Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Expert Help, March 3rd

Here is a sampling of today's expertise offered for our salvation by a very well known morning show:
  • Secrets for raising honest kids.

  • The thrill of the chaste.

  • Are you lonely in your marriage? (Female, married and still lonely in love.)

  • Lose weight and gain cash with smart choices.

  • If you don’t get 7-9 hours of sleep each night, you could have a serious sleep disorder.

  • Can learning music make you smarter?

  • Be careful what you drink!

To be continued...

Monday, March 3, 2008

How to Stay Sane in an Insane World


Are you like me and can barely watch or read anymore the so-called news and journalism shows, talk shows, etc.? Newspaper editors are becoming as bad as network television personalities. When did we give birth to so many experts? And why do these experts never look or make sense like the people, including ourselves, which we know? Often, the television experts are not old enough to have had the experience to tell us what to do. When did expert opinion become the new religion? If the definition of an expert is someone who goes on television and labels their opinions as expertise about what you and I should do (as in what we aren’t doing enough of or perhaps are doing too much of) then sign us all up. I’m sure you could use a little of that expertise money – I certainly know I could. After all, we all have opinions, most of which even our loved ones don’t necessarily want to hear about, nor we theirs, so why are we listening to the media? What ever happened to common sense? You know as well as I do that we’re a lot smarter than that.

I have a humble suggestion – and I certainly don’t consider myself an expert. (However, I think we’ve all become skilled at being the victim of what I call the “Gosh, I really am a dummy, aren’t I?” reaction syndrome, subconscious or not.) Next time you read or hear an “expert” tell you how much to invest, what to eat, what to drink, what to wear, how to vote, how to be a better parent, and, most of all, what to believe, consciously say to yourself “That person is the dummy.” And to add to all the confusion, for every expert that tells you to do something there’s another expert on another network telling you the opposite. Remember the line from the movie Network: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.” Well, I’m not calling for anarchy, but I do have a few pointers on regaining your sanity.

  • Stop worrying about what you aren’t doing. This is a tough one. We’ve had years of being told to do more. Always more and more and more and more…
  • Accept your financial status. Investing your grocery money isn’t worth starving for. I’ve not noticed a huge homeless population of 80 year olds.
  • Pretty much accept that anything that comes out of a politician’s mouth (Republican or Democrat) isn’t anything you want to place a bet on. Although the odds of it being untrue are pretty high, actually. And remember, they’re all politicians regardless of which party they belong to. Which leads me to the next point…
  • Lower your expectations of people in the news. These people are just like us, except they’ve become crippled from choosing to be in the limelight. If someone is constantly told they’re better than the “masses” (you and me) those who choose to continue to play the game have to begin believing it at some point in order to successfully compete.
  • Reassert yourself. Ask yourself if your opinions are really yours. Sometimes it’s hard to tell after so many years of “expert” advice.
  • Accept yourself. Don’t let those loud media voices take away from your own dignity.

In short, you and I really are “okay.” Continue to live your life as you choose, but do yourself a favor and silence that voice in your head that second guesses your decision-making abilities. We are, after all, a country “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” You and I are the people. In the spirit of our forefathers, perform an act of rebellion: Eat those carbs!

What's your opinion?