Class Envy is Pointless
Actors work long days, they give up the anonymity most of us enjoy. How would you like going out to dinner and not being able to speak with your wife or husband because a fan keeps coming up to you with a pen, pad and camera asking for just a second of your time? How would you like going to the park or the beach with your family and having to chase off photographers? Yes, that's the price they pay for fame and that's why many of them have such extravagant homes... they spend a lot of time in them. Plus, many actors struggle for years to get by, like you and I. For every success story, there are hundreds failures...and there is no guarantee of success coming their way again (Dustin Diamond, anyone?).
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| Alan Mullaly, CEO of FORD |
Plus, if we didn't watch the show, they couldn't get paid the way they do. Television and films like most other industries, are based on consumer demand. No demand: no advertising, no money to pay actors/writers/directors. We consume, they get paid. We don't, they don't.
But I find the general public tends to be rather forgiving of the exorbitant riches of our entertainers, but lambastes CEOs and other business executives, who make roughly the same amount of scratch as most of our favorite entertainers, work many more hours, employ more people and generally provide goods and services that we the people want and need. There are exceptions of course (both with our perceptions and with the validity of certain industries), but, generally, the public is less forgiving of business and corporations and loves entertainment.
I finally realized that it's not of my business how much someone makes and getting up in arms because so and so makes so much more money then me isn't going to change my situation one bit. I'm not trying to be overly simplistic, but, we all have opportunities to succeed in America. We also have opportunity to fail. Most of us fall somewhere in the middle. Instead of getting mad because Eric Stonestreet makes more money in a week then most of us will make in several years, or even a lifetime, be content with where you're at. Don't begrudge others their success. I don't have the right to deprive someone of making a living and living a lifestyle of their choosing. That's not my place, nor is it reasonable.
And if you can't do that, stop watching television and films. Stop listening to music. Stop driving cars. Stop eating at restaurants. (Yes. I'm being extreme).
If our television actors, our CEO's, our athletes, our musicians take a pay cut, it's not going to make your lot in life any better. Be content with where you are and be okay with others who have succeeded. After all, most of them failed many many times a lot to get to that point, and success is not guaranteed to last nor come again..
I know it's hard when most of us struggle to put food on the table, but, at least we have television and film to escape in.
I was going to post a snarky comment about your poorly written article, but instead I will address the idea that what someone else makes - the value of their compensation - is not our business. For the most part, this is a legitimate ideal. However, when our government starts bailing out corporations, then we, the people, are entitled to know the salaries and benefits paid to the employees of said company, since we, as taxpayers, are now invested. Additionally, we are allowed to complain about the excesses enjoyed by executives - whether they run the company successfully, or drive it into such dire straits as to need bailouts. Vulture capitalism IS our business and to tell people they should ignore federally-funded extravagance and find contentment in the television is not only insipidly patronizing, it is ignorant. You would have us surrender our right to participate in our own lives by remaining blissfully ignorant of those who would trample us. Life should not be about surviving only to escape to the fantasies of others. Such existence is not even worthy of wild animals, and smacks of surrendering to slavery.
ReplyDeletedear Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteat least I'm willing to put my name to my "poorly written article". You're hiding behind a faceless avatar. (Thanks, BTW, for pointing out that this article needed to be fixed. I tend to post these as first drafts. I've since made some fixes which i'm sure you will still dislike.)
Notice I approved an anonymous comment that doesn't agree with my point of view. Would you do the same?
Certainly I was not considering the bailouts when I wrote this. I don't think about those. It bothers me, but there's nothing I can do about it. Politicians do what's best for them, regardless of party affiliation. I vote. But nothing changes.
I was more interested in pointing out the hypocrisy in the way we view actors/entertainers versus CEO's. I don't generally write these types of articles. My writing is more literary in nature so it's quite possible my point was missed, and it certainly was by you. You pointed out the exceptions I simply glossed over and I appreciate that.
I actually agree with much of what you said, though I am ardently opposed to your anonymity. I welcome your thoughts and opinions on the matter. This blog is my opinion. If you have a differing opinion, feel free to write a blog with that opinion and share it with me. I'd love to read it.
Please note, I published your anonymous response. I will not do so again. Anyone can make a "snarky comment" when hiding. I thank you for reading and commenting, whoever you are.
Sincerely,
JUSTIN.
Thanks robin hood
ReplyDeleteBeing the proofreader that I am, I noticed some grammatical hiccups in this article, but I'm not sure what Anonymous meant by it being "poorly written".
ReplyDeleteI agree that there seems to be a double standard. My theory is that it comes from the idea that we are more readily able to 'connect' with actors and entertainers. They're in the public eye much more often than CEOs or other high-ranking executives, and in a positive way. We can admire the image of them and live vicariously through their actions. For instance, in general, we tend to have much more positive emotions attached to a photo of Oprah versus a photo of Jeffrey Immelt, even though they both make exponentially more money than the average person in a relatively short period of time.
Good notes. Thanks!
T. L. Curtis
tlcurtislit@gmail.com
facebook.com/readtlc
Thanks for stopping by T.L. Curtis. generally these blog posts are free flowing thoughts. I don't put a lot of time and effort into revising them, so, they're bound to have some hiccups.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your comment. It's the double standard that irks me. It's silly. Entertainment and politics are as intermingled as business and politics... it's just one makes us laugh, or be otherwise amused.