When Kim Kardashian’s exposed rear end is all it takes to ‘break the internet,’ then maybe the internet just isn’t worth breaking.  Last week, reality TV star Kim Kardashian posed for the Paper Magazine- stark naked and baring perhaps her largest ‘asset’ to the world.  The photograph was released with the catchphrase “break the internet,” implying that all it takes to plunge the World Wide Web into chaos is a notorious star’s Photoshopped butt. The worst part? It totally worked.

Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites went into a frenzy filled with comments- both approving and disgusted- in response to Kim’s tush. The photo has been retweeted literally millions of times. The whole publicity stunt drew a ridiculously enormous surge of attention.  The media has grabbed ahold of it and even news sources as reputable as CBS News, the Huffington Post, and BBC News have reported stories.

Why is it that something so juvenile, so immature, and so downright lewd is receiving such a momentous response? Because this is what people care about. While major world issues like gubernatorial elections are still very real right now, this is what’s taking the spotlight. In fact, the number of Americans that have retweeted something relating to Kim’s photo is greater than the number of Americans who voted in Tuesday’s election. Society would rather argue over trivialities than about what really matters because it’s easier, funnier, and more in tune with our personal lives. It takes time and effort to keep in touch with political issues, and for many, it’s not a commitment worth making. According to the National Journal, only about one percent of Americans are politically active, and only about forty percent are in touch with major world issues.

With such skewed priorities, it’s no wonder that Kim’s controversial photograph was so huge. Maybe all it will take for the American people to start caring this much about the elections is to get one good shot of the candidates mooning the camera.