Reality TV

*Reader Warning* - If you enjoy any show with word "housewives" in the title, then this post will most likely piss you off. You were warned.

I have a question for the world today: Why does anyone watch reality television? No scratch that: it should be titled "reality" television, with quotes around the word. Because there is absolutely nothing REAL about it. I get the premise of it. I mean it's neat to be able to see how other people around the world live. It's cool to be able to see inside rich people's houses. But it ends there for me. 

Most of these "reality" shows are only about fame seeking, fake careers and the idiotic people that chase those dreams. Don't get me wrong, I would love to one day have my name printed on a book jacket that everyone has on their bookshelves. I would be ecstatic for people to point at me and whisper, "Hey, I think that is Stefanie Jones. She wrote that book that I read over and over and worship in my basement with secret candlelit rituals every full moon." (Okay, maybe that's a bit extreme, but you KNOW those people are out there. *shudders*) But I wouldn't invite strangers with cameras into my home and pretend to do things like sleep with my best friend's boyfriend just so that I could achieve that dream. 

Since the "Housewives" shows seem to be so popular, I decided to sit down one day and give one of them a try when I came across a marathon on Bravo. I thought, "This might be funny. Maybe I'm thinking about these shows in the wrong light. Maybe these women actually have some depth that I've somehow missed." Yeah.... My husband had to listen to me rant for three hours after watching approximately two minutes of the show...


These days, people are in love with idea of being famous. No one wants to just be an actor or a singer or a true, full blown ARTIST anymore. L.A. is filled with people chasing the dream of being KNOWN, not being loved or valued for their talent. And because of the large influx of people wanting to be noticed, the people that actually have talent, and would be of some value to our society, are pushed to the back. They have to struggle harder than anyone to get to the top. While people like the Kardashian sisters and Paris Hilton and all of the nitwit "housewives" have their own shows, making millions of dollars WHILE DOING NOTHING, there are thousands of truly amazing, talented people that will never see their name in lights because the business is already full.

So it seems that if you are beautiful, thin, can't sing, can't act, and have no talent whatsoever, you will be set for life. Just invite a camera crew into your home! Then people will salivate over your fake arguments with your "best friends". They will hang on every word as you try and decide what outfit your dog should wear that day. Because there are certainly not more important things in this world like our seemingly failing government, or the thousands of people losing their lives while fighting for our freedom, or the millions of people starving to death (while, might I add, the stars of the Housewives shows rake in at least thirty freaking thousand dollars PER EPISODE while sitting on their asses and getting their nails done). Oh no, watching people argue and pretend to be able to sing and gush about their new highlights is MUCH more important than petty things like the hole in the ozone layer.

And THEN these people have the nerve to actually complain that their job is HARD. IT'S FREAKING HARD! (that's what she said. tee hee). All jokes aside, I am sure anyone who thinks that acting makes "life hard to live" have never had to do actual labor. Because after making that statement to whatever tabloid took interest in them for that moment in time, I guarantee you that they went home to their mansion in the hills and sat by the pool while sipping on a daiquiri in a crystal glass. 

Ok. This rant is making me look like I hate all famous people. I don't. Really. I read People magazine often. I just hate the fact that there are men and women that are famous for doing absolutely nothing but acting stupid. Snooki is now a NYT bestselling author only months after stating that she had never even read a novel in her life. I hate the fact that there are truly talented people out there that have to fight to have their work seen because they have to push past the people that are taking over all of the artistic businesses. I HATE the fact that ART (whether it be music, movies, paintings, literature) is all falling to the feet of people who do not even know what art is. Reality TV is NOT art. It is a farce.

I do not judge those who watch those shows. I mean, to each his own. I like things that a lot people think are stupid. I am not perfect in ANY way. But I just wish that our world could see that entertainment should not be the breaking point of art. FAME should not be the goal of a career; people should do things that contribute something meaningful to our society. The millions of dollars that are given to fake celebrities should be put towards something more substantial like cancer research or the well building projects in third world countries. 

I guess I have ranted long enough, and if you are still with me I will leave you with this to chew on: next time you see a reality TV star drinking flavored vitamin water from a crystal champagne flute, somewhere in this world, there is a starving seven year old drinking parasitic water from a mud puddle out of his cupped hands. Because he has no other choice.