Pay no attention to the people on your screen

I have never understood society’s worship for those of marginal fame. Sure, I am a big fan of Randy Orton and I loved Scottie Pippen’s work with the Bulls (and was so elated when he returned in 2003), but when the cameras are off them, I stop caring. I just don’t get why mainstream society scrutinizes anyone who is even remotely recognizable.

Jerks exist, but being a jerk is not exclusive to being famous. Granted, some celebrities are absolute jerks and deserve to be recognized as such. Tiger Woods is an infidel. What he did is absolutely uncool. For that, he owed his wife much more than an apology. He owed the same to the sponsors who did keep them. But he owes me nothing. Tiger Woods has absolutely no accountability to me. The worst thing he’s done to me was indirectly cause me to waste an afternoon watching him beat Rocco Mediate in a playoff for the 2008 U.S. Open.

I’ve always thought Ben Roethlisberger was a piece of work. I can’t stand him. His actions range from immature to dangerous. He owes a lot of people a lot of apologies. But the only apology he owes me is for being the beneficiary of one-sided officiating in Super Bowl XL. Simply because I watch (and root against) him does not give me any right to judge him or demand any sort of behavior from him.

Unfortunately we live in a society where the general populace renders their lives as mundane at best or meaningless at worst. Instead of doing something about it, society latches onto whomever or whatever is interesting at the moment. We live in a society where people can become famous for being famous (e.g. Paris Hilton, any of the Kardashians). We live (and leech) vicariously through these people, feed off their successes, hold them to higher standards than we hold ourselves, and feel betrayed when they inevitably falter.

Living in the spotlight does not take away the humanity of any of these people. Many famous people do not crave as much of the spotlight as they receive. When we commoners falter, we do not owe an explanation to the entire world. Just because their failures occurred with a camera does not mean that they owe us anything. We are accountable to those we are close to.

The best advice I can give is to not idolize those whom you do not know. Live your life, worry about yourself, and be the best you can be. Set high standards, but set them for yourself. “Common” life will seem much less mundane if an air of accountability is present.