The Daily Change: Austerity Advocate Alan Simpson Does ‘Gangnam Style — Which Parodies Out Of Touch Rich People

You might’ve seen a new video of Alan Simpson — the former senator and Washington lobbyist who authored a plan to lower corporate taxes and cut Medicare and Social Security benefits — where he does the popular “Gangnam Style” dance. If not — here it is:

At the end of the video, Simpson warns young Americans to beware of “old coots who clear out the Treasury before you get there.” Considering that the entire video is made to recruit young Americans to sign a petition calling for cuts to benefits for programs they rely on, like Social Security and Medicare, Simpson’s warning is particularly ironic.

Here’s another interesting fact. The popular Gangnam Style song is itself a parody of the residents of the region of Gangnam, a wealthy part of the South Korean capital city of Seoul. As Foreign Policy’s Max Fisher writes, the song is made to lampoon the “self-importance and ostentatious wealth” in Gangnam. The star of the song, the Korean artist Psy, is a “clownish caricature” of a an out of touch rich person.

Then perhaps it is fitting that Simpson would utilize this song in a desperate attempt to enlist young Americans to cut benefits in programs like Medicare and Social Security while lowering the corporate tax rate.

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