Saturday, January 31, 2009

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?" , Part 5

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 5 of Several

       For instance, layoffs, so-called Golden Parachutes, firings, hostile corporate takeovers, union busting, etc. cause thousands of peoples' American Dreams to be instantly jeopardized or destroyed. Whenever a wealthy individual or corporation uses his money or clout to get around rules or laws, fulfillment of the American Dream for the poor or the less-fortunate is often impeded or sabotaged.
       Most, if not all of America's problems are epitomized by the Seven Deadly Sins: For instance, the pursuit of the superficial American Dream involves: Lust, Sloth, Avarice, Pride, and Gluttony, in its various manifestations. Racism and crime, which can also potentially jeopardize the American Dream of those victimized by it, is often due to the other two Deadly Sins: Anger and Envy. The material Lust, Avarice and Gluttony of the very rich often tends to destroy the American Dream of the very poor or less-fortunate. Sloth causes certain people to do very little work, but the American Dream is sometimes attained by lazy people by crime or con artistry. Lies and deceit, and similar means of duplicity, which ought to be added as the Eighth Deadly Sin, are a means by which politicians and other dishonest people cheat their way into fulfilling their concept of the American Dream; while cheating honest or powerless people out of theirs. (to be cont'd)
[The original version of this essay first appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Friday, January 30, 2009

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?" , Part 4

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 4 of Several

       Although the American Dream inspires many people to succeed who otherwise might fail, there is certainly a dark side to the American Dream. As those Robber Barons of the past and present manipulate(d) the system to their own advantage, thousands and perhaps millions of peoples' American Dreams were and are left shattered in their pompous wake. In fact, more often than not, Americans who inherit vast sums of money relied on ancestors who looted from or exploited or manipulated or sabotaged the American Dream of overworked, underpaid employees and others. As Isaac Newton said, "Every action has an equal and opposite reaction." also is valid as far as fulfillment or not of the American Dream. (to be cont'd) 
[The original version of this essay originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 3

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 3 of Several

       Just as often though, the American Dream of unsuccessful people is sabotaged by the successful, especially by those who abuse the power which comes with success (i.e. CEOs, employers who discriminate against certain people). Due to such factors as racism, societal rules which discriminate against the poor or the less-fortunate, a contemporary society which tolerates a mediocre education and health-care system, lousy leaders, candidates who deny problems until they become insurmountable, and on and on; for the poor, the unaffluent, and the Middle Class, our nation is starting to become an Abattoir (slaughterhouse) of Broken Dreams. (to be cont'd)  

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 2

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 2 of Several

       Although it seems that many people's American Dreams have been fulfilled, there are untold thousands of people who never even have a chance of ever achieving their individual concept of the American Dream. For example, over 60% of working Americans are dissatisfied with their current profession. The main reason that thousands of Americans never have a chance of ever fulfilling their concept of the American Dream is that the Dream is largely a flawed concept. Those people who believe that the fruition of the American Dream is equally possible for everyone erroneously assume that life is fair. For instance, people born below the poverty line, inner-city youth, indigenous Indians born on reservations, many of those educated in public schools, and numerous others seldom achieve the American Dream. Sometimes people fail to fulfill their concept of the American Dream due to their own actions. For example, if someone becomes addicted to alcohol or drugs then their potential to succeed in life is highly at risk. (to be cont'd)
[The original version of this essay appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and as part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]
       

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?"

Essay: "Whatever Happened To The American Dream?", Part 1 of Several

       The American Dream is an ideal which many Americans possess, in which theoretically anyone who is either ambitious enough or at least willing to work hard, can prosper financially and materially. This dream involves a belief that each generation will have a better life than the previous one had. Under the myth known as the American Dream, anyone in America can get a high paying job or career, have access to an enormous bank account through their own efforts, be able to afford a luxurious house, have a home filled with the latest and most desirable luxuries and material goods, own one or more cars, and perhaps have a spouse and family if they so desire. Unfortunately, although the American Dream exists as a concept, the fruition of the American Dream does not always occur in American reality, especially as we may be teetering on the possibility of another Depression or similar large-scale economic crisis. I heard Geoff Charles, a Providence, Rhode Island area disk jockey once say: "The American Dream only truly exists when you're dreaming." (to be cont'd)
 [The original version of this essay appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus  Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Monday, January 26, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 6 of 6

