“He has delusions of mediocrity.”
It was just an offhand, sarcastic remark my son made the other day. In context, he was talking about someone he knew, who was busy screwing up his life – someone that was under the impression that he is a lot smarter/better/more successful than he, in fact, really is. It was said in a tone dripping with irony. And it got me to thinking about the entire concept of mediocrity, and how it applies to life (in general) and our society.
At one time, the world admired, appreciated, and strove for greatness. In particular, America idealized winners; those that strove to be the best; those that did achieved more, created more, and built more than anyone.
Sadly, I don’t think that’s true any more, especially in America.
Mediocrity rules. And I know why.
Here’s the deal: when you have winners, you must also have losers. When someone wins a race, all the other competitors are also-rans. The secular/humanist point of view would have us all believe that winning is evil, wrong, and a flawed goal. Secular/humanists (herein: “s/h”) believe that everyone should win – or at least there should be no winner, so everyone can feel good about themselves. The s/h crowd holds that when someone succeeds more than others, they set a bad example, for those that succeed make everyone else feel bad about themselves. They maintain that the collective should be rewarded, and individuality, achievement, and success be scorned, mocked, and even punished as a betrayal of the the goals of the many.
What a load of crap.
This country in particular, and civilization in general, was founded by people that wanted to make things better – not for some amorphous collective, but for themselves, their families, and their friends. It’s what Ayn Rand called “the second-handers” versus those that achieve, produce, and live.
Think about this. When was the last time you saw a TV show or a movie that was anywhere near as funny/moving/dramatic/memorable as something from 10 or 20 years ago? We laugh or applaud because we’ve been told that something is funny or worthwhile. Not because we’re exercising our critical thinking abilities. The same holds true with politics. We have an entire class of people – the talking heads – who’s job it now is to tell us what to think, what to feel, and how to vote. Stories are reduced to sound bites, and reporters no longer report – they spin the news to fit their pre-conceived notions and personal biases. The major networks are, for the most part, held captive by those on the left. Talk radio is largely the purview of those on the right. No longer can you expect to pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV and find out what’s happening, sans any spin or agenda from the reporting group. Today, you must factor in where you heard it, and analyze the perceived bias of the reporter and media owners.
What are we told? We are told that “John Doe” is the next Elvis, or “Jane Smith” is This Year’s Blonde. We’re encouraged to worship them, not because they are great, but because we’re told to. If someone dares to compare their voice, their acting ability, or their character to anyone in the past, we’re told that this person is a “Superstar” and that is enough to get us to shut up and go back to eating our pabulum.
Politics is more of the same. We have someone who is plucked from obscurity and moved into an office by executive fiat, then told that we should honor THEM for the incredible things they’ve achieved (This actually happened – 12 days after New Jersey had a new governor assume office, he was being lionized by a high-ranking Democrat in the press for his important work and service to his state and country.) We’re give a choice between Candidates X and Y, where there’s little difference between them, other than the party they choose to represent.
Wake up!
From time to time, the world has been blessed with “great.” In music, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart – the Beatles, Elvis. In politics, Churchill, Lincoln, Reagan. In science, Galileo, Pasteur, Edison, Einstein. I’m missing a lot, and I don’t mean to – but you cannot tell me (with a straight face, anyway) that anything Ricky Martin, 98 Degrees, Madonna, or the Dixie Chicks have done could hold a candle to the music of Bach or the Beatles. 100 years from now, humanity will still be singing Beatles tunes, and enjoying Bach preludes. The music of Madonna will long since be forgotten. TV shows like The Jerry Springer Show, Roseanne, and Crumbs will be trivia questions no one can answer, while The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Andy Griffith Show, and I Love Lucy will still be in syndication.
Don’t get me wrong. It’s not all gloom and doom. There are those that are great among us. There are some great shows, or at least those that may go down as “great,” if given the time and opportunity to become part of our consciousness. Monk. House. 24. I believe that, 20 or so years from now, the world will look back and realize that George W. Bush was a great President, who did what had to be done to save our Nation. But until and unless we acknowledge the difference in “great” versus “mediocre,” no one will realize greatness among us – for it will be indistinguishable from the average.
So what about it. Are you tired of mediocre television? Turn it off. Read a book. Tired of being told that something is right or wrong when you know it’s not? Try thinking for yourself. Tired of hearing lies peddled as the Truth? Cancel your newspaper, stop listening to the evening network news, and vote for those whose values echo your own.
We are in a war. I’m not speaking of the Global War on Terror here. That one is real enough. But instead, I speak of the War on Values that is being waged on all of us by the secular/humanists who would make us believe that the mediocre is great and the great is no better than mediocre. Remember, to value something you must be able to discriminate between the valuable and the worthless. Try thinking for yourself, open your eyes, and see what you’ve been missing. If you don’t, what you’ll be missing is anything great.
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