It is adults that created the culture (Modern music, Smartphones and YouTube) that the young marinate in.
While I believe in individual agency for the choices we make in life I think the problem is the culture of North America itself. The popularity of cryptocurrency scams is predicated on the belief that there is a shortcut to wealth. As someone who has three self made multi millionaire friends I can say that all of them endured failure and very hard work at several points in their journey to creating successful businesses. The popularity of gaining fame through social media is certainly disheartening. I know that polling shows a large number of youth in places like South Korea and the USA want to be online content creators. While the kids are responsible for making these choices it is adults that made the game they participate in.
Ultimately it is up to us elders to show a different path for the youth of the West to move along for the rest of their lives. Certainly do not expect large corporations and the government to create positive pathways for the kids.
Yes, very insightful. Sad to see youth so mesmerized by their one-dimensional images that they don't even understand authenticity. I often think to myself that everyone's a whore now. "Branding" - such an obnoxious concept for one's personal life. Also agree about the class differences. I'm reading Henderson's book too. I grew up mixed class (there must be a lot of us) and could hang with lots of crowds. Attractive young women have a kind of passport that way, a useful cover for amateur sociology. The most boring people were my millionaire ex's family and friends who talked about nothing but business deals and status seeking purchases. I wanted to jump off the yacht many times. Definitely better to be free, even with a lot less money, and hang out with people who aren't posing all the time.
Rich people are SO boring. In large part because they think they're interesting. And everyone's fake with one another so nobody gets butthurt (and therefore no one changes or grows).
Absolutely! That's kind of my point, actually. I don't know how someone can be friends with someone they don't really know - I guess it depends on your definition of friend. Also, these "characters" are never what they appear to be - especially when they're making the kind of money he makes.
We've always had some who would do anything for fame and/or money, but it does seem to me that it's now awash in society. Shame is a thing of the past. I attended a Chuck Berry concert back in the early 80's. It was Chuck, his band and the instruments on a stage with a single spotlight. Part way into his first song the screens and lights popped on, and he stopped in a dead silence. The concert hall went silent, and he said (to paraphrase) "I told you I won't play with that stuff." He got his way. No fancy electronics, lights, screens or special effects. Just Chuck, his band and their instruments. It was a great concert!
I will chime in and say you are right about Rogan and Rowling, Meghan, they are good people doing what they love and think is right, and that happened to resonate with a very large amount of real people. Then in the third rank behind them are thousands of imitators who intrinsically have nothing inside them of value but who are trying to work out the algorithm or find the formula that will make them famous. In fact this third rank are just the foam on top of a fourth and fifth rank of hopeless strivers, and most of what brings the foam to the top is dumb luck. So overall I think you are right in your central thesis that we have become a culture where selling out is lauded and normalised as the primary way of being. Depressing as hell. And yet as you point out, opting out of this is as easy as not giving a shit about this phony status game and recognising the value of relationships with real people. Great article. Very timely. I will be thinking about this in connection with trying to raise my daughters right.
I fear that it's the celebrity that's more enticing than the money even. While the fantasy is to make a living or even a fortune as an "influencer" (or whatever the term is this week), I get the strong impression for many young women in particular the stronger need is to be immersed in digital attention. I also wonder if that's because they are growing up short changed on actual attention from their parents and peers, all of whom are locked away in private digital worlds.
There seems to be so much interlinking here with identity politics. I maintain that I think the breakdown of family and community in any meaningful sense has left so many children growing up starved for attention and unable to regulate their own emotions while at the same time being taught that making money comes before everything else. Time this with the prolific social media and you have an entire generation who have no idea who they really are as individual people, who see true creativity as worthless, and want to follow the crowd but also lead the crowd at the same time. Couple this with inability to give attention to anything that requires thought for more than three minutes and you have a hotbed of issues we see playing out right now.
when I'm walking down the street and see a mother with a little child walking beside her and the mother talking on a cell phone, I feel very badly for the child. the ramifications of this need some thought, an ever increasingly absent practice. humans need human adults to grow up and thrive.
While I understand and agree to a certain extent I have been thinking for the past week, not wishing to be insulting here, but the tone of this post reminded me of the Bill Cosby pull up your pants phase.
Maybe it’s where I am, my time of life, my lifelong alienation out of my working class origins that kind of make me more sweeping in this way. More like the whole country is fucked the whole world humanity as they are.