Essay: "The Decline & Fall of Music", Part 6 of 6

       Another disturbing musical trend is the excessive prices of concert tickets and souvenirs. Certain ticket agencies (legal scalpers)  currently have the legal right to buy the bulk of good tickets, and turn around and sell those tix with a nonrefundable service charge; which sometimes at least doubles the normal ticket price. Also, thanks to the greed of the older, wiser Rolling Stones, concert shirts worth about $10 cost at least $20. At a Fleetwood Mac show I attended, I was shocked to see a sweatshirt worth no more than $25 selling for $50.
       Hopefully, there will eventually be a legal crackdown on the highly unethical practices of these so-called ticket agencies, but, in the meantime; if concertgoers willingly pay exorbitant fees for choice tickets then every aspect of paying for concerts will likely be priced out of control.
[Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 5

Essay: "The Decline & Fall of Music", Part 5

       With no racial bias implied or intended, rap music at its worst is merely the semi-creative process of making up juvenile, simplistic rhymes or limericks and then recording portions of past or present hit songs (sampling) over the 'raps', which frankly anyone can do. Rap/hip-hop music has been around long enough that there is great rap music, good rap music, mediocre rap music, and terrible rap music. Most rap is neither great nor terrible, but somewhere between the two extremes.
       Thankfully, not all of today's music is awful. Sometimes good or even great music is still recorded. It would seem though, that the eighties and nineties have yet to produce singer-songwriters on a par with Billy Joel, Jackson Brown, Stevie Nicks and several other talents from the recent past; although Tracy Chapman and a handful of others come close. If the trend toward awful music , like that of the New Kids On The Block, expands or gets worse, then luckily there are thousands of oldies to choose from. A lot of the time, I would rather hear such great tunes from the past like "Heat Wave" (Martha and the Vandellas), "Shot Gun"(Junior Walker and the All-Stars), "Born To Be Wild" (Steppenwolf), "Wipe Out" (The Ventures), and "White Rabbit" (Jefferson Airplane), among others, than most of the so-called music released on the radio and in record/CD stores today. Unfortunately though, when a record label folds, the music on that label is often also difficult or impossible to find except for extremely popular artists. (to be cont'd)
 [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished (until now) manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 4

Essay: "The Decline & Fall of Music", Part 4

       If I see much more of the band the New Kids On The Block, I'm likely to launch my lunch. I cannot understand at all why the New Kids have been so successful. The fact that 95 % of their fans are preteen females shows to me at least that most New Kids fans lack any real sense of sophistication in musical taste. The following is both an opinion and a fact: As far as I'm concerned, the New Kids On The Block and many other contemporary top-40 bands and soloists have much less talent than even the worst 10th-rate garage band there is.
     The verdict is still out on rap music [I have slightly changed my opinion on rap music since viewing the Concert Film "Dave Chapelle's Block Party", which had many impressive performances by hip-hop artists like Mos Def and The Fugees] At its best, rap music can be catchy, poetic, inventive, and interesting. Also, I must admit, even if you do not like it right away, it is possible to acquire a small taste for rap/hip-hop. Believe it or not, I'm pretty sure that Bob Dylan, of all people, may have been one of the first artists to ever record a rap song. His song was "Subterrranean Homesick Blues". I must say it was very innovative of the heavy metal group Faith No More to couple rap music and heavy metal, very disparate forms (genres) of music. Although  The Beastie Boys, Run DMC, Public Enemy and a handful of others are quite good, for the most part I can take rap or leave it. Also, what's up with the aliases like Ice Cube, Ice T, Vanilla Ice, etc.?  (to be cont'd)
[Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 3

