WHY WE HATE US

Meyer, D (2008). Why we hate us: American discontent in the new millennium  New York: Crown Publishers, 271 pages.

Dick Meyer formerly of CBS and now NPR suggests that we have come to the point where we can understand that we live in a fake world. As an example, even 100 years ago, when we entered a small town, it had authentic churches, restaurants, and public places.

Today, a real small town may have empty stores, a gas station-convenience store and a few cars. Things may center on the school and the bar. Nope. That’s too real so we go to a Disneyfied small town that is exactly perfect that was built in 2002 to “look” like a small town that is filled with phony nostalgia from the 40’s and 50’s.

We are hyper-individuated, lonely, and angry at the blue or red state people. Through numerous examples of restaurants looking like ships to retail shopping malls with big plastic animals in the back. Friendship has been replaced by friendliness. Small towns have few people and most urban centers stretch through suburbs, exurbs and endless

shopping malls.

All can be easily torn down for a theme park. Neighbors move in an out and gated communities try to recreate something that reminds one of a backdrop from an old 70’s show. Everything is for sale and most of us have gotten lost in the Land of fake.

We search for loneliness by craving privacy to watch the ever present omni media. Here personalities come into our homes and we feel like they have somehow become part of us. When beloved sitcom goes off the air, we are brought to tears.

Meyer notes that we know the name of the Unknown Soldier. Americans love title inflation to their name and credit cards accounts where one lives from paycheck to paycheck. We can have it all on omni media and our choice to watch our favorite channels guides us in our consumption. Our gang of membership is the folks on television or a talk internet chat line. The best watch to wear is authentically inauthentic. It looks like a Rolex and it cost 90% less.

Omni media is followed by omni marketing. Everywhere we go (where there is some energy source) marketing follows. Products and service are built into the story line or in the background of a show. A 22 minute half hour is filled with 8 minutes of advertising.

Meyers could have drawn upon such sources as early as Townies discussion of gesellschaft to the Putney’s’ Normal Neurosis and the work on Globalization of Nothing. However, he suggests that you prepare yourself in as many ways as possible for what Sir Isaiah Berlin describes as PLURALISM.  That means that you tolerate but not necessarily like other people and other life styles. Rather, you acknowledge them. Second, is AUTHENTICITY. As best you can and within the limits of the law, you become more honest. All of this does not mean that the world makes dramatic changes, because it probably won’t, but you can enjoy the world. You may do it with people who you truly like if it is just a few and be more honest with yourself.

You may enjoy bowling alone, or for that matter deciding that bowling is not for you and that on your day off, you do something that might take you away into some else’s life or  find some where else that is the nearest faraway place.

This is a good read but it overlooks areas in the field of sociology of alienation that is not researched in this area.  However, on balance, the details and the side panels of insight make the work valuable.

Prof. Joel Snell

Kirkwood College