Heroes (herOHes).
I've been putting this off for at least two weeks now. My reminded looked as follows:
Heroes.
Who should our heroes be?
Why are these people elevated to the levels of heroes when...should they be?
I get having good role models but I have to question some of these. These were what I came up with as the kinds of people that serve as heroes to the general public.
The one thing all of these groups of people have in common is that they are really good at something.
I wish they were all good somethings.
Pornstars, on some level, I can sort of see why they might be admired but I don't think that is why they are admired. They may be liberated, open to new ideas, and take pride in their skills in the bedroom. Heck even being a free spirit seems like a worthwhile quality to admire. I suspect they are admired for more primal reasons such as lust and their physical attributes. Is really a good reason to be a hero? Because you are sexually attractive? That seems a bit shallow.
Warriors or soldiers...it's all a matter of what you are into. I long had issues with respect for authority (especially when it isn't deserved) so this one...kind of bothers me. Yes, being a great warrior I can respect. You are good at what you do, but it's the other things that go with that, like why? Are you killing or providing a diversion? To what end are you doing this? If is for the greater good of the community (state/country 01) as a whole?
To some degree there is some overlap between warriors and professional athletes due to the element of physical prowess. But are they looked up to because of how well they perform when on the field playing their sport? Or are these people heroes because of how much money they make? Because they are shown on television networks across the country and admired by millions?
The rich, and by extension, the ultra rich provided they have worked their way up from poor or modest means to becoming fabulously wealth. Okay, great, so there was some business sense or perhaps they came up with a disruptive idea or technology--or got involved with people who were--that led them to be involved in a business venture that paid serious dividends for them.
But at what cost? Did they, and the business, act ethically? Morally? Was it a responsible corporate citizen ensuring that it was ultimately a force for good in the community it is part of? Did it help uplift the lives of its employees, customers, and the citizens of the communities where it is located? Did it pursue a quality product or did it chase profits in the name of an inferior product and "for the stockholders"? Did it do everything it could to ensure it didn't contribute negatively to the environment? Did it do everything possible to ensure the business as a whole wasted the absolute minimum? In addition to the regular business concerns did they also focus on improving, for example going from a carbon footprint that resulted in polluting first getting to a point or a neutral carbon footprint or even one where they were making things better. (Would that be negative or positive carbon footprint? I'm thinking positive as they are making things better but I haven't heard positive and negative thrown around to describe such footprints before.)
I'm straying from my point now, but ultimately business ventures I think are going to have a lot to do with us getting to the point where we begin to really explore space and ultimately colonize it. Unless we get over things like greed that will end badly. It shouldn't be about a scramble to lay claim to all of the best resources first. It should be about something something that will help all of the human race.
I digress.
Speaking of doing things for the betterment of all of humanity...well, okay, a slightly smaller scale than all of humanity. Politicians...I really want to describe them idealistically. I really, really do. Unfortunately I feel like that's not the current reality. I can appreciate an honest politician that is only doing what they think is right for the people that person represents. Politics shouldn't be a "game". It should be doing what is best for the citizens you represent with negotiations and compromise when it requires working with other representatives such as those on a level that is required for national politics. (I think that should be a job requirement. If you won't negotiate or make a compromise to find a solution that is fair to everyone you shouldn't have the job.)
The last two...I don't really get why deception would be admired as a heroic sort of quality.
The deception that Bernie Madoff pulled off with his investment scheme was...surprising. It begs all kinds of questions, like some of the obvious ones: how did he get away with it; how did nobody notice for so long; how could the record keepers or SEC not realize there was something funny going on? I can see why someone might admire him for the detail and complexity of the con but still...it was bad for so many people.
I also totally passed over celebrities. Or maybe I just didn't want to talk about celebrities.
01 In this case I don't mean state as in a place in the United States of America but rather a container that's smaller than a country. Whether they call it by that name or a province or whathaveyou.
Heroes.
Who should our heroes be?
- Pornstars?