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 3

       This trend of popular mediocrity makes me concerned that much of today's contemporary top 40 music is of bottom of the barrel quality; a lot like that dark period in music history which brought us disco and later dance music. In spite of today's state-of-the-art computer technology, very little of today's music compares favorably with such albums of the sixties and seventies as: the Rolling Stones' "Hot Rocks", the Eagles' "Hotel California", Blondie's "Parallel Lines", Pink Floyd's "The Wall", and several other truly great performances.
       The most tell-tale sign that a band or solo artist has minimal or no talent is when a musician(s) lip-synchs most or all of their tunes during a concert. The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jefferson Airplane/Starship, and many others would likely have never achieved their respective longevity if they had ever dared to lip-synch their music while in concert.
       As far as I'm concerned, if a musician lip-synchs his/her music while in concert he/she is both cheating and deceiving their fans and other music buyers, and therefore has no business even being in the music industry. After all, why pay $20+ for a ticket to a lip-synched concert when you can pay next to nothing to see lip-synch(ed) amateur nights or Karaoke at almost any two-bit local nightclub. In fact, the amateurs will probably put on a much better show. (to be cont'd)
 [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" , Part 2

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music", Part 2

       MTV celebrated its tenth anniversary around 1992. [now in its 27th year or so] Unfortunately, soon after MTV  went on the air, the rules for succeeding in the music industry totally changed, and not for the better. Nowadays, musical talent and ability seems to be of secondary importance, and at times it appears it is no longer even necessary. If a musician looks good (Vanity, Paula Abdul, Wilson Phillips), looks very bizarre (Grace Jones, Boy George, Sinead O'Connor), dresses salaciously (Madonna, in her Frederick's of Hollywood, red-light district outfits), can dance (Michael and Janet Jackson), makes interesting or memorable videos, or any combination of the above, then success is possible regardless of musical talent, or lack thereof.
       Ideal examples of this success without real talent are best exemplified by such God-awful recent bands as the Breakfast Club, the Pet Shop Boys, Right Said Fred, Wham, New Kids on the Block, Milli Vanilli, and a vast majority of the Madonna clones who are currently so popular. Fifteen some-odd years ago not one of these so-called band would have made it through thirty seconds on "The Gong Show"; but these days such ultra-no-talents sell millions of records and surprisingly tend to make it into the weekly top-40 for several weeks at a time. (to be cont'd)
[Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" and Other Essays] 

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Essay: "The Decline and Fall of Music" Part 1

Essay: The Decline and Fall of Music", Part 1 of Several
        [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays] 

       There once was a time when the most successful musicians were the ones with the most ability, talent and/or those who had the best live on-stage performance. That was before  MTV and lip-synching became in vogue. [Note: In the '80s and part of the '90s MTV actually did play a lot of music and few or no so-called Reality Shows]
       The pre-MTV [and arguably even "American Idol"] formula for success in the music industry was (for the most part) A: having genuine musical talent or B: having undergone many years of either singing, dancing and/or instrumental lessons. Looks were sometimes an asset (Stevie Nicks, Olivia Newton-John, etc.), but weren't necessary ( Janis Joplin, Mama Cass Elliott) provided one had real musical talent.  (to be cont'd)

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Essay: "Plastic Surgery..." Part 5 of 5

Essay: "Plastic Surgery & Other Tales"  Part 5 of 5

       I can imagine the inevitable Stephen King-style real-life horror story that will eventually be told about plastic surgery:

       Lydia was happy. After twenty-seven years she finally had the looks and the body that nature denied her, that she deserved, and that she was determined to one-day possess. She disrobed and admired her new body, every curve and sinew. But her contentment was soon to turn to horror. All at once, she felt a sharp pain in her side.   The staples in her stomach were beginning to dislodge. At the same time, a gelid ooze slowly flowed out from her chest area.
       The collagen in her lips all pushed to one side, contorting her lips in an unnatural and excruciatingly painful way. Her artificial parts all expanded or contracted in a number of ways. Pain and blood came from so many parts of her body at once that she didn't know which injury to attend to first. Her pain was now so extreme, she could barely move.
       Her friends were busy, her neighbors were away, or lived too far away to be of any help to her. She tried to call for help, but the phone was dead. A truck hit the phone wires, and because of her plastic surgery expenses she was many months behind on her phone bill.
       To make matters worse, she could not talk. She could only scream and cry in pain. She might have driven her car to get help; but her car was in the shop, and she was in no condition to drive.
       Her last resort was to hobble to a neighbor's house, or into a local police station. However, on the way into town, she was so distraught with pain that she lunged out into the path of a car.
The driver thought he hit an animal, so he sped away, leaving her to die...
[Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays] 

