8,717 Diggs: Hello .. Ladies of the Internet | Find the love of your life

The U.S. economy is crumbling, the job market is dreadful, and now more than 10% of Americans are part of the federal food assistance program; but today's Digg leader is proof that Americans are truly light-hearted people -- or, rather, proof that Digg users are predominantly affluent and don't care about economic news. Here it is:



Here's why this picture works (by the way, the entire page is actually just a JPEG file; so when I refer to it as a "picture" I'm referring to the entire content, not just the photo of the kid):

1) Comedy: It's a very funny picture on several levels (that is, if you're not the kid from the photo). Comedy is a great tool for getting Diggs because there's some mysterious part of the human psyche that just urges people to pass along a good joke when they hear or see one. Remember, a few years ago, the video of the monkey sticking his finger up his butt and then passing out after smelling it? I'll bet if you saw that you at least got one other person to watch it. I rest my case.

2) Believability: The picture's a fake, right? Or is it? That's certainly a photo of a real person at the bottom, so maybe the whole thing is indeed real. In either case, it adds a layer of excitement to the picture; and I'll bet it was one of the first thoughts that crossed your mind after you finished viewing it for the first time. If it totally crossed the line of believability the joke wouldn't work as well, and wouldn't have the Digg-status it currently has.

3) Audience: Remember, the Internet -- or at least Digg -- is dominated by nerdy white men, so if you're going to tell a joke, make sure that nerdy white men will understand it. This picture, with its references to Asian culture and video games, meets that requirement nicely.

You'll find the original Digg page here.