As a boomer, I’m not particularly proud of my generation, the kind of greed and their big houses and all that stuff. I didn’t participate, but I didn’t expect them not to participate either. It’s impossible for me to judge younger generations. I don’t know what they’ve been through.
Anyway, I understand the discouragement in the post, a way of dealing with the systemic hopelessness.
Saying simply: “We could be better than THIS!”
But scolding isn’t really a great organizing tool or influencing tool
As an early boomer I find the obsession of today’s young with ‘click transience’ overly-personal and overly-immediate rather like all that fast-food they consume with its emphasis on high - and often continued - stimulation and lack of social endowment. So maybe ‘selling out’ is the obvious evolution for those involved. They know their little plant will only flower briefly so ‘why not?’ At the same time the social venues where youngsters used to strut their stuff - in all fields probably - have become so few that that route out of obscurity, financial and social insecurity has become all but closed. ‘Monocultures’ don’t only exist in our farmers’ fields.
So then I thought; well, aren’t you doing the same kind of thing here Meghan? Or is it that the ‘(commentary) medium defines the message’ if not in actual content then at least in style? And your (and others’) little critiques - like here - are the reflective equivalent of the ‘orthodoxy-claims’ of the ‘Swifties’ and ‘Magamates’ with their immediate ‘hit’ and lack of social evolution, a kind of ‘Intellect rather than power play’ treatment of the same underlying condition?
I know you write ‘proper books’ so I don’t wish to impugn you as a writer. It’s just you as a comentator - if that’s the ‘write’ word - that I wish to, er, comment in my customary boomerish way.
Wow Meghan - this is a little naive, dontcha think? I agree with what you're saying about "the kids these days" BUT it seems your assessment of past musical "heroes" shows you haven't been doing your homework. All famous musicians are connected in one way or another - either because they sold their souls to the powers that be or they were coerced to do so. Does "Laurel Canyon" ring a bell? A lot of famous older musicians' parents/fathers were CIA or military. And you honestly don't see Joe Rogan for the tool of the state he is? My goodness. Next thing you know you'll be waxing poetic about Russell Brand! (please don't!!)
So being cynical and viewing all as inherently connected and inauthentic is the right vibe? And Rogan and Russel Brand can simply be dismissed as "tools." I don't always "connect" with one person's "content," vibe, or backstory, but authenticity is not following a recipe for those who have it and maintain it, much like integrity. And the point about CIA or military parents? Struggle and talent not pure enough? Is there no credit for attempting to walk the line of being true to one's character and values while managing success for those who manage to open that door doing what they are good at and what drives them? Meghans point stands and you are helping her make it. Like all heuristics, it has limitations, and has the taint of perspective. It is not invalidated, just clarified.
I read that and reviewed it on YouTube (my pathetic shot at being and influencer)
I am a boomer age person, and that stuff was marketed to me very much so. Along with the other things that help it go down easier like a pot and LSD.
I still like some of that, but never like the Rolling Stones for instance.
Actually, I made two videos about weird scenes and I still forgot stuff like the CIA movie studio on top of the mountain. Anyway, here is the link like and subscribe so I can become a big sensation and meet Joe Rogan!!
I'm watching it now. There are also people who write books like this whose agenda is to limit the narrative so one doesn't go too far in investigating while at the same time making it look like they're "spilling the beans." I've seen interviews of writers who really do the work ... Though the writer of that book doesn't give you all the goods, he at least gives a decent grounding it sounds like. Good for you for not just accepting what you were told back then! That's the spirit we all need to embody at the moment. I'm sorry I don't have any references to quote as my 3rd Facebook page has locked me out again and that's where I collect a lot of that kind of info/ people who do the work. Still it seems like it's given you a lot to think about and I appreciate you sharing it, thanks.
It is adults that created the culture (Modern music, Smartphones and YouTube) that the young marinate in.
While I believe in individual agency for the choices we make in life I think the problem is the culture of North America itself. The popularity of cryptocurrency scams is predicated on the belief that there is a shortcut to wealth. As someone who has three self made multi millionaire friends I can say that all of them endured failure and very hard work at several points in their journey to creating successful businesses. The popularity of gaining fame through social media is certainly disheartening. I know that polling shows a large number of youth in places like South Korea and the USA want to be online content creators. While the kids are responsible for making these choices it is adults that made the game they participate in.