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Essay: "Plastic Surgery..." Part 4 of Several

Essay: "Plastic Surgery & Other Tales" Part 4 of Several

       If you have the money and plan to eventually undergo some form of plastic surgery, by all means go ahead. After all, we live in a free country. Don't feel though, as if society or the opposite sex gives you no choice but to undergo cosmetic surgery, so that you can better compete with those who are better blessed or endowed with looks, appearance, physique, or what have you. The reason I say this is that there are at least five billion people in the world, so there is bound to be at least a few, if not many individuals who can accept, respect, appreciate and perhaps even love you just the way you are. As for those who cannot accept your looks, appearance or body type: Just say the Hell with them. (to be cont'd)
     [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]   

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Essay: "Plastic Surgery..." Part 3 of Several

Essay: "Plastic Surgery & Other Tales" Part 3 of Several

       As far as I'm concerned, unless someone is severely disfigured or noticeably scarred, plastic surgery is by no means worth the expense, the risks, or the potential complications. The complications not only may involve pain, possible mortal danger, or eventual illness down the road. Also, if someone goes overboard by getting too much plastic surgery too often, their new body configuration could end up being disproportionate to their head or body parts which have not been subjected to renovations.
       Why someone would go through with getting their stomach stapled is beyond me. Those staples have been known to dislodge, which has often caused internal bleeding or even death.
       If someone goes overboard with plastic surgery, they could go from looking good to at least some people, to perhaps looking like the Bride of Frankenstein to everyone else.
       I recently heard that adolescent and young adult males have been undergoing plastic surgery to make their pectoral muscles look artificially well-developed. It wouldn't surprise me at all if silicon bicep implants are next. As if steroids and electrical muscle stimulation were not bad enough. (to be cont'd)
   [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s  and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Essay: "Plastic Surgery...", Part 2 of Several

Essay: "Plastic Surgery & Other Tales"  Part 2 of Several

       I'm sure that many guys get plastic surgery as well. Case in point, Michael Jackson, if you can still call him a guy after all his personal renovations. Morbidly obese men may resort to liposuction or take the risk of getting their stomachs stapled about as often as heavy ladies do. Unless they are fugitives or have been severely disfigured in an accident though, most guys, as a rule, won't be as obsessive about cosmetic surgery as a lot of women tend to be. This is perhaps the same reason why most individuals who have eating disorders (i.e. anurexia and bulimia) are females. Celebrity men may be an exception to the rule, though. For instance, I'm sure a lot of male tv, movie and music stars get regular nose alterations, botox injections, facelifts, tummy tucks, liposuction, or more extreme surgery to keep their youthful appearance.
       I can understand why people might be insecure or dissatisfied about the looks or physique that they were genetically blessed or cursed with, but is that really worth the expense and all the possible risks and complications that plastic surgery and other vanity procedures may entail? (to be cont'd)
   [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and as part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die"  And Other Essays

Friday, January 9, 2009

Essay: "Plastic Surgery And Other Tales"

Essay: "Plastic Surgery & Other Tales", Part 1 of Several
      [Originally appeared in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and also part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

       I know of girls, or should I say ladies, who get their breasts enlarged or reduced, their rear-ends narrowed or widened, their thighs vacuumed, their tummies tucked, their nosed altered in a number of ways, collagen implanted in their lips, fat liposuctioned from a number of strategic locations, their stomachs stapled, or any combination of the above, and then some.
       Others, who are, let's say, excessively endowed, may even opt to have their two thousand some-odd body parts expanded, contracted, reduced, augmented or whatever, once or ad infinitum. Plastic or cosmetic surgery can probably be done on just about every external part of the body, but a lot of the time, I'm sure that the results are counterproductive. Things can and do go the opposite way than was intended. (to be cont'd)

