Sunday, October 11, 2020

The End of Our Monoculture

      I'm not sure exactly when our single culture ceased being and our current multi-culture began but it happened in my lifetime so I'll try to give it the consideration it deserves. Truth be told I am only able to blog because the single set of circumstances which made up my youth are easy to remember. This makes my comparisons to today all the more stark. Like I always say and tell my nephews it is not that my childhood was better, only that it was different than what you can expect today. The starkest example:

  • CBS, NBC, ABC were the major networks throughout the country. You could travel around, flip on the TV, and easily find them. That is, if your antenna was positioned correctly. 
  • Today we have so many channels in so many different combinations that it is fair to say most TVs do not have the same channels.

     


     I think it's great we have more choice and wouldn't wish the summer TV rerun seasons we endured on anyone. This could be said about a lot of things like our music, choices of food, telephones... The list is long and hurrah for the difference. 

     My sole observation is; Can we somehow regain some semblance of coherence, a common ground which will help us work together to tackle the issues of the day? I'm not sure we can reach resolutions to issues of Income Equality, Climate, Racism, Ageism and many others if we don't begin with an agreed upon set of facts and cultural touchstones. Maybe we can and I'm just misinformed.

     My suggestion is to enjoy the vast amount of cultural choices and get comfortable with all the confusion. Figure out as best you can where you can find more of what you like. We all seem to be looking so take a friend or two along in your search.

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