I just don't believe in the concept of absolute taste. It seems to me that groups of active, snobby citizens furiously pounce on dissenters and kick them for their own amusement. If that's true, one person has no right to criticize what another loves, and pushily promote their own favorite creations. Except maybe hand over a record with the words: "Give it a listen in your free time, maybe you'll like it".
But that doesn't fly with me at all for two reasons:
1) Most of my acquaintances listen to absolute garbage, or rather, don't even pay attention to what's playing in the background. Plus they are convinced that some "Matrix" is full of magnificent philosophy, the pinnacle of cinema in general and original plots in particular.
Of course, the matrix is a decent movie, and background music (WARNING! MUZAK!) relaxes people and helps them live. But I can't stomach such comrades; I'm always cursing and spitting, trying to knock some sense into them. And afterwards I feel like I'm in the wrong, because some of these people are much better than me in many ways, and I have no right to teach them.
2) I'm sick of fans of modern indie rock, 60s, 70s rock'n'roll or jazz. You get the feeling that it's the Main Music of All Times and Peoples period, everything else is a misunderstanding, and modern music, like electronic, for instance, isn't even worth mentioning. You only have to look at Russian-language music sites, and everything immediately becomes clear. And LiveJournal is an absolute breeding ground for this contagion.
By the way, as a classic example one can cite . Some claim here that this is innocent fun. However, it's obvious everywhere that the participants clearly share the idea of the elitism and refinement of their own tastes, even if jokingly. Here, for example, is a little phrase: "why else did we gather 8 cool music lovers". It becomes clear, the participants chose an exotic way to viciously mock people, plus find their own kind, to use Goblin's expression, "artsy fags".
And the crowds of people rushing to post their lists obviously don't care what the participants will say, people want communication, attention, and besides, it's interesting to remember what you love most of all.
However, it turns out not very nice - people voluntarily go where they get shit on, and quite often for no reason. With that I will finally be done with this beaten-to-death topic.