Today's MOZEN: It Ain't Easy 9/1/2014

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Arguably, Dorothy Parker's most famous quote is: "I hate to write. I love having written". The statement is both obvious and profound to those of us who labor as so-called writers. The process of sitting at a keyboard in front of a blank computer screen on a daily basis may have replaced staring at a blank piece of paper with a pencil in your hand but it can still be a daunting task, especially for someone who writes as I do. I compose and offer my thoughts not as a novelist but as a journalist/essayist. My purpose is not to create a fictional world but, rather, to ruminate on the one we actually live in. To accomplish this, I attempt to put myself in a position not only to have strong opinions, but to defend them, as well. In doing so, I stick my neck out far enough for all sorts of blades to cut my head off. This is the "hate" part: first, you actually have to write something intelligible -difficult enough all by itself. Then, you have to be strong enough, and sharp enough, to stand the barbs a strong stance is bound to attract. And, since I believe in what write, I can be counted on to have a very strong opinion . I am not afraid to express myself. But, it's hard to put yourself (yes, your THOUGHTS are who you ARE) out there on virtually a daily basis. You have to have thick skin if you want to be in the op-ed business.

Another challenge is, surprisingly, not the lack of things there is to write about but the fact that there are actually too many ! The more I observe, the more it appears to me that the world is bursting apart at its seams. The flow of information is as immediate as it is constant. One major reason for this, I believe, may be due to the proliferation of Social Media and the accessibility it provides to that information. Interestingly, this can also be seen as a "love/hate" relationship. I love it because it provides us with a constant source of information while at the same time keeps us connected to every corner of the globe. Dizzying amounts of data are at our fingertips and can be accessed immediately. For example, if something happens in Ukraine, we know about it here in the U.S. virtually as it's happening. There was a time not too long ago when such information might not have been available for days or even weeks. Social Media is also a powerful tool to keep me connected to friends that I have known my whole life and in fostering new relationships. It also allows me to share my thoughts and opinions with others and hear theirs. This part I love. But there is another aspect that I hate. It's the other side of the same coin.

The shear volume of information flowing in and out of our lives is staggering. In fact, it is so much so that our brains are hard pressed to keep up with it. Alvin Toffler accurately predicted this new, modern malaise many years ago in his seminal work, "Future Shock". The amount of information we can access in a single day is extraordinary - even mind boggling, literally. I read somewhere that consuming the Sunday New York Times can provide us with the same amount of information a 16th Century man needed a lifetime to garner! Unfortunately, much of the news we receive today from ANY source can be depressing. ISIS, the Middle East, race riots, murders, rapes, police brutality and the other myriad ills that plague our society regularly lead our nightly newscasts and information streams. The old newspaper adage, if it bleeds, it leads is as prevalent today as it was when it was coined years ago. The technology may have changed but the ethos has not. And, that IS distressing. It can leave us feeling that the world is on the verge of collapsing at any moment. Even though these calamities have always been a part of our lives, they seem more prevalent today. But the world was a smaller place when most of us were kids. The Internet, Facebook, Twitter, and the like changed all of that. I believe the difference now is that, with the 24 hour news cycle in addition to these other media outlets, we are hearing more about these events then ever before.  It can be an assault on the senses.

Another contributing factor to this modern-age depression is the very nature of the information we receive and how that information is presented. There tends to be a symbiosis between the media and culture. It is not unreasonable to claim that one reflects the other. So, if our Society is negative and mean-spirited, our media tends to report it as such - and vice versa. They feed into one another. For example, our current Congress is acrimonious to the point of incompetence. This has led to a mean-spirited approach to politics; we tend to think the worst in the other other party or someone who may have a different opinion. We question their motivation, their vision, their integrity. And the more it is reported as such, the more prevalent it tends to become. Appealing to the lowest common denominator seems to be the easiest way to process and disseminate information.  So, the tone is set right from the top and it trickles down into every broadcast and information stream. Therefore, it tends to make them negative and mean spirited. This, in turn, leads us as a society to behave according to those principals.

The anonymous nature of the Internet itself also plays a major role. I believe that we tend to be more bold when we have the protection of electronic isolation. By that I mean it is much easy to make strong statements or insult someone when sitting miles away from them, looking at a computer screen, then it is when we are up close and personal. All one need to do to witness this is spend some time on Facebook. Facebook is a wonderful depository of not only information but hopes, dreams, and desires, as well. Many of us share things of the most intimate nature there; birth, deaths, and just about everything in between. It can provide a sort of emotions glue that bounds often disparate parties. Anonymity can aid that. But it can also have a dark side. When we feel safe enough to share, we often feel safe enough to harm, too. We see it all of the time: a Facebook (or other, social media) conversation about a controversial topic gets heated. The thread of comments gets more and more pointed. Everyone wants their opinion taken seriously. Eventually, the epithets start to fly and the "conversation" disintegrates into childish name calling. If we keep it civil, we can get a lot done. However, today, that seems to be the exception rather than the rule. Mean Spirited.

But there is something that may be even more insidious at play. And that is the barrage of vapid, worthless, useless infotainment (an industry term describing programs that supposedly inform AND entertain) programming that assails us without remission. There is the endless parade of so-called "reality TV shows" featuring the likes of duck calling Hillbillies, housewives from just about anywhere, fat-assed Hollywood celebrities, a nervy clairvoyant from Long Island, a food tossing chef, a plethora of teenage mothers, toddlers in tiaras, and lots of chubby children who have no talent except to eat. Some may call it entertainment. I have another word for it: SHIT. What frightens me most is not just that these programs are made, but the fact that they ARE made because people actually watch them!! These programs would find no purchase if they had no audience. But, obviously, they do. If they did not, they would just dry up and blow away like so much desiccated dog shit. Some will defend it as harmless. But, to me, this represents a dumbing down of our society that is every bit as dangerous as a terrorist attack. If we produce a generation that knows nothing beyond people who are famous simply for being famous, we are truly doomed.

It's enough for me to want to stick my head in the sand and hope that when I eventually come up for air, everything will be better. Well, this may work for ostriches but it certainly does not work for me. Yes, there are times when I've had enough. If one more piece gets cut out of me, I'll be nothing more than a mere skeleton. I'll not suffer one more sling nor arrow. I just want to crawl under the proverbial rock and be left alone. It sure would be easier to just shut the f'up and walk away. And, sometimes, that's just what I do. I just recently had a bout of it. I did not write much here or on Facebook. It was nice to think that the world was doing just fine without me. I had found my rock to crawl under. But, it's not in my nature to sit back too long, out of the fray. No, not my nature at all. After all, I LOVE having written. Perhaps, because my words may have made a difference. And people have told me that they have. That's the payoff. That's the love of writing. It's difficult on many levels, especially if you are willing to always write the truth as you see it. But, when it's done well, it can facilitate needed change. I know others may get frustrated trying to change the world. They believe their lives and goals are better served on a smaller scale - saving the world is a job for someone else. I understand and respect that. It's a pretty big job. However, I also believe in trying to live what the Mahatma Gandhi said:

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

And you can't effect change from the sideline.