PHOTO Why Kim Kardashian remains relevant

I don’t think we’ve ever done a post about Kim Kardashian without at least one commenter angrily posing the question, “Why does anyone even care?!?” Don’t think for a second that we don’t hear you, and occasionally we even forget ourselves when crushed under the deluge of fake marriages, Kardashian-themed junk stores, a rather unentertaining reality show, and an over-priced, poorly made clothing line available only at Sears.

But then I see a photo of Kim Kardashian like the one above (in which she is just walking down the street, btw) and I remember. And I don’t just remember, I write a post about it. I stare at that photo and I am genuinely interested in what other kinds of low quality products she may be working on. I want to know more about her future ex-husband. I want to know who the real father of her sister is. I want.

And I don’t believe it’s purely sexual, because women are enamored by Kim as well. There’s something perfectly exotic, beautiful, and mesmerizing about her – visually. On occasion the spell can be broken (like when she speaks), and it may very well be that her farcical nuptials to Kris Humphries will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back Kim curse as far as pop culture goes. But I think that as long as she’s able to walk down the street in a skin-tight red dress looking like that, the Kardashian empire will remain safe.

A recent NY Post article would seem to indicate otherwise, even going so far as to call the Kardashian brand “toxic.” The author points out these revealing stats:

• Keeping up with the Kardashians has suffered a 14 percent dip in Nielsen ratings, from 3.5 million viewers per episode last season to 3 million this season.

• Circulation at Us Weekly, In Touch, Life & Style and OK! dropped about 18 percent when a Kardashian was on the cover in December, according to publishers.

• Skechers ditched Kim as the face of the company in 2011 — they’ve replaced her with a French bulldog.

Those factoids are certainly interesting, but I just don’t think they can stack up against the stackedest of the stacked. (See: photo)

What do you think? Will the Kardashians be able to pull out of their downward spiral? Will Kim’s big booty be enough of a life preserver to save them all from what appears to be a fast-sinking ship?

I’ll let you take a looooooong last look at my argument while you think it over:

Photos: Jackson Lee /Splash News