- Warriors/Soldiers
- Professional Athletes
- The Ultrarich (Business successes)
- Politicians
- The Corrupt (Is Tony Soprano your hero?)
- The Schemers (Like Bernie Madoff)
Why are these people elevated to the levels of heroes when...should they be?
I get having good role models but I have to question some of these. These were what I came up with as the kinds of people that serve as heroes to the general public.
The one thing all of these groups of people have in common is that they are really good at something.
I wish they were all good somethings.
Pornstars, on some level, I can sort of see why they might be admired but I don't think that is why they are admired. They may be liberated, open to new ideas, and take pride in their skills in the bedroom. Heck even being a free spirit seems like a worthwhile quality to admire. I suspect they are admired for more primal reasons such as lust and their physical attributes. Is really a good reason to be a hero? Because you are sexually attractive? That seems a bit shallow.
Warriors or soldiers...it's all a matter of what you are into. I long had issues with respect for authority (especially when it isn't deserved) so this one...kind of bothers me. Yes, being a great warrior I can respect. You are good at what you do, but it's the other things that go with that, like why? Are you killing or providing a diversion? To what end are you doing this? If is for the greater good of the community (state/country 01) as a whole?
To some degree there is some overlap between warriors and professional athletes due to the element of physical prowess. But are they looked up to because of how well they perform when on the field playing their sport? Or are these people heroes because of how much money they make? Because they are shown on television networks across the country and admired by millions?
The rich, and by extension, the ultra rich provided they have worked their way up from poor or modest means to becoming fabulously wealth. Okay, great, so there was some business sense or perhaps they came up with a disruptive idea or technology--or got involved with people who were--that led them to be involved in a business venture that paid serious dividends for them.
But at what cost? Did they, and the business, act ethically? Morally? Was it a responsible corporate citizen ensuring that it was ultimately a force for good in the community it is part of? Did it help uplift the lives of its employees, customers, and the citizens of the communities where it is located? Did it pursue a quality product or did it chase profits in the name of an inferior product and "for the stockholders"? Did it do everything it could to ensure it didn't contribute negatively to the environment? Did it do everything possible to ensure the business as a whole wasted the absolute minimum? In addition to the regular business concerns did they also focus on improving, for example going from a carbon footprint that resulted in polluting first getting to a point or a neutral carbon footprint or even one where they were making things better. (Would that be negative or positive carbon footprint? I'm thinking positive as they are making things better but I haven't heard positive and negative thrown around to describe such footprints before.)
I'm straying from my point now, but ultimately business ventures I think are going to have a lot to do with us getting to the point where we begin to really explore space and ultimately colonize it. Unless we get over things like greed that will end badly. It shouldn't be about a scramble to lay claim to all of the best resources first. It should be about something something that will help all of the human race.
I digress.
Speaking of doing things for the betterment of all of humanity...well, okay, a slightly smaller scale than all of humanity. Politicians...I really want to describe them idealistically. I really, really do. Unfortunately I feel like that's not the current reality. I can appreciate an honest politician that is only doing what they think is right for the people that person represents. Politics shouldn't be a "game". It should be doing what is best for the citizens you represent with negotiations and compromise when it requires working with other representatives such as those on a level that is required for national politics. (I think that should be a job requirement. If you won't negotiate or make a compromise to find a solution that is fair to everyone you shouldn't have the job.)
The last two...I don't really get why deception would be admired as a heroic sort of quality.
The deception that Bernie Madoff pulled off with his investment scheme was...surprising. It begs all kinds of questions, like some of the obvious ones: how did he get away with it; how did nobody notice for so long; how could the record keepers or SEC not realize there was something funny going on? I can see why someone might admire him for the detail and complexity of the con but still...it was bad for so many people.
I also totally passed over celebrities. Or maybe I just didn't want to talk about celebrities.
01 In this case I don't mean state as in a place in the United States of America but rather a container that's smaller than a country. Whether they call it by that name or a province or whathaveyou.