If you're like me, and I know I am...

Thursday, September 21, 2006

I finally found a reason to watch "Survivor"


There's been a little brouhaha over the
new season of "Survivor" on CBS because
this year, the tribes have been divided
up along racial line. The irony is that
tribes in the real world are pretty much
always divided along racial or clan lines.
Only in a country that second guesses itself
as much as the United States could this
kind of fake controversy be postulated.

That's right, I said fake controversy. For
I don't ever believe the press when it
talks about the controversy surrounding a
show. "Survivor" has gotten some pretty
low ratings in recent years so what most
likely happened is some suit came up with
a great idea to get people talking again.

But putting what I consider to be an
obvious case of corporate social engineering
aside, I don't really care if they divide
the tribes up racially. It doesn't offend me.
I think it's interesting. You'll see it's
common for the Asians and Hispanics to talk
about themselves and what it means to be
a part of their group. "As Hispanics, we're
used to the tropical climate and, as a people,
we're hard workers."

You will never hear the white tribe say,
"I think white people have a proven track
record of conquest. We've always been able
to move into a foreign land and dominate. So
yeah, we're totally gonna win this thing just
like we did the western hemisphere." I wish
they would say something like that. Stir it
up. It's better than having the usual band
of waiters and office managers pretending
they are different.

Next time, let's make it all about class
warfare or agism. Or let's really make it
racial. Let's get a group of skinheads and
Nazis on one side, maybe some Latin mobsters,
some gangstas. Really tear shit up.

No comments: