What a crazy year this is for Presidential candidates. I have seen far too many articles written about Donald Trump, as people furiously try and convince the obvious majority of voters why they should not vote for him. At this point, I am fed up with the people who are "taking a stand" against immorality by saying Trump is the problem.
Really? NOW you are against immorality? Now you are upset that a product of our culture is running for President? Everyone wonders where all these voters are that are voting for Trump. I can tell you. They are the same people who make shows like The Bachelor, The Walking Dead, and The Simpsons our highest rated television. Violence, insults, and watching people cry seem to be popular amongst our choice of entertainment. Why should we be surprised that it has worked its way into our government? TV made heroes out of judges like Wapner and Judy who belittle the participants in their courtroom for ratings. This is where it all started.
When I was a kid, words like "ass" or "bitch" were vulgar. Now they are commonplace in our society. I feel like we are only a few years away from the first f-bomb on television. I remember in 2003 when Charlotte Ross showed her naked bottom on NYPD Blue. What a controversy for prime time television! ABC was fined 1.2 million dollars by the FCC. Now someone's bare bottom isn't even the least bit shocking. We have pushed the envelope so far to include everyone's definition of free speech and equal rights that nothing is shocking anymore. It's not a question of what we will see, it's a question of when we will see it.
Where were the morality police as these things took over our culture? ABC's "The Bachelor" is in its 20th season. Let that sink in a bit. For twenty years we have supported a show where a man womanizes and "tries out" a group of women over the course of several weeks to choose his lifetime partner. Not only are we ok with that, but so are the women who participate. Do you realize the number of supporters it takes to keep any show on major network programing, especially prime time, for 20 seasons? This is something America has overwhelmingly supported.
It is perfectly normal for a gay couple to kiss on prime time television when 20 years ago we couldn't even use the word "gay" on television. Up to now, we have labeled all of this as progress, but now when a man steps up emulating all that we see and support in our culture, people lose their minds.
So I'm sure your argument at this point would be; that it is fine for entertainment but we don't want "that guy" as our Commander in Chief. Just like everything else though, how could you not see this coming? Where was the public outcry to stop this behavior in our culture? We now have anti-bullying campaigns and wonder what happened to our kids to make them so mean, yet we support reality television where conflict gets ratings. People want to see violence and shaming, they just don't want to be a part of it.
Who are the Trump supporters? Look at your television ratings. Trumpeteers are the folks who love the sort of thing he claims to bring to the table. Donald Trump is the HGTV version of politics. We love House Hunters, Pawn Stars, American Pickers, Flip or Flop, you name it. We love the shows where someone can come in and take something nobody could make work and turn it into something amazing. We are a prosperity nation. We want to lose weight without exercise. We want to get rich without working hard. Trump uses these values in his campaign. He will swoop in with his team of "really good people" and we will get a new TV series called "Flip this Government." He will be the next host of "Let's Make a Really Good Deal" where the contestants are leaders of other countries. Who doesn't want to see that?
There is no stopping this train without a train wreck. It's inevitable. We created it. We let it happen. Our real hope would be that not everyone dies in the wreckage and that only minor injuries are sustained. Or who knows.....maybe it will work out so well just like all the Bachelor marriages have.
Really? NOW you are against immorality? Now you are upset that a product of our culture is running for President? Everyone wonders where all these voters are that are voting for Trump. I can tell you. They are the same people who make shows like The Bachelor, The Walking Dead, and The Simpsons our highest rated television. Violence, insults, and watching people cry seem to be popular amongst our choice of entertainment. Why should we be surprised that it has worked its way into our government? TV made heroes out of judges like Wapner and Judy who belittle the participants in their courtroom for ratings. This is where it all started.When I was a kid, words like "ass" or "bitch" were vulgar. Now they are commonplace in our society. I feel like we are only a few years away from the first f-bomb on television. I remember in 2003 when Charlotte Ross showed her naked bottom on NYPD Blue. What a controversy for prime time television! ABC was fined 1.2 million dollars by the FCC. Now someone's bare bottom isn't even the least bit shocking. We have pushed the envelope so far to include everyone's definition of free speech and equal rights that nothing is shocking anymore. It's not a question of what we will see, it's a question of when we will see it.
Where were the morality police as these things took over our culture? ABC's "The Bachelor" is in its 20th season. Let that sink in a bit. For twenty years we have supported a show where a man womanizes and "tries out" a group of women over the course of several weeks to choose his lifetime partner. Not only are we ok with that, but so are the women who participate. Do you realize the number of supporters it takes to keep any show on major network programing, especially prime time, for 20 seasons? This is something America has overwhelmingly supported.
It is perfectly normal for a gay couple to kiss on prime time television when 20 years ago we couldn't even use the word "gay" on television. Up to now, we have labeled all of this as progress, but now when a man steps up emulating all that we see and support in our culture, people lose their minds.
So I'm sure your argument at this point would be; that it is fine for entertainment but we don't want "that guy" as our Commander in Chief. Just like everything else though, how could you not see this coming? Where was the public outcry to stop this behavior in our culture? We now have anti-bullying campaigns and wonder what happened to our kids to make them so mean, yet we support reality television where conflict gets ratings. People want to see violence and shaming, they just don't want to be a part of it.
Who are the Trump supporters? Look at your television ratings. Trumpeteers are the folks who love the sort of thing he claims to bring to the table. Donald Trump is the HGTV version of politics. We love House Hunters, Pawn Stars, American Pickers, Flip or Flop, you name it. We love the shows where someone can come in and take something nobody could make work and turn it into something amazing. We are a prosperity nation. We want to lose weight without exercise. We want to get rich without working hard. Trump uses these values in his campaign. He will swoop in with his team of "really good people" and we will get a new TV series called "Flip this Government." He will be the next host of "Let's Make a Really Good Deal" where the contestants are leaders of other countries. Who doesn't want to see that?
There is no stopping this train without a train wreck. It's inevitable. We created it. We let it happen. Our real hope would be that not everyone dies in the wreckage and that only minor injuries are sustained. Or who knows.....maybe it will work out so well just like all the Bachelor marriages have.
Well said, friend
ReplyDeleteGood analysis. One thing I'd add is that some have been protesting all along-- and soundly ridiculed for it, not that that's a reason to stop. I've blogged a protest or two myself, and am still astonished at things that are accepted. (I'm 65.)
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