Ah, well, so I’m not mainstream…

Never was.

Julie at Happy Catholic links to the so-called Top 10 Cultural Magnets which are supposed to bring Americans together or bind us as a “community” or something. Like Jules, I’ve put my own thoughts – or “vote” – in italics.

Here’s the CSM’s proposed top-10 list. What do you think? How many of these do you partake of? Do you have others to suggest?

1) Breaking News
History in the making, with all of us glued to our TVs as it happens. Election night. The tsunami. Katrina. 9/11. These are images that not only keep us watching and can unite us, but often spur people to real action.

(Here is how it works: my best friend calls me up and says, “are you watching this?” And I say, “what? What horrible thing is happening?” And she says, “John-John is lost at sea,” or “Princess Diana was in a wreck and is in grave condition,” or “a plane just hit the WTC!” Then, depending on just “how” breaking it is, I’ll turn on the tv. So, if it’s breaking live, as with the WTC, I’ll watch, but if it’s a “sort of breaking but mostly we’re just waiting for the body” story, I’ll go online to read about it.) So, no. Not really.)

2) The Super Bowl
An average of 90 million people watch the game every year. In 2005, 10 million more people watched than voted in the last election. Even if they were just watching for the commercials.

(I was not one of them. I often host Super Bowl parties or my pal does. I usually read a book during the game. Or the internet. So, sort of.)

3) New Year’s Eve / The Fourth of July
Both holidays are culturally defined by outdoor spectacles: Billions of people worldwide tune in for at least a glance of New Year’s in Times Square, and millions head out to watch fireworks with neighbors and strangers each 4th of July.

(If I didn’t have my best friend – boundlessly enthusiastic and up for almost everything on this list – New Year’s Eve would simply be a night for me to fret about everyone’s safety. Fourth of July upsets my dog, but I like the noise. So, sorta.)

4) Oprah Winfrey
America’s most powerful celebrity and most trusted person, Oprah’s endorsemeent means millions in hard cash. Her influence is so pervasive that she was single-handedly blamed for people avoiding hamburgers because of her comments during the mad-cow scare in 1996.

(As Julie said: Not only no but “hell no!” And I am embarrassed for my country that so many people just mindlessly follow after her with starry eyes.)

5) Harry Potter
Over 250 million copies sold in the U.S. alone, and over $1 billion in ticket sales at the box office, Harry has brought families together around a story, and has not only gotten kids to read thousands of pages voluntarily, but has spurred an increase in reading across the country.

(Adore the books and the movies, but I really hate the new Dumbledore. Yes.)

6) American Idol
A show which draws from the diversity of all 50 states, and consequently looks more like the “real” America than any other. Selling the “new” American Dream — that elusive 15 seconds of fame — AI relies on that most American of institutions — the democratic vote — to stand as an icon of “interactive” TV.

(It’s entertaining, I grant you, but in a worrisome way. No.)

7) The Oscars
Even though only handfuls of people have seen this year’s five Best Picture nominees, millions and millions in America — and up to a billion around the world — will still watch the Academy Awards.

(Haven’t been interested since maybe The Silence of the Lambs. No. I do look up the dresses online, though!)

8) Cyberspace hangouts
Think of Craigslist, the city-based classified ads listing site which racks up 3 billion page views each month. Or MySpace, the teen-dominated board which claims membership of 50 million and gets more hits each day than Google, eBay and Amazon combined.

(I blog. I email. I don’t hang out. No.)

9) The Da Vinci Code
It may be a literary hodgepodge and flaming heresy to boot, but the book, with its 29 million copies in print worldwide, has created a cultural maelstrom in which everyone has to take sides, whether they’ve read it or not.

(I surprise even myself in how well I’ve managed to ignore it)

10) U2
Heirs to the Beatles as the only truly global rock band, U2 is a unifying force across generations and cultures, with Bono blazing new trails as a humanitarian and political activist.

(They are not heirs to the Beatles, and Bono sometimes annoys the hell out of me – but then he also charms me, and I think his texts are brilliant. And Edge is a wonderful ambiant guitarist. I love the fact that they started out as boys knowing nothing about music, and have managed to stay together. Okay, I’ll say it here and now: ACHTUNG BABY IS THE GREATEST POP ALBUM EVER. So…you know…yes!)

Well…I seem pretty boring, and a tad bilious, don’t I? And yet, I think I’m basically pretty pleasant. Ah, well. Perhaps I’m deluded, too, just like those poor American Idol wannabes.