Google has more hits for the string "paris hilton" than for "global warming". 91,900,000 compared to 69,900,000. For my money global warming is actually more important. One of these is "Go away Paris" and heaps of others pouring heaps on to the princess. There is also an online petition calling for her release. Yes there are fans who really think Paris has been mistreated. There are comments from a certain sort of feminist that what Paris, Brittany and Lindsay represent is female power and their detractors represent threatened egos and prudes.
While the world is consumed by an heiress who has travelled the same road as many a less famous and less wealthy offender; drink driving, driving on a suspended license, breaking parole conditions of a suspended sentence after nonetheless driving and getting caught a second time, then going into the slammer for it. The path of Paris is self destructive, tragic and narcissistic.
Paris meets most of the criteria for narcissism. Attention seeking, deluded of her own importance, believing herself to be immune to the same consequences as everyone else. narcissists do not take responsibility for their actions. A narcissist reacts very badly when their deluded world is crashed. The narcissistic person is then left as nothing more than a frightened child. All that they are is an unreal shell. We all saw the wall of tears streaming down Paris' face. She screamed out her her mum.
But Paris is not a narcissist in a normal society, she is a narcissist is a narcissistic society, albeit a very extreme example. She would fall on the far end of a distribution curve of narcissism. She is not different from most of us other. She is simply more extreme in her dysfunctionality. She is a concentrated extract of the same syrup as our culture. The being the western materialist tradition. Our collective afluenza. Our whole economy depends on it.
The whole marketing strategy is to make us feel less than whole, make is feel incomplete and appeal to the worse aspects of ourselves. Appeals are made to our fears, envy, insecurity and the "cure" or "shopping therapy" is brands that give momentary relief. A happy citizen is not an easy marketing target. "Paris Hilton being treated unfairly" is not too far removed from "the American way of life is not negotiable" (no matter the cost to the earth and to world peace), only one is a celebrity and the other a collective nation headed by narcissistic president whose own youth mirrored that of Paris in many aspects. Americans are likely to react very badly when peak oil starts to bite and the tears are likely to replaced by missiles.
There is an argument that we should ignore Paris, since any publicity will give her oxygen, even negative publicity. Yes I know this blog will become Google hit number 91,900,001. But if we are all narcissists then Paris won't just go away by our pretending she isn't there. She would only go away if we go away from who we are. We may be able to deal with Paris' wall of tears but what of our own when our world comes crashing in. The consumer society is not sustainable.
Furthermore Paris is crowding out so much real news. This point is made at the Gallery of the Absurd with some brilliant artwork. Check them out.
http://tinyurl.com/2ok5s3
http://tinyurl.com/34j93c
http://tinyurl.com/2ss4lv
Wednesday, 13 June 2007
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