I never really was a big fan of KISS. Sure, many of my own musical influences had their lives changed by Gene Simmons' cutthroat marketing and disconcerting tongue gyrations, but they just don't do anything for me.
That's not what this is about though. I'm thinking about the simplifying of those big, pressing, monumental issues into small and easy to consume nuggets (which may or may not be all white meat). I'm thinking about our tendency to label and eagerly accept or reject. As humans, we come across countless questions that aren't easily answered. Questions that we may never answer in our lives. And it FREAKS US OUT. "Why am I here?" "What's right and what's wrong?" "What the hell am I having for dinner?" It's stressful to not know the answers, and it's understandably difficult to put in serious time thinking about all these questions. We can't all be Aristotle.
Enter the demagogues, the pundits, the glorious leaders who shall show us The Way. Because why not? If the talking-head on your news source of choice says something that makes sense to you, is it that unreasonable to think that you'll agree with the rest of his/her views? "Well shit...his explanation for why I don't have a job makes sense. He's probably right about those fags in California ruining America too!" So we sign on to political "wings" and/or religions (anarchism and atheism included) and take as gospel the words of people we've probably never met, and most likely don't truly know. It's easier this way. Much more convenient. It leaves us time for the truly important things, like who Lebron James is playing for this season.
Of course this really isn't anything new. There are just fancier tools and means for it to occur, like the dreaded Liberal Media. Sorry, I meant the dreaded Right Wing Media. Wait...I mean the ____________(insert whoever is labeled as the dreaded Other that your group of choice stands against). Let's just make everything black and white and write off countless diverse people and opinions.
I'm going to be blunt and say this: Please dismiss me as a Douchebag Anti-American Liberal or an Asshole Jingoistic Conservative. As far as I'm concerned you'll prove my point. And it's so much easier that way, isn't it? Then you don't have to put in the time and get to KNOW people and what they're about. No worries about having to come up with YOUR opinions. I'm not saying there aren't some truly dangerous people who need to be dealt with. Nor am I saying we can deeply research and vet everything we hear. But I've certainly had enough with this sort of labeling and oversimplifying when it comes to my own countrymen, and we're almost all guilty of it.
All I'm saying is this: instead of just blindly following one side and automatically rejecting the other, why not check out several opposing opinions? Even the ones we don't think we'll like. Especially those views, in fact. What's the worst that could happen? We still think it's a bunch of BS? At least then we can cite exactly why the person or ideology in question is ridiculous, and be that much more resolute in our own beliefs, knowing that they've been put to the test.
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P.S: Nothing wrong with following who Lebron's playing for. By no means am I suggesting we should spend ALL our time stressing over these issues at the expense of fun.
People can't scrutinize everything they hear and read, but when so many news outlets today are so boldly divided; stories come with either a left or right spin, it's no wonder the nation is so polarized. I don't want to read something and wonder, "The Washington Post? Is that a conservative paper?" Why can't it just be a newspaper? Honestly, The Daily Show and Colbert Report seem like the most (if not only) genuine news shows on television.
I fully agree. It's a shame that something has to be one side or the other or else it's not marketable. Plus, most people who get stuck with these labels really aren't THAT extreme. Most conservatives aren't irrational, xenophobic nuts, and most liberals are not America hating apologists. Just like most Jews aren't money-grubbing manipulators and most Muslims are not psychotic terrorists. But that doesn't sell. Sadly these people get lumped in with the extremes because of some need for a label, or they go along with it because they've been convinced that they're being threatened in some way.
I enjoyed reading this. I know people who characterize everyone as either extreme left or extreme right. In today's world it seems like it's the only way to cut through the noise and bullshit of modern media. What's more likely to be heard; one of the many middle of the road personalities or someone ranting, raving and drawing on a dry erase board some non-sensical garbage?
This reminded me of the times you would tell off the laroche pac drones on the way back to the dorms. Good times.
Also, to mike, I never heard of "liberal media" until Rush Limbaugh and Fox News co-opted it so they could sell their news channel and radio program to conservatives. Take it for what it's worth.
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