May Contain Peanuts

No Shame, No Gain

I believe that character is an integral part of societal existence. The way we act and interact with others reflects our own self-worth and attitude toward life. What I have been noticing is that there are two things that can make that effort to keep one's character intact go right down the drain. These two things are the ever-tempting and ever-corrupting fame and money.

In a constantly growing world, it becomes harder and harder to stand out in the crowd. Many people have found a way to successfully get their name recognized and do good in the world. Then there are those who have found fame through infamy. People who have done things you would never consider doing in your life become just as recognizable as the people you wish you could be. This could be interpreted as a hero/villain dichotomy where one will know the good along with the bad, but it seems to be that more and more people are happy to play the part of the villain. What's worse is that this choice is often handsomely rewarded.

A direct culprit of this situation is our constant consumption of media. We are always looking for the next thing; bigger, better, more outlandish, the next step up (or down). Our insistent craving for new content produces gaps where there just isn't enough good things to fill. Instead, it gets filled with the exact opposite of what we all respect and appreciate; shocking stories of drama or tragedy, stories of taboo or immorality that are more fit for gossip and small-minded entertainment. And because of this constant stream of information, we can take in one outrageous story and move on to the next without much consequence. We don't have to think about what it is like to be that person in the story beyond that given day, our life moves on while that person has to deal with their circumstance for the rest of their life. What bothers me is that is seems like a lot of people actually strive to be that person in the story; the one who becomes known for that absurd thing they did or said, simply because it puts them in the limelight and potentially gets them paid. I seriously doubt they realize the totality of the consequences of their actions.

I could list plenty of examples from our current entertainment world that fit this description: Tiger Wood's mistresses (or any mistress/affair for that matter), anyone on MTV or E! (pregnant teens, drunk reality contestants, sex tape 'stars'), dating show contestants, anyone labeled 'housewife' on tv, anyone involved in a political scandal, etc, etc. There are just so many opportunities to exploit. Just check your news or web browser if you need to see more. And it's not as if these people were forced into the spotlight to be held accountable; they chose and continue to choose to be in the public eye, fully aware that their actions and words will be spread across the world for all to see and hear. Where there should be at least a speck of shame, there seems to be a sense of pride. The fame and money from these amoral deeds compensate for being despised and detested by the public.

I suppose an argument for these people is that they don't really see anything wrong with what they are doing or don't consider or value what other people think. Good for them, they live on a mental island and can wear blinders made of dollar bills to keep them happy. Fortunately enough, most of the stuff these people are famous for are just things a normal person would be embarrassed or ashamed about. They haven't killed anyone or destroyed anything, just did embarrassing things. Embarrassing things that all the world now knows about.

I mean, am I being too puritanical in thinking that I would never want shameful deeds of mine broadcast around for the world to see? Am I in the minority in thinking that no amount of money can make up for a negative stigma associated with who I am? Perhaps these fame whores really are just a minority and the rest of us do prefer to keep our character intact. Nonetheless, it seems incredibly easy to become notorious in our society and actually benefit from it. Maybe I just need to chalk it up to the fact that out of the millions of people in our country and the millions of millions in the rest of the world, there has to be a couple hundred buffoons that play the role of the despised, if not just to make the rest of us feel better about ourselves. That's the positive spin. The negative spin is that the rest of us like watching people do horrible things since we can't do them ourselves and we are willing to pay to see it done. In either case, I can't help but feel sad for these people. I just wonder if they feel bad about themselves. But maybe rolling in piles of money helps those feelings go away.