STUFF WHITE PEOPLE LIKE ABOUT STUFF WHITE PEOPLE LIKE.

You've got to respect the turnaround time, at least. The blog Stuff White People Like, which burst onto the scene a couple months ago and proved so effortlessly viral that influenza began questioning its skill set, is already a book ("the definitive guide to the unique tastes of millions!"). The HBO series is presumably on its way, as is the move tie-in, the graphic novel, and a line of extremely pale action figures. In this month's issue of TAP, Samhita Mukhopadhyay takes a look at what non-white people like about Stuff White People Like:

People of color appreciate Stuff White People Like because it makes visible the assumed invisibility of a certain type of white culture. In doing so, it opens the door to the admission that, yes, white culture is a distinct, often peculiar, and even varied phenomenon. It is not simply "American culture," or worse, "the culture." I grew up hearing white friends say, "You are so lucky to have a culture," and I remember thinking, "Dude, you have a culture, too." But they didn't see it as a culture. It was too pervasive, too synonymous with "American" for them to feel ownership over it, even though it clearly excluded people of color. The mere fact of pointing out that a dominant white culture exists and has implicit membership requirements and shared references will earn you a lot of fans among people of color.To be sure, not all white culture has escaped scrutiny. Jeff Foxworthy has been on the comedy circuit (and on TV) for decades. And what about Roseanne, or the Canadian show The Trailer Park Boys, or the Blue Collar Comedy Tour? True, this segment of pop culture examines working-class whiteness, often quite critically. What makes Stuff White People Like special is that it describes relatively wealthy white Americans, and in doing so, recognizes that their particular culture has been mainstreamed and presented by Hollywood as the norm. It's as much about class as it is about race. To consume or participate in most of the activities and products featured on the blog--in other words, to identify with it--you need a good amount of disposable income. The implication is that white is synonymous with wealthy. In many ways, Stuff White People Like is speaking to a class divide as much as a racial one and is helping lay bare the ways in which the two interact and are often conflated.

Interestingly, I think that's what white people -- or what white yuppies -- like about the site, too. Yes, it's mocking them. But it's also naming them, and offering a dead-on description of their experience. Which means the experience, if not universal, is common. And so reading the site gives a lot of folks a warm sense of belonging. They're part of something. That something may be absurd and privileged and heavy with self-congratulatory irony, but it's real, and by giving it shape and boundaries, Stuff White People Like helps readers fit themselves definitively inside the experience. If you're into Asian fusion, the Wire, kitchen gadgets, and Barack Obama, you're part of the club. And everyone likes being part of the club.