Thought-provoking piece on the Harambe legend.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/aug/12/harambe-the-meme-that-refused-to-die

Quote from: challengerX on August 13, 2016, 05:25:20 AM

I can't believe we live in a time where there are articles about memes.

At this point every other article about the US election from the BBC mentions memes, it's truly a wonderful time to be alive.

*terrrible

The last thing I remembered was the pain. There was a loud bang, and then a searing pain. I came to rest in the shallow water, and then I began to drift away. I could hear the boy's wails as I rested in the water. His crying was good, it meant he wasn't hurt. As the world around me faded to white, I could just barely hear a voice echoing through the ether, suddenly becoming clear with one distinct phrase.

"Rise, my child."

Coming to my feet, I realized I was no longer wet, and the pain had completely left my body. Sensing my confusion, the man in white spoke.

"Wondering where you are? Most do. I can't tell you too much, but I can say that you are safe. No one can hurt you now."

I searched for the words inside to ask what happened, where I was, and what happened to the boy I was protecting, but nothing profound came to mind. I guess some things are truly best left unanswered. Instead, I heard a faint clicking in the distance. Looking in it's direction I could just barely make out a tall board with writing on it.

Making my way over with the man following, I began to read the board. It seemed to be displaying statistics of some sort. It had my birthday, how many meals I've eaten, and how many heartbeats I've had. Confused, I wondered why the last one had stopped. After a few moments of thought, the realization hit me.

"I'm sorry." The man looked sad at my acknowledgement of the truth. This was it, I was dead.

All was not lost though, some of the statistics were still going up.

One listed the number of people I had saved. I thought it would only list the life of the boy, but it seemed to be slowly rising.

"People heard of the life you lived and how you filled it, and decided that they would keep going in your memory. You've made life worth living."

Another number, rising faster, showed how many people loved me, and missed me. I don't think I had met that many people in my life, but there it was!

"Your story has spread far and wide. At this point, there is nary a soul in the world that hasn't heard of you."

One last number seemed to be spinning at light speed. I couldn't tell exactly what it was, but it was well over seven digits, and rapidly rising. It listed four cryptic words next to it: 'NUMBER OF DICKS OUT.'

I turned to the man, confused once again.

"Eh. I'd rather not talk about that one."

Eyes up, Harambe.

>harambe meme has lasted a month or two tops
>meanwhile, baneposting has survived off the blood of plane crash victims for 4 years now