Up until now I have been quite
reluctant to wade into the whole Brian Williams teapot tempest. Given the comparative weight of that issue to, say, our inability to
prioritize what is important, let alone the fact that too many people
in the world suffer intolerable deprivations, as well as unrelenting
war, this issue hardly even rises to the point of being small
potatoes.
My friend and companion Kathleen,
though, being the compassionate person she is, not to mention all
around under dog supporter, challenged me on the point of why I
couldn't at least say something of the issue. It seems quite unfair
to her and for understandable reasons. So, given the soft spot that I
have for her in my heart am obliged to sally forth.
To start let us understand that one can
only approach this from the frame of reference of contrast; something
Jon Stewart has already done to excellent effect; wondering as he did
the other day why such unbelievable scrutiny wasn't applied to the
lies spewed forth in the path we were led down to be in the Iraq war
in the first place. From there we can begin to have some counter
weight to deluge of hypocrisy that has sprung forth about Mr.
Williams.
The first important thing to understand
is that, as far as I have been able to read, we still don't know the
full degree of self serving culpability that Mr. Williams should be
taking responsibility for. If it was simply a mistake of memory, or
whether it was a deliberate attempt to puff his background up more
than is deserved. Both of these types of behavior are human, but the
latter is certainly one that should be discouraged more purposefully,
even as we attempt to understand it. In a better world credibility,
integrity, and honesty ought to be important to those who would serve
the laudable goal of an informed public. That being said, however,
doesn't change the fact that the info-sphere we all swim in now has
its own set of desirable traits.
What is galling to an observer such as
myself is not only the hypocrisy of those who spew forth from various
higher planes of dispersal in this info environment, but our own
hypocrisy as well; for we are all, unfortunately, participants in
this process. And for the sake of argument I would like to call that
process “Celebrity as Usual” (as opposed to “Business as Usual”
which is related but a bit different).
You are no doubt familiar with this
process whether you've ever considered labeling as I have or not. It
is the situation where we build personalities up to the point of near
deification only to then take great relish in the process of tearing
them down; enjoying their humiliation as a means to use humbling as
an ultimate escape tonic from the everyday, little inner humiliations
we suffer as a part of struggling to stay afloat. And I have to say
that it can become quite disgusting how that tonic is pandered to by
not only the usual FOX network clowns, but a host of others as well.
Once the blood of some faux pas hits
the water the feeding frenzy would make actual sharks blanch. And
this from people where it is a wonder the words they utter don't turn
to ash even before they finish uttering them. The fact of the matter
is, however, that the only reason that these idiots can continue with
this absurdity is that we empower them. We watch FOX like propaganda
whether we love to hate it, or hate to love it. Even worse, we vote
for people who's lies, or self serving spin, embellishment and
misleading euphemisms take us anywhere but to the truth. The whole
process is meant to put cotton candy in and between our eyes and
ears; leaving our minds with nothing but the rush to judgment that
makes a bum out of reason, or thoughtful compassion.
Is Brian Williams the bad guy here?
More than, say, the simpering network that has hung him out to dry?
More than the ecosystem itself that could hardly care less about
credibility, integrity, or honesty? The contrast reminds me of
dichotomy expressed in Paul Goodman's book “Growing Up Absurd.”
In that work he outlined the contradiction of a society worrying
about better integrating our youth into being responsible, working
members, when we haven't even begun to consider, or question, just
how useful such a working environment was in making use of, let alone
nurture, fully self actualized, and mature individuals. An
environment evolved to the point now where we have the “Absurdity
of Growing up,” for it is exactly children that the consumptive
system desires now. Easily manipulated, impassioned, frightened, and
distracted children. Immature bundles of want who self justify overly
authoritarian leadership. A leadership that, using both the whip and
the carrot in good measure, can get them to do pretty much anything.
Which only then begs the question of whether or not it is children
who have become the authoritarians, or if anybody at all is truly
wielding any kind of consistent authority in the first place.
Brian Williams? You are truly worrying
about Brian Williams? If that is the case than the hand basket is
aflame and we are about to come very abruptly upon some hellishly
rude awakenings.
#CapitalismIsObsolete
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