Ultimately it is up to us elders to show a different path for the youth of the West to move along for the rest of their lives. Certainly do not expect large corporations and the government to create positive pathways for the kids.
Yes, very insightful. Sad to see youth so mesmerized by their one-dimensional images that they don't even understand authenticity. I often think to myself that everyone's a whore now. "Branding" - such an obnoxious concept for one's personal life. Also agree about the class differences. I'm reading Henderson's book too. I grew up mixed class (there must be a lot of us) and could hang with lots of crowds. Attractive young women have a kind of passport that way, a useful cover for amateur sociology. The most boring people were my millionaire ex's family and friends who talked about nothing but business deals and status seeking purchases. I wanted to jump off the yacht many times. Definitely better to be free, even with a lot less money, and hang out with people who aren't posing all the time.
Rich people are SO boring. In large part because they think they're interesting. And everyone's fake with one another so nobody gets butthurt (and therefore no one changes or grows).
I dare say Rogan is a rich man. Is he boring to you as well?
No he's awesome! But he didn't come from money... It's the born rich people who are dull and terrible, generally...
Oh, I see - Didn't realize you knew him that well that you know his entire history.
Well, we are talking about a character, the image he presents.
Intimate knowledge is hard to get about anyone even if we know them personally
Absolutely! That's kind of my point, actually. I don't know how someone can be friends with someone they don't really know - I guess it depends on your definition of friend. Also, these "characters" are never what they appear to be - especially when they're making the kind of money he makes.
We've always had some who would do anything for fame and/or money, but it does seem to me that it's now awash in society. Shame is a thing of the past. I attended a Chuck Berry concert back in the early 80's. It was Chuck, his band and the instruments on a stage with a single spotlight. Part way into his first song the screens and lights popped on, and he stopped in a dead silence. The concert hall went silent, and he said (to paraphrase) "I told you I won't play with that stuff." He got his way. No fancy electronics, lights, screens or special effects. Just Chuck, his band and their instruments. It was a great concert!
Not sure I would want to see the video background staging for My Ding-a-ling.
(It’s one of his late hit for young people who wouldn’t be, well, exposed to it.
Anyway, I understand your point
I will chime in and say you are right about Rogan and Rowling, Meghan, they are good people doing what they love and think is right, and that happened to resonate with a very large amount of real people. Then in the third rank behind them are thousands of imitators who intrinsically have nothing inside them of value but who are trying to work out the algorithm or find the formula that will make them famous. In fact this third rank are just the foam on top of a fourth and fifth rank of hopeless strivers, and most of what brings the foam to the top is dumb luck. So overall I think you are right in your central thesis that we have become a culture where selling out is lauded and normalised as the primary way of being. Depressing as hell. And yet as you point out, opting out of this is as easy as not giving a shit about this phony status game and recognising the value of relationships with real people. Great article. Very timely. I will be thinking about this in connection with trying to raise my daughters right.
I fear that it's the celebrity that's more enticing than the money even. While the fantasy is to make a living or even a fortune as an "influencer" (or whatever the term is this week), I get the strong impression for many young women in particular the stronger need is to be immersed in digital attention. I also wonder if that's because they are growing up short changed on actual attention from their parents and peers, all of whom are locked away in private digital worlds.
There seems to be so much interlinking here with identity politics. I maintain that I think the breakdown of family and community in any meaningful sense has left so many children growing up starved for attention and unable to regulate their own emotions while at the same time being taught that making money comes before everything else. Time this with the prolific social media and you have an entire generation who have no idea who they really are as individual people, who see true creativity as worthless, and want to follow the crowd but also lead the crowd at the same time. Couple this with inability to give attention to anything that requires thought for more than three minutes and you have a hotbed of issues we see playing out right now.
I'm with you.
when I'm walking down the street and see a mother with a little child walking beside her and the mother talking on a cell phone, I feel very badly for the child. the ramifications of this need some thought, an ever increasingly absent practice. humans need human adults to grow up and thrive.
While I understand and agree to a certain extent I have been thinking for the past week, not wishing to be insulting here, but the tone of this post reminded me of the Bill Cosby pull up your pants phase.
