PLEASE, BRETT FAVRE, LEAVE US IN PEACE
The guy who sits next to me at work and I don’t always agree, but there’s at least one issue on which we’re of one mind: Brett Favre. We can’t stand this guy. We’re tired of him retiring and then un-retiring, and the worshipful coverage that accompanies his every self-aggrandizing move. In fact, the guy who sits next to me at work just reminded me of another athlete who used to pull this very same stunt ... Roger Clemens. And, really, who wants to be in his company? When a once-beloved athlete gets compared to that loathsome creep, something has gone horribly awry.
After a bitter break-up with the Green Bay Packers last year, Favre landed with a consistently hapless franchise, the New York Jets. It was, as I expected, a total disaster, with the Jets unable to capitalize on the season-ending injury to Tom Brady in New England, and losing four of their five final games to miss the playoffs. Favre again announced that he was retiring, and this time I really believed it. Surely, the Jets debacle had taught him some sort of lesson. But that’s the thing about athletes who think the world revolves around them: They never learn. So when you think about it, it’s not really all that surprising that Favre might sign with the Minnesota Vikings. And the worst part is that we, the innocent sports fans, are going to be subjected to endless, speculative news reports about how this great man just wants to keep playing the game he loves.
As Yahoo NFL columnist Dan Wetzel puts it (you can read his entire essay here) “Favre is a hopeless egomaniac. He’s gotten great mileage from giving terrific interviews and making the older white men who populate the elite of the NFL media feel comfortable. The breathless reports of him being a humble good ol’ boy who plays solely for the love of the game never cease. ... The problem with Favre is he craves positive feedback from the establishment so much that he keeps doing what it wants. He should never apologize for wanting to compete until he’s dragged off the field. Yet he acts how his supporters think he should act — which is to emotionally wrestle with the decision and then tearfully declare that he can’t play at anything less than 110 percent. But he can. And he will.”
“AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH”
I recently read Neil Postman’s 1985 polemic, “Amusing Ourselves to Death,” which suggests that television has replaced print as the primary mode of communication in America, and that as a result our public discourse has become “dangerous nonsense. ... shriveled and absurd.”
If “Amusing Ourselves to Death” was simply a screed about the evils of TV, it probably wouldn’t be that interesting. But the book’s core premise is actually much more provocative. It suggests that television has turned every aspect of life — religion, journalism, politics, education, etc. — into a form of entertainment by emphasizing image over ideas, and overwhelming us with minutiae and trivia. Newspapers, he says, have become more television-like, more dependent on colorful graphics and charts to convey information, while teachers are expected to devise amusing gags to keep their students interested.
I don’t like to be bored, and so it’s tough to convince me that a surfeit of entertainment is ruining the world. But I’m receptive to the idea that some things should be taken seriously, and I have grown increasingly weary of the way entertainment has merged with news, and how reality TV is discussed as if it actually has some basis in reality. In a recent interview, “Meet the Press” host David Gregory named Oprah as one of the people he’d most like to interview. “I’d ask her about her influence in the political process,” Gregory said, without a trace of irony. “Oprah has reached a lot of people who are not [usually] engaged in the political process. I’m very curious to see where she takes that next. And let’s not forget she’s close to President Obama.”
Yup, that’s what we’re thinking about in 2009 — a talk show host’s relationship with the president of the United States. Meanwhile, Yahoo’s top story Thursday afternoon was about the world’s oldest dog. It’s too bad Neil Postman died in 2003, because I’d love to read his diatribe about the Internet, Facebook, Twitter and blogs. And, yes, I’m aware that I have a blog.
COMMUTE TO WORK ON THE HUDSON
An acquaintance of mine, Troy man-about-town Duncan Crary, is hosting a commuter cruise on May 13 that sounds like a lot of fun. He’s persuaded the captain of the Dutch Apple, a riverboat in Albany, to bring people to and from work; commuters can take the boat in either direction — to Albany or Troy. In the morning, there will be coffee, newspapers and bagels. In the evening, there will be finger foods, live jazz and a cash bar. Clarinet Marmalade, a trio of musicians from the Skip Parsons Riverboat Jazz Band, will provide the music. Click here for more information about boarding times and things like that.
WATCHING “TWIN PEAKS”
The latest season of one of my favorite shows, “Rescue Me,” started about a month ago, but I’ve been having a difficult time getting into it. Instead, I’ve been riveted by a TV show from 1990 — “Twin Peaks,” the cult mystery-drama created by film director David Lynch.
I remember when it became a phenomenon, because I asked my parents for permission to watch it, and they said, “It’s really weird and confusing. But go ahead and give it a try.” One episode was more than enough for me; I never watched “Twin Peaks” again.
Anyway, I’ve become a fan of Lynch’s films, at least some of them, and when my friend Steve recommended “Twin Peaks” I decided to check it out. I just finished watching the first season, and it really is good, creepy and compelling.
The plot’s central mystery — “Who Killed Laura Palmer?” — still transfixes, and Lynch populates the show with an entertaining cast of oddball characters. Sometimes his characterizations slip into cruel caricatures — in his lesser work, Lynch has a tendency to mock and degrade his characters — but for the most part “Twin Peaks” is an involving story, featuring surrealistic imagery, strong acting and a mordant sense of humor. No doubt the show seemed more groundbreaking when it first aired, but it’s easy to see how it paved the way for offbeat (and inferior) suburban dramas such as “Desperate Housewives” and “Weeds.” In any case, it’s never too late to become a fan of “Twin Peaks.”
Got a comment? Add one below, or e-mail me at sfoss@dailygazette.net.
