Are You Not Entertained???

In a memorable scene from the excellent movie Gladiator, Maximus, played by Russell Crowe, has just finished brutally killing another gladiator in the arena. Disgusted by the cheers of people getting their jollies from two men fighting for their very lives, he shouts to the bloodthirsty crowd, "Are you not entertained?!?! Is this not why you are here?"

Perhaps as a fresh sign that the writers' strike is having a deep impact on American culture, the race for the Democratic nomination has become the country's new soap opera. In one corner, we have the ubiquitous Hillary Clinton, known to all and one of America's most polarizing figures. She's the woman you love to hate. In the other corner, promising newcomer Barack Obama, young, fresh-faced, ready to change the world like all young pups. As a Democrat race, it's ideal, pitting a woman against an African-American, demonstrating once and for all the wondrous diversity and liberality that the Democrat party stands for.

Or does it? It has recently degenerated into the sort of continuous mudslinging and sniping that make up pretty much every race. And this race has become even worse. Normally, a minority individual can play the victim card pretty handily, particularly in the face of the regular opposition received from Republicans. Democrats are good at this, and minority Democrats are the best at it. But what happens when both parties are minority Democrats? What good is your own ace of spades, when your opponent has one just like it? That precious trump card no longer remains, and you must stand on your own and make your pitch as yourself. You alone, not your race or gender or other specialized victim status, but your ideas, your opinions, your record, your personality. In this way, the Democrats have really just shown their own hypocrisy; despite all their bluster about diversity and being the open-minded party that represents the little people and the minorities, they play identity politics and polarize even their own supporters as well as anyone.

The American people, already sick to death of the game shows and reality TV that have come out of this writers' strike in Hollywood, have latched on to this new ultimate reality series like sharks to a wounded mackerel. The media, likewise sick of game shows and reality TV and seeking new ways to attract viewers and preserve some advertising revenue, sees the opening and dumps more and more of this toxin into the airwaves. The normal amplification of everything said or done by the candidates has, in the words of Nigel Tufnel, "gone to 11." Bill said this. Hillary said that, and Obama responded like this. Michelle called Bill a what?? Is it any wonder that most well-known liberal celebrities, the actors and musicians that typically make up a huge part of the Democrat propaganda machine, have steered clear of this whole affair and kept their mouths shut (for once in their lives)? How ironic is it that even the people about whom Don Henley wrote Dirty Laundry should wish to avoid the stain of this? But Americans are still lapping it up, half in serious concern over the many challenges our country is facing and half in desperate need for some diversion to distract them from those very same issues. It's almost like watching a large-scale episode of the Jerry Springer Show, but with outcomes much more grave than anything even a committee of Hollywood writers could conceive.

But again...are you not entertained?