Down with snarkiness!

I liked the ice dancing at the Olympics.  There are plenty who didn’t, who think it’s not a sport.  I’m ok with that.  I’m a big Jay Leno fan and sad he’s no longer on the Tonight Show.  Lots of people don’t like him, think he’s too old, think he should make way for others.  They are entitled to their opinion although those who think he should leave because of his age wouldn’t be too happy if someone did the same to them.  I’m ok with others favoring other talk show hosts more than Jay.  I like Downton Abbey, the story, the cast, the music.  I have family members who think it’s dumb.  They prefer football.  I’m ok with that too.  Why?  Because in a free country, we’re all entitled to have our own tastes.

What I’m not happy with is the way we’re choosing to express those tastes.  We have more choices than ever for entertainment, sports, careers, clothing, favorite media devices, vacation places – everything.  Yet we’re getting more divisive in our judgments of everything imaginable.  I saw it this a few weeks ago as Jay Leno wrapped up his 22 years of being number one in late night.  There was so much hate thrown his way in social media.  Why?  What has he done to deserve that kind of vitriol?  Loved his job?  Worked hard? Treated his staff like family?  Fought to keep his job?  What’s to hate about that?  So he’s not your favorite.  Did he hurt you personally in some way?  So you feel he snatched the Tonight Show from Conan?  I think NBC had that title.  He just agreed to come back with jobs for his staff and himself because he loved it.  I believe given the choice, most people would have done the same.

Is it jealousy that drives the negative comments?  Is it the tall poppy syndrome – knock someone down so you feel bigger?  Is it the fact that people in our culture think they’re the most important person in the world so if they don’t like something it shouldn’t exist?  Who can say? 

Whatever it is, I don’t believe it’s healthy for our culture.  We are cutting ourselves off from each other enough with our personal media devices.  We don’t need to separate ourselves more with our ‘likes’ or ‘dislikes’.  The more we separate, the more it’s ‘me’ against ‘you’ or ‘us against ‘them’, the more conflict we’re embracing.  We say we don’t want war but we’re creating boundaries with our every breath.  

So good luck to Jimmy Fallon, Seth Myers, the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees – and yes the classy, kind, hard-working Jay Leno - and anyone else out there trying to be and do their best.  You may or not be my favorite but I wish you well.  You already are a success because of the hard work that got you noticed.  As for the snarkies… well believe it or not, I wish you well too and hope that you can find something that makes you happy - besides being snarky and rude, that is!