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 6

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 6 of 6

       It is pretty sad that certain people rely on 900 telephone numbers for intimacy, friendship, conversation, and even as a confessional. Certain people spend their spare-time watching so-called Infomercials, even though they are little more than extra-long advertisements disguised as talk-shows. Mopeds are just what a sedentary, overweight, air-polluted society needs. It is pretty pathetic when certain people want to  'Ban War Toys' to allegedly discourage aggression in children, when those same kids could easily buy a real gun on the streets with their paper route money, or by dealing drugs. The so-called cause of Banning War Toys is even more ludicrous when we have such legitimate gripes as: exorbitant and exclusionary health-care and health insurance; the fact that there is no equitable graduated income-tax, where the rich pay more and the poor pay less (as it should be), etc. It is also a sad commentary when someone could get a drive-through marriage in Las Vegas, without any thought or previous planning, and then get a quickie divorce as soon as five minutes later.
       Even more pathetic than the Wave, the New Age movement, or any of the above is the continued loyalty of many Americans to George Bush. Most, if not all of Bush's policies are as useless and pointless as those old-time 'Duck and Cover' drills. He assures us America's problems will just go away if we all pretend they don't exist and keep up our vigorous and cynical flag-waving. Perhaps we can start to  end our Mediocrity Streak if we start by getting George Bush out of office. Twenty-nine years of mediocre leadership is more than enough.
  [Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early 1990s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays]

Monday, January 5, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 5 of Several

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 5 of Several

The '80s and '90s:  I can't help but feeling jaded, when all I see is overrated. Perhaps for the first time, in the 1980s and '90s, we started to see the full effects of having at least two decades of mediocre to abysmal Presidents. Most abysmal of all, as I see it, were the Know-Nothing and Do-Nothing Presidents, Reagan and Bush. 
       The '80s and '90s were when America started to decline in many areas at once. The '80s and '90s had more than enough mediocrity to fill a full set of encyclopedias. We had so-called Born-Again religious lobotomites, crooked TV preachers, eve of destruction, liposuction, Dance Music, 20eth century 'pump' sneakers at 25th century prices (which some people have actually killed for), Cabbage Patch dolls, Dan Quayle, Yugo cars, and on and on and on. Also, it's bad enough that Synchronized Swimming is considered a sport, but has now become an 'Olympic Event'.  (to be cont'd)
[Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early '90s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays.] 

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 4 of Several

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 4 of Several

      The 1970s: The '70s was a decade which was rather mellow, compared to the '60s. Certain entrepreneurs began to realize that just about anything might sell so long as it was packaged or advertised in the most enticing way. As a result, untold millions of people bought such worthless, useless, and inconsequential things as Pet Rocks, mood rings, and Ginsu knives. In the mid-seventies, Disco actually overtook the good music for a while, and we had the Democratic do-nothing President, James Earl Carter.
       Although Jimmy Carter became an admirable humanitarian after he left office, while he was Commander-In-Chief  often seemed that he didn't know what he was doing. Or, he couldn't get much of his agenda through an unyielding Congress. Also, the Energy Crisis while he was in office didn't help his legacy. Perhaps as a result of his failures as President, we have pretty much been cursed with administrations of vicious and avaricious Republicans ever since. [Until Bill Clinton and later Obama came along.] (to be cont'd)
     [Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early 1990s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays.]

