Thank you, Network Television

I was watching network television the other night in a desperate attempt to pass the time before I could go to bed. I could find nothing worth watching. And all the commercials for future shows were for shows not worth watching. I remember a time when I could find things like character development and plots on network television. Now it's all ridiculously over-dramatized game shows, reality shows and reality game shows. This type of viewing does not appeal to me. Mostly because it sucks. I hate survivor. I hate American Idol. I've even tried to watch these and can't make it through complete episodes because of how awful it is. I know this puts me in a minority. But I honestly don't get the draw. I think there's an element to people who like to hate someone. Maybe that's what makes survivor popular. Everyone I hear talking about it always hates someone on the show. And they love to talk to others who hate the same person. I'm not into this. Some people are assholes. I get it. I'm not going to go around communally hating a particular asshole just because he or she is now on television. I guess what it boils down to is that I get a healthy dose of reality in my reality. I don't need it in my entertainment as well.

Same thing goes for the drama, suspense and gore style of entertainment. Like all the CSI's and hospital shows (except for Scrubs). If I want to be depressed and/or appalled, I'll watch network news. (Thanks FOX and CNN for reminding us on a 24-hour basis that the world is a crap hole).

So, what's the fallout of all this? I've started watching public television. A lot. As a result, I've started to care about what goes on in other countries and in our country to a greater extent. I've developed a world view. Mostly thanks to Foreign Exchange and The News Hour. When I get to work, I don't want to talk about who's been voted off what; I want to talk about voting that matters. Like, how will the elections in Zimbabwe go? Will they be free and fair? How can Zimbabwe's Ambassador to the UN, Boniface Chidyausiku, state that the elections are free and fair when there is no opposition party? My gosh, can you believe that guy?

These kinds of thoughts, sentences and vocabulary are very unlike me. Prior to the plummeting of network television I would have only vaguely known that Zimbabwe was in Africa. If you'd asked if it were a city or country, you would've stumped me.

So here I am. I feel as though I've made that final transition into adulthood. And it's all thanks to network television and how much it sucks.