Celebrity Worship

Trust is at the heart of communication. The letters also spell STRUT… meaning to walk with an arrogant or conceited gait. As humans, our mind/body connection is strong. This type of physical behavior usually matches the tone of voice coming from within it.

I recently learned of CWS… celebrity worship syndrome. By becoming overly concerned with information about a celebrity, someone has an obsessive addictive disorder. My years in Chicago, then an avid sports enthusiast, certainly inspired my interest in all things Michael Jordan.

An incredible athlete. But I also had a favorite baseball, football and ice hockey player to admire. Oh yes…there are also the TV, movie and music legends etched deeply in my memory.

However I don’t recall listening to them as experts on anything beyond their own career. How did so many cultures condition their people to become devotees? Perhaps when celebrities began to be advertising shills for stock brokerages, drug companies, insurance, banking, skin care…these companies put their baited hooks on TV and print media to reel the gullible in. Worse yet, our current crop of news anchors are primarily showboats. Not just reading their editors prepared news notes but also expressing their personal opinions on complex issues. I’d much rather hear a local neighbors view on how an issue effects them. It is honest and heartfelt…not out to impress an audience.

I respect famously talented people but not necessarily their advice. At their income levels, we can be assured they have access to expertise for their needs.

As a teenager I knew nothing about government, politicians or large companies. Everything was LOCAL. (I’ll return to more of that subject shortly) I trusted my doctor, barber, dentist (not really), shoe repair shop, librarian, bakery salesperson, ice cream soda maker, deli and Chinese take home meals… and you can add your own to neighbors you have known.

After college, joining the real world of working people, I became more aware of news headlines and stories. I naturally assumed it to be true if it was in the news. The people they quoted and interviewed must also be honest. I wasn’t cynical about anyone. Fast-forward, and the information landscape now is digitally virtual, corporate managed and difficult to discern which sources are reliable. When information comes piecemeal, changes day to day and “experts” and politicians present conflicting viewpoints we can be intellectually overwhelmed. That is a state of mind we do not want to experience! Fear, confusion, depression and anxiety come up for me when that feeling arises. I know it now and shut it down mentally as fast as possible. Shifting quickly to a different thought helps.

The world pandemic is now at a stage where there are too many experts and non-expert opinions offering tiny bits of information each day. The picture is far from clear. This is especially overwhelming since it involves serious health implications for families and us. We’re all trying to stay informed but this process seems to feed stress levels. Countries are pitted against each other as to how they respond to this virus. Getting the truth of their experience is muddied by fudged statistics, governmental media control, and commentators presenting different conclusions. Did Sweden’s approach cost more lives early but saved their economy better? This is madness and is a great test of our ability to rise above the stress and fear levels being propagated. I know the virus is real and can be life threatening. Safeguards including physical distancing, washing hands and surfaces and wearing a mask to protect others is what we’re told to do. And stay home. Will we ever truly know if a world economic shutdown was necessary? Would the risks of fewer shutdowns with enforced safeguards be better than the psychological and physical damage of confining children and adults for weeks indoors? Not everyone has a garden or any outdoor space to breathe the now cleaner air, exercise and get some vitamin D sunshine and hope. Whom do we trust when our wellbeing is seriously threatened?

The health issue gets headlines, but so does the financial distress people were unprepared for. The knock-on impact of increased debt levels, lost jobs, bankrupt companies, and disrupted distribution of needed goods and foods is unprecedented. Is the virus microbe over-hyped to mythical proportions inadvertently…or not? Stocks, oil, mineral and water resources, land, food sources, technology and entertainment become bargain acquisitions for governments, billionaires and investment organizations to buy up. Buy low…fix the immediate crisis and sell high as the fear levels and consumerism rises from the ashes. It seems to be a regular cycle about every ten years or so.

I believe we see the obvious, but don’t want to believe it. When elected officials become millionaires serving us we need to pay more attention.

Our voices need to be louder, stay visible and continue to be heard after the crisis lessens.

I was asked; are people more self-serving now? How has empathy become so rare among leaders? Is this the outcome of decades of education?

My answer is…I don’t know. Did the games we played portend the behaviors we experience and act out now? For example; Simple Simon (lesson in control), Musical Chairs (a lesson in how to win), Monopoly (lesson in profit making and staying out of jail). What happened to the win/win philosophy being espoused earlier?

In closing…I have the most trust in my neighbors and community. Local is the new normal. Looking to government and large companies to aid communities is wishful thinking. We understand that now. We have the power to support each other. Couple that with empathy and compassion and we spread an attitude that is loving. A neighborhood shares much in common. Everyone pitches in to clean their space, offer a helping hand and aid the distressed or ill. A little plot of unused land becomes a community garden or a child’s playground. Such is my own experience. I buy local, even if something costs a few pennies more to keep their business going. Especially in difficult times.

We reduce a need to drive to big box stores…gasoline and auto expenses drop from our budget, traffic accidents decrease, pollution fades and less dust rises from the streets that are cleaner with less traffic. We’ve always known that a better quality of life exists where neighbors wave and smile to each other. Even a large city is founded on individual communities within its boundaries. We can make a difference!