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 3 of Several

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 3 of Several

      The 1960s: There was quite a bit of mediocrity going on in the turbulent '60s. Continuing with situation-comedies, the borderline untraditional family of the sixties and seventies, "the Brady Bunch", seemed happy, normal and well-adjusted on screen. In real-life, the actor who played the patriarch of the family (Robert Reed) ended up dying of AIDS. Unless he was a hemophiliac, chances are he was not practicing the elitist, conservative version of  'Family Values'. Similarly, the actress who played the mom on the show (Florence Henderson) reportedly dated one of the young actors who played her stepson, once they grew up of course. Also, if I remember correctly, it was also reported that one of the actor(s) or actress(es) who played a few of the youngest stepchildren on the show were caught together in various states of undress.
       Starting on November 23, 1963, we had the start of abysmal Presidents, from LBJ to George Bush [In retrospect, maybe LBJ and a few others weren't that bad after all.] There were also such things as polyester suits, bell-bottoms, the idea if you remember the sixties you really didn't live it. And, of course, Free Love, which is probably a major factor to do with our ultra-high divorce rate and why AIDS and HIV is such an international worry thirty-plus years later. (to be cont'd)
   [Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early 1990s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die And Other Essays".]

Friday, January 2, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 2 of Several

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 2 of Several

       Another mediocre thing about the 1940s was the very existence of the House Committee of UnAmerican Activities. Although its function was to investigate alleged anti-American (pro-Communist) activities of U.S. citizens, it was ironically and arguably the most unAmerican government agency until the Reagan-appointed Rehnquist Court came along. 
       The 1950s:  During the '50s, or another nearby decade, for a practical joke a journalist made up an organization called SINA, or the Society Against Indecency in Naked Animals. People in this fictitious organization advocated putting clothing on all animals, in the name of decency. Although this so-called organization was meant solely as a joke, many religious zealots and other assorted bozos took up this cause as their very own. They took the quest to clothe all animals very seriously.
       Perhaps an even worse thing about the '50s was the presence of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Senator McCarthy was undoubtably a mediocre politician, who very likely would have faded into well-deserved obscurity if he had not taken full advantage of the Red Scare; and in the process ruined the lives of hundreds of people by arbitrarily accusing them of being Communists or Communist-sympathizers.
       Other examples of mediocrity from the '50s include such things as hula hoops, and those stupid beanies with propellors, which certain young people supposedly once wore. The fifties were also the source of many of the situation-comedies which helped give rise to the myth of 'ideal family values', which unfortunately exists to this day. "Father Knows Best" had a cast which may have seemed happy and well-adjusted, but in real-life the father (Robert Young) was a suicidal alcoholic, and several children on the show became abusers of drugs and/or alcohol. Likewise, on the show "Ozzy and Harriet", the family acted one way in front of the camera (happy and seemingly well-adjusted), while the Nelsons were evidently a classic dysfunctional family in real-life. (to be cont'd)
 [Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die" And Other Essays.]

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 1 of Several

Essay: "The Mediocrity Zone", Part 1 of Several
          [Originally published in Eastern Connecticut State University's Campus Lantern student newspaper in the early 1990s and part of my unpublished manuscript "In Mediocrity We Trust... In Debt We Die And Other Essays"]

       With apologies to the late Rod Serling: 
        Presented for your disapproval: the pointless, the useless, the worthless, and the inconsequential things and ideas, which intrigue the various ne'er-do-wells, sociopaths and mental defectives who bless or curse our planet and our nation. You've just crossed over onto the Medocrity Zone...
       Timeless Medocrity: The concept that the wearing or not of neckties is the best way to determine if someone should get a job or not. The obsession Americans tend to have about lawns, diets and lawn care.
       The 1940s:  During the 1940s and '50s as well, school children were put through drills of "Duck and Cover" to hopefully be able to save themselves in case of the newest nightmare by the Russians, the Nuclear Threat. Children were told that in case of a nuclear attack during the school day, all they had to do was hide under their desk and they would survive unscathed. Luckily for them, they never had to find out first hand that this idea would never work. Keep in mind that the anagram for nuclear is unclear, and much of the thought that went into the use of nuclear reactors and weaponry was and continues to be unclear. The more recent equivalent of "Duck and Cover" occurs when an airplane is about to crash, and the stewardess(es) tell(s) the passengers to: "Put your head between your knees..." (and try to kiss your @$$ goodbye). (to be cont'd)