WHY ARE WE CRAZY?

Crazy. Everywhere I look. Everything I hear. A few things I merely think. OK, here I go.

People are dying by the bucket load in Africa. Relief agencies cannot get aide through without rebels or thugs stealing all the goods. They apparently get very little help through to the starving, however, every news organization on earth can get teams of people there to film the suffering. That's crazy. Try putting the food on the planes and helicopters that bring the news people. Have you noticed this story is only covered on a slow news day? Dying people go to the bottom of the list if there has been a sighting of Casey Anthony.

There is a hurricane a comin'. What happens? All the news outlets send people to stand in the blowing wind and rain and talk about how dangerous it is. Same with a flood. "Here I am hip deep in rushing water, Gumby, this is dangerous....do not do this." We believe you. We get that it is dangerous. Gale force winds and flooding rain should be avoided. Mother Nature is not to be toyed with or tempted. If you are as jaded as I am you believe The Weather Channel secretly hopes some one is seriously injured or killed on the job and on camera. By the way, all that blowing and rain looks pretty much the same from hurricane to hurricane so just use some stock footage. We won't know the difference.

In Texas we have "weather watchers". These are people who drive around, find wall clouds and hopefully a funnel or two form. They contact the local weather channel and tell them what they see. "We have rotation, it's on the ground....coming this way. I am filming with my cell phone". "Good, send us that! Try not to die", (before you hit send).  Of course the local channels send their crews out to describe the rain, hail, sleet, snow, ice, tornadoes, drought, heat and to prove driving conditions are bad. If it can kill you we want it on film.  Me personally, I am good with a verbal description.

Yesterday Steve Jobs announced he was stepping down. As he himself stated, he stepped down when he could no longer do his job. He has cancer. It is obvious that he is leaving for health reasons. This morning the news was about how his stepping down was....not sad, it was going to be hard on the market. I swear they said that investors would be watching the market and they expected Apple shares to drop today. Sorry you are dying. We are worried about price per share.

In this nation every single day someone kills a loved one or lures someone away to be killed. How do they decide which ones to make national news? The most salacious of course. If a pretty, blond, white woman is missing this is news. Big news. If she has done something like have an affair, or her husband/boyfriend, lesbian lover has had an affair, it is worthy of an hour long special. What happened to Pretty Blond? She went to an island with a stranger and now she is missing, presumed dead. The "person of interest" is always on the news. They look concerned and worried about themselves. They are stunned that people think they would kill their wife/girlfriend/hottie when, after all, they were merely the last one to see her. And there is that huge insurance policy. OR it was an unusual situation where she dies or goes missing while the husband/boyfriend/lover is out in the middle of the night to run to the ATM, eat a burger or go camping. The entire family and set of friends get on the TeeVee and talk about every single detail and angle. "She is so full of life and she just trusts people too easily". "She was a trollop who deserved whatever happened her, she practically had a Coin Star in her bedroom". Doesn't find the women. Doesn't do anything except makes us drool a little. Why?

Who decides what gets "studied"? Yesterday's big news was released about working women. Not parents. Women. Why? Because. The study involved married, working moms and I guess non working moms because the women who stayed home had more depression. Really? I have worked and not. I have never had kids. I am lucky that I do not have to work. I can assure you it does not depress me in the least. Working on the other hand made me insane. Now life can still make me depressed. I have very sick parents and I am the only child on site. I take care of three people's lives, four counting the husband, though he is pretty self sufficient. It can be difficult and sad. However, working for a corporation was like being in a cage all day locked up with complainers and braggarts. At least I can curl up and want to die at home if I need to. That is freeing. So you working women dealing with all that guilt about your career and your children I am glad you aren't depressed. It's because you don't have time.


CRIME: I do not understand how we handle crime in this country. I understand the foundation of a trial by a jury of your peers. I understand innocent until proven guilty. I do not understand why having cameras everywhere prevents crime. NO, it records crime. That is very different. I don't understand why all the laws protect the accused. I don't understand how anyone caught in the act can even be given the option to plead not guilty. They arrested you in the act of _________. You are guilty. Sorry daddy/mommy was mean. Mine was just irritating. Then, we support these people for the rest of their lives or the duration of their sentence. Lawyers get rich. The innocent get convicted or the guilty go free in some cases. We need a new system. This one cannot be fixed.

American Idol. I say this as someone who has been a singer forever. I was born with some song on my mind. I am not a great singer, I never have been. I am a great harmony singer. I am willing to bet that in a four mile square area I can find a better singer than anyone on American Idol. Except maybe Jennifer Hudson, who as I understand it didn't win. None of the "winners" have had anything but minimal success. They interpret songs. It ain't that hard. Yet the nation is captivated. It's crap people. I'm sorry, it is. You want to see talent? Watch The Sing Off. Acapella groups from around the country, actually other countries participate, in competition. These people have talent that will amaze you. I don't care that it's geek, or gleek. It isn't show choir. It's incredible talent. If you can stomach the host and the judges you will be entertained.

The Bachelor/Bachelorette. Why?

Any program where someone is "alone". No, they aren't. They have a camera crew and probably lighting people, a producer maybe. Alone can't be recorded from three angles.

People who put their lives on television. Hoarders, weird sex preferences and practices, 27 children, multiple wives. Ew. Please save us from all of your whatever it is. One "star" of these shows doesn't want to use her last name. She let cameras in her house to show how disturbing her life is and record constantly but don't use her last name. Alright then. That is completely reasonable.

What is crazy about all of this? We support it. In some cases we crave it. Or we shake our heads about it and go about our little lives like we are the center of our own universe. We are. Let's clean up the galaxy a bit. Let's raise the bar for everyone. America has been dumbed down culturally and academically. Don't give me that look. Any society that reveres people for their foolish, outrageous behavior and puts them on a pedestal for bad behavior is in decline.

Or if you are reading this,
Lillybell Blues