing returns

| johnboy
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Flashmobs.

Hilarious? Culture jamming? A good excuse to go to the pub? Soooo 2003? Or just a way for hip cats with a large set of Facebook friends to make other people feel awkward?

In any event the wonder of YouTube brings you the latest effort in the Canberra Centre on October 13.

I thought the singing was rather good.

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5min specials at Fyshwick ?

Flashknobbing methinks.

How about we have a flashmob at the Durham Arms this Friday at 4:30 – 4:45 ?

Show up, all try to buy 1 beer at once, and then depart.

** Disclaimer **
I don’t work for the Durham, and I’ve got no business interest in their franchise.

1) Whilst stereotypical, the assertion that this is “art student hippie crap” is a reasonable one.

2) As I said in my first post in this thread, flashmobbing, in my opinion, was funny to watch in its original form. The evolution of the flashmob is just getting silly (again, in my opinion). In any case, most of the comparisons you made to regular events are like apples and oranges. Fundamentally, flashmobbing is the same thing – supposed strangers rocking up at a prearranged time and location and doing something designed to get attention. Over time, the impact of a flashmob, particularly in a town the size of Canberra, will decrease for both the participants and the ‘audience’.

3) Some people will find it funny, others won’t. As I said before, I thought the early stuff was funny. None of the Canberra ones have come close to amusing me.

Flashmobbers: Do it all you please. For all the reasons you mention, it can be harmless fun for those that want to partake.

Just remember that not everyone thinks that is the best thing since sliced bread, and remember that there will be people who you will disrupt by doing it.

I especially like how the people criticising it have essentially got 3 bases for that:

1) it is art student hippie crap
2) it has been done before
3) it just isn’t that funny

1) I wasn’t aware that spending 15 minutes doing something reasonably pointless with a group of people on a Saturday required a tertiary education… Is this the untimely end of football?

2)People meet in the same places week in, week out to play sports against the same teams, pray using the same words to the same god and trawl youtube looking for the next Chris Crocker… Invading Poland has been done before, but it seems to get more fun every time, exactly what was your point?

3) Eddie Murphy in Delirious is funny, flashmobbing? The surprise and absurdity is perhaps intended to amuse (if not actually be funny).

Tim Ferguson said it best: “Can’t we all just love one another? Even Oedipus had a mother.”

Funny how some of the commentators on here love to put people down, isn’t it? Oh poor possums, the youth of today is so awful, wouldn’t happen in your day hey? And of course they were all Arts students, they must have been, who else would do that? Well, I was there, I wore a white Tshirt and jeans, I sang [loudly and out of tune] and thoroughly enjoyed it … and … well … ummm … I’m 58 … so go bag your heads you critics who are too dignified and cool to stoop to such random fun!

Actually, the first ever flash mob was created in 2003. And the largest ever flashmobbing known occurred in November last year. So … um … I’m inclined to say they’re still kinda raging.

el ......VNBerlinaV86:28 pm 21 Oct 07

No, flashmobbing was a trend 3 years ago.

*smiles*

Why do people get so shirty about every goddam thing? For the people on here who weren’t there and are complaining … how did it affect you exactly? For the people who WERE there and were complaining … well, I dunno … I guess I’m sorry you didn’t get any enjoyment out of it. I WAS there … and it definitely made me smile. And not only me … but a bunch of oldies who were in front of me on the escalator and said the song took them back years and years. Yes, flashmobbing seems to be a trend now. But so is wearing footless tights … and I haven’t seen anyone verbally bashing the 80% of the female population in Canberra currently wearing them. Ugh … lighten up my friends. Unless ur 16 … it’s not heaps cool anymore to be an angstful, stuffy ‘non-conformist’.

And to Mike Crowther … I think you’re exactly right 🙂 Considering every other city refers to Canberra as the city with no soul. Mostly I’m offended … but when I read stuff like this I can almost understand why.

‘Bug.

I think thats its a wonderful thing people doing something different instead of following the norm, if anywhere needs a bit of livening up, canberra NEEDS this more then ever. Im not sure why peple have to thrust their philosopical post modern comments onto this in order to find meaning behind it. no one else is. hav a bit of fun…. do something different. lets try and get rid of this boring name canberra has for itself, and try and stop the already dwinderling youth population from leaving for more interesting cities, this is just ONE way of doing it and i for one love it. if you dont aprove then ignore it, its not hurting anyone. and if your really that offended by it, then i suggest that you go back to the pubic service for some fun.

Thats because Comic is one of the organisers

Someone choosing to ignore you or not finding your gathering the least bit amusing is not a sign of depression, Comic, but merely a different point of view.

I was there and thought it was great! Wow ducks, you are such a hero because you totally ignored those people standing in one place and singing…

Well I’m not some self-important tosser who feels the need to bolt from a group of people singing a song by the carpenters, it was great.

Seriously, if the thought of 70+ strangers coming out of nowhere, wearing the same thing and singing doesn’t make you smile you should go to http://www.beyondblue.com.au and see if your humourlessness is a symptom of depression. Bravo to the organisers!

i thought the singing was rather good, too.

I feel sorry for the people who cant get out of the store cos all those people are in their way.

As if dude… flashmobs will be forgotten in a year, or they will be remembered like the macarena… lame.

beats graffiti

I wish I studied arts at uni, so I’d not only have the time to do this, but find it oh-so-postmodern. Because that’s what it is, right? Postmodern? You see, I get that because I’m like, so like, hip, y’know?

*sips latte*

Wow! Those people are so ZANY! And so ORIGINAL!

The original flash mobs in Asia were the best. LARGE groups of people appear from NOWHERE and stalk some lonely bloke walking down the street, pick him up and start throwing him in the air, and then disappear. Well, it’s funny to watch – the first time.

The rip off flash mobs that have ended up in Canberra, singing, pillow fights, etc are lame in comparison.

If some people get some fun out of it, then I’m all for it – it isn’t exactly harmful to anyone.

I can’t believe I wasted 3 minutes of my life watching this video. How stupid.

sounds pretty lame, they should use flashmobs for criminal purposes not doing ‘wacky’ stunts like this in shopping centres…

I saw something like on one of those on a ‘craziest world police videos’ type of shows. But people were doing it to steal stuff from petrol stations.

Basically 50 or more people walk into a petrol station and just start grabbing what ever they want, while the clerk just stands there and can’t do anything about it. Then they all disperse at the same time.

I don’t know what the point of this flash mob was though.

Mike Crowther11:08 am 16 Oct 07

I think its great. Showing a bit of humanity in a shopping centre. It’s good for the city’s soul.

I was walking out of JB Hi-Fi when that was happening, instantly knew what they were doing and kept on walking without looking at any of them.

What a bunch of Lemmings.

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