Maybe it’s where I am, my time of life, my lifelong alienation out of my working class origins that kind of make me more sweeping in this way. More like the whole country is fucked the whole world humanity as they are.
As a boomer, I’m not particularly proud of my generation, the kind of greed and their big houses and all that stuff. I didn’t participate, but I didn’t expect them not to participate either. It’s impossible for me to judge younger generations. I don’t know what they’ve been through.
Anyway, I understand the discouragement in the post, a way of dealing with the systemic hopelessness.
Saying simply: “We could be better than THIS!”
But scolding isn’t really a great organizing tool or influencing tool
As an early boomer I find the obsession of today’s young with ‘click transience’ overly-personal and overly-immediate rather like all that fast-food they consume with its emphasis on high - and often continued - stimulation and lack of social endowment. So maybe ‘selling out’ is the obvious evolution for those involved. They know their little plant will only flower briefly so ‘why not?’ At the same time the social venues where youngsters used to strut their stuff - in all fields probably - have become so few that that route out of obscurity, financial and social insecurity has become all but closed. ‘Monocultures’ don’t only exist in our farmers’ fields.
So then I thought; well, aren’t you doing the same kind of thing here Meghan? Or is it that the ‘(commentary) medium defines the message’ if not in actual content then at least in style? And your (and others’) little critiques - like here - are the reflective equivalent of the ‘orthodoxy-claims’ of the ‘Swifties’ and ‘Magamates’ with their immediate ‘hit’ and lack of social evolution, a kind of ‘Intellect rather than power play’ treatment of the same underlying condition?
I know you write ‘proper books’ so I don’t wish to impugn you as a writer. It’s just you as a comentator - if that’s the ‘write’ word - that I wish to, er, comment in my customary boomerish way.
I just write about things that interest me. I can't help it. It's... what writers do :)
Wow Meghan - this is a little naive, dontcha think? I agree with what you're saying about "the kids these days" BUT it seems your assessment of past musical "heroes" shows you haven't been doing your homework. All famous musicians are connected in one way or another - either because they sold their souls to the powers that be or they were coerced to do so. Does "Laurel Canyon" ring a bell? A lot of famous older musicians' parents/fathers were CIA or military. And you honestly don't see Joe Rogan for the tool of the state he is? My goodness. Next thing you know you'll be waxing poetic about Russell Brand! (please don't!!)
Rogan is my friend lol.
Oh dear. That guy sure has a lot of friends eh?
He does, yes.
So being cynical and viewing all as inherently connected and inauthentic is the right vibe? And Rogan and Russel Brand can simply be dismissed as "tools." I don't always "connect" with one person's "content," vibe, or backstory, but authenticity is not following a recipe for those who have it and maintain it, much like integrity. And the point about CIA or military parents? Struggle and talent not pure enough? Is there no credit for attempting to walk the line of being true to one's character and values while managing success for those who manage to open that door doing what they are good at and what drives them? Meghans point stands and you are helping her make it. Like all heuristics, it has limitations, and has the taint of perspective. It is not invalidated, just clarified.
This sounds like Weird Scenes in the Canyon.
I read that and reviewed it on YouTube (my pathetic shot at being and influencer)
I am a boomer age person, and that stuff was marketed to me very much so. Along with the other things that help it go down easier like a pot and LSD.
I still like some of that, but never like the Rolling Stones for instance.
Actually, I made two videos about weird scenes and I still forgot stuff like the CIA movie studio on top of the mountain. Anyway, here is the link like and subscribe so I can become a big sensation and meet Joe Rogan!!
https://youtu.be/jcE4toTjHYk?si=zmjrnkoSnsUSL8Xq
I'm watching it now. There are also people who write books like this whose agenda is to limit the narrative so one doesn't go too far in investigating while at the same time making it look like they're "spilling the beans." I've seen interviews of writers who really do the work ... Though the writer of that book doesn't give you all the goods, he at least gives a decent grounding it sounds like. Good for you for not just accepting what you were told back then! That's the spirit we all need to embody at the moment. I'm sorry I don't have any references to quote as my 3rd Facebook page has locked me out again and that's where I collect a lot of that kind of info/ people who do the work. Still it seems like it's given you a lot to think about and I appreciate you sharing it, thanks.
I think Christianity offers a better life and a better calculus for human behavior.