I can admit it

I watched about 10 minutes of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.

And (though it breaks my heart) I understand why it's a hit.

It's the same reason people love to watch the gorillas at the zoo. They seem just a lot like you, but when you see them do something like playing with their own feces, you feel a bit superior (even though you know, deep down, that that huge gorilla/redneck could squash you like a bug in seconds flat and start playing with whatever oozes out of you).

Here's something else I've noticed lately.

For channels with names like Discovery and TLC (which is supposed to signify The LEARNING Channel), there is an alarming amount of subtitles for native speakers (including Honey Boo Boo's delicate flower of a mother). These are people born here to English-speaking parents who simply cannot speak in a manner that is understandable to most of the country.

And THAT, my friends is even more frightening than the popularity of Honey Boo Boo and the Kardashians put together (and don't think they're not pitching that project to executives right now).