Camille doesn't love Gaga

Camille Paglia has unloaded on Lady Gaga and a quite a few people are responding in various ways.

Ann Althouse thinks that Paglia missed the first wave on Lady Gaga and is now frantically compensating so as to not appear old and out of touch. I suspect there is something to that. That said, I give Paglia a certain amount of credit for not being scared of sounding "geezerly", as Althouse puts it.

Two things seem to upset Paglia about Lady Gaga. The first is that she is just a lame retread of others.

 She is the diva of déjà vu. Gaga has glibly appropriated from performers like Cher, Jane Fonda as Barbarella, Gwen Stefani and Pink, as well as from fashion muses like Isabella Blow and Daphne Guinness. 

Paglia also mentions drag queens, Madonna, David Bowie, Elton John, Marlene Dietrich and Andy Warhol as sources of Lady Gaga's shtick.  What doesn't seem to trouble Paglia is that those people are all mediocrities who achieved fame through scandal rather than actual art of any significance or power.

 The other thing that really bothers Paglia while Lady Gaga is all about sex there is something oddly asexual about her. Again, look at that list of influences and ask yourself if they are any different. Or, what about Camille Paglia herself. She writes about sex all the time, did anyone ever get a big erotic charge from contemplating Camile Paglia? I would think the first thought most potential sex partners of any of the above would have is how can I get him or her to shut up until I'm finished and that goes quadruple for Paglia.

Oh yeah, one other tidbit:

Her upbringing was comfortable and eventually affluent, and she attended the same upscale Manhattan private school as Paris and Nicky Hilton.

Note to parents with children currently attending this school: get them out before it's too late.