I hate people. I do, really. I know it's not a 'popular' thing to admit in today's society, but if I am going to be honest, there's no other way to say it. I Hate People. Words I'd use to describe people would include 'shallow', 'ignorant', 'vain', 'mindless'.... and that's just scratching the surface. I've plenty more and rest assured, none are flattering or positive in any way. This impacts my every day, because almost everywhere I go, I end up seeing people. And far worse then having to encounter People in my travels outside the home is the extreme distain I have when I come home and find people in my house. I've tried to explain to my wife how strongly I feel about it, but she's her own person, has her own interests, and feels differently about people then I do. She enjoys their annoying and insignificant stories and vacuous chatter. I've even asked that if she must have any contact with People she do so outside the house, but that line gets crossed occasionally and it always turns my stomach.
How can ANYBODY find anything of value in such a piece of crap trash-rag as People magazine? I can't believe how obsessed our nation is with the lives of celebrities. It's nauseating. It's all pure fluff, and the masses gobble it up, along with dozens of other gossip rags as well as TV shows. There's billions being made in this 'journalistic' domain, and there's nothing coming out of it beside the continued setting of unrealistic expectations, glamorization of myths, and the continued numbing of our society on the whole.
Can you imagine, just imagine, how much better our lives and our world would be if the space on magazine racks were devoted to topics that people's awareness of might actually improve our world? What could be accomplished if 1 year alone of 'Entertainment Tonight" and "Acess Hollywood" were replaced with "National Issues you can help address" and "Local efforts to bring back a sense of Community". Sadly, nobody would watch, and thus, no companies would buy ad time, and thus, the show's would be cancelled because there wasn't a buck to be made. God bless capitalism, eh?
If you're like me, you might frequently encounter difficulty locating the content listing in a magazine, or notice that every page of text is opposite a full page ad, or that the ads take up more space then the article. I can deal with that to a point, because i recognize that the costs of doing business and running a publication are covered not by subscriptions but by ad revenue. It's the same model as a TV show goes; get the numbers up in views/readers and you can charge proportionally when they come to you with fodder for the 70% vacant pages each month. That's all well and good when the 30% is actually something worth reading. But People? What exactly is worth reading in People?
There are so many more important things going on in our world, demanding our attention, that could reward us in so many more substantial ways then being distracted by superficial glitz and glamor. We could read something we'd learn from or that increases our understanding of the world around us, our careers, hobbies, or our families. We could be increasing our job skills. Gardening. Exercising. Exchanging stories and ideas with friends. Taking baby steps towards home or self improvement. Venturing out into the world to have the life experiences we otherwise numbly observe other's having from the comfort of our couch.
I'm not saying that a little down time is unreasonable, or that an occasional recognition of some moderate celebrity accomplishment does not merit consideration, but certainly not an industry, and certainly not daily programming.
Oh, but wait. Angelina's having Brad's baby? Gee.. that's so much more important then anything that going on in my life, or that I can do with my time. Tell me more, ET. Tell me more.
