Glen -
Thanks for the perspective. You may remember I insisted on referring to
my own version of Owen's "Digital Ecology" as a "Digital Swamp". My
point to that, which I hope parallels your perspective, is that no
matter how much we want it all to be a nice, orderly, well understood
environment, it is a complex, seething mass with unexpected/unintended
consequences.
I'm afraid I'm a compulsive dead-horse beater.
I also understand your reaction to those of us who might sanctimoniously
try to "hold ourselves above". I don't necessarily have any judgement
against those who are able to frolic in the cesspool (your word) of pop
culture and thrive in it's fecundity. I use the term "pop" dismissively
and have to acknowledge that in some sense all culture is "pop". I'm
not speaking from an elitist position that suggests Wagnerian Opera is
better than Sing Along with Homer Simpson, as Television Characters go I
kinda like Homer and don't care so much for Opera. One may be more
rarified or expensive than the other but in some sense it is all part of
a collective experience that both reflects who we are and perhaps
establishes who we become. You may not believe the paradigm of "bread
and circuses", I tend to.
What I think I'm reporting is that having grown up (childhood and
adulthood) somewhat *naturally* separated from the more obvious sources
of popular culture (television, urban centers and suburban consumer
culture) I am not inclined to seek it out in large doses (excepting
those all night motel binges with the remote now and then). I'm also
reporting that I think the "push" nature of TV in particular is
insidious. Yes, the TV has an "off" button, but it is easy to forget
to use it. If I'm reading a newspaper (online or in print) and I get a
little disturbed by what I'm reading my failsafe position is to put it
down and read/do something else. I guess I feel that TV is an
"attractive nuisance".
Having watched most of my television as an adult (in passing) in the
mute state, I feel that I have a unique perspective on it. I think TV
"reads" differently without sound, especially if it is a rarity rather
than a constant companion. And TV sound "reads" differently than Radio
sound. Having been a DJ in a border town in the 70's I listened to my
share of Mexican Radio. Though I understood Spanish well enough and was
not unfamiliar with Mexican culture, I was always taken aback by all the
*selling by yelling*. TV sounds a lot like that to me, whether it is
news or advertisements.
And I share your concern (for myself in this case) about isolating
myself any more than I already am. But somehow I don't think my lack
of TV is what isolates me. Though there may be a correlation.
- Steve
I share your lament about the homogenization of culture. As I get
older, I pine for those early days of requesting files through ftpmail
and e-mail addresses with lots of ! in them. Back then, the internet
was fun and cool. Now it's a cesspool of TL;DR people like me yapping
about stuff nobody cares about or people uploading pictures of their
food in centralized databases used by corporations to deny them employment.
But, analogous to TV, there's a certain beauty lurking deep in the
horror. Personally, I'm grateful to be a part-time inhabitant of the
cesspool and I am constantly amazed by the sanctimonious who hold
themselves above the cesspool. I probably wouldn't be so amazed if I
were totally immersed in it. Using your analogy, my tendency to
"tunnel" from one deme to another gives me the added perspective that
comes from being able to partly immerse myself in the cesspool, but
still escape sporadically and immerse myself in other pools. I stand in
awe of the evolution of culture, just as I do with the evolution of the
universe. But I don't let my awe prevent me from getting a little
"cess" on me on a regular basis.
It's difficult for me to imagine _wanting_ to isolate myself any more
than I'm already isolated. But to each his own, I suppose.
On 05/07/2013 04:30 PM, Steve Smith wrote:
Glen -
Obviously you find your Television useful and feel you can thoughtfully
mitigate any negative side-effects having it in your life might
present. I was mostly making fun of your (deliberately idiosyncratic?)
choices of programming as described. You are not alone, and I recognize
that at least half the (relatively small number of) people who share my
own response to TV are bigger cranks than I am.
It is the constant stream of pop-culture and push-advertising (not just
commercial, but all kinds of social and political agendas embedded
everywhere) that I respond so negatively to. I am not desensitized as
are people who watch/listen to it regularly. I get edgy when in a big
city bustling with advertisements, loud cars, pushy people, beggars and
streetwalkers. Having a TV on is a bit like that to me.
Not being desensitized, when I am exposed, I immediately notice the
worst elements.... whether it is the infomercials, the regular
commercials, the inane game shows, the yammering (not just talking)
news-heads, the Jerry Springer-style talk shows, the soap operas, or the
"reality" shows. We *do* (now) watch made for TV movies and series
when they catch our interest through the magic of Netflix and iTunes.
But rather than having to operate the *off* button when crap starts
spewing out of the screen, we simply operate the *on* button, choosing
*what* to watch rather than *what not to* watch.
I was not socialized to TV. I grew up in places where there was no
reception to speak of, and my parents had little interest in it when we
did. I (once again) live somewhere where there is no reception
(neither pre-digital nor post). My wife came to me with a TV which she
used very little (mostly with a VHS player). We read a lot.
Once we had alternative methods for watching video tapes (then DVDs),
the TV set went into the shed. On 9/11/2012 my wife pulled it out,
dusted it off, plugged it in and made me order up a satellite dish. A
week later she took it back to the shed. I tried to cancel the
Satellite service (ha! one year contract!). It was giving her nothing
(that she wanted) that she couldn't get by A) reading a daily paper, B)
listening to a modicum of radio when driving into town (every day or
two), C) searching on the internet (dialup at the time!), D) talking to
friends who were more plugged in. We found the TV news stations to be
highly repetitious, redundant and often inane. We found the rest to
be ... mostly just sad. Neither of us follow sports. We read a lot.
I watch maybe 10-30 minutes of TV a week with the sound turned down and
subtitles (sometimes) turned on. It may be while standing in line
waiting where one is on, at the barber, the mechanic or in a bar, etc.
I am often intrigued by the flashing lights, the semi-attractive talking
heads (speaking quite authoritatively about something, but I suspect
more likely nothing) and the level of hyperbole being emitted in a
constant stream. This is usually *more* than enough for me.
TV is to me like leaded paint or leaded gasoline, or maybe at best like
white sugar and white flour. The former has been outlawed and I think
few people pine for "the good ole days of leaded gas/paint"... it is
recognized as an anachronism... the lead served an important function,
but the risks were eventually recognized and alternatives found. I
don't need to keep a gallon of each around to remind me of "the good ole
days". I *do* keep white sugar and white flour in my cabinet and even
use the sugar often in my coffee. I use the flour occasionally to make
up some biscuits and/or some gravy. Some people use white sugar and
white flour as the core of their nutrition as others use Television as
the core of their entertainment/distraction/news.
When we stay in a motel, I hide the remote to the TV and my wife makes
me (sometimes involving physical violence) produce it and we proceed to
binge on hours of the stuff that gushes out, usually with one thumb (my
wife's) on the remote flipping through channels in morbid
fascination... then we fall into a fitful slumber filled with
advertising jingles, flashy logos, and talking heads (remember Max
Headroom?).
The internet has become as bad (or worse really) as commercial TV in
many ways, except that is for the most part still not a push medium. I
obviously spend way too much time on my computer/internet. I should
read more. Or get out in the sunshine. Or both.
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