Culture of Flattery is Insidiously Pervasive

Culture of flattery is insidiously pervasive.

So on this the 93rd day of lockdown and isolation, we have finally been given a date for some business re-openings and a relaxation of distancing rules, which seems to have focussed primarily, on those two seemingly socially important, cant live without services, the purveyors of alcohol and stylists of hair. It would appear that of all the activities and events denied us through this period, that the one service people are most desperate to have back are the consultants of coiffure, the salons of shavers. And yet, watching the Premiership football which restarted last week, and with noticeably, not a hair out of place, it would appear that practically all 500 premiership squad players are married to hairdressers… who knew. 

Despite the monotony of the overly repeated small pool of news stories, one very pleasant effect of the limited coverage during isolation and lockdown, has been a significant reduction in the nonsense that is celebrity and in particular those who are famous for only being famous. Those individuals who have made a career from either just being outrageous or constantly being in front of a camera, be it a social scene or selfie. I hope that as we emerge from this moment in time that the bubble of interest has well and truly popped. But somehow, sadly, I doubt it. Readers don’t, it appears want the actual real life stories, they want a homogeneous super shiny world of non attainability that they can look at and dream of being a part of, and that’s where the cult of celebrity will always unfortunately win out.

On this my personal 107th day of isolation, I notice I’ve become less tolerant of comments and banal posts on the social media platform that is Linkedin. I have to question the reasoning behind most of the entries and whether the motivation is purely to clock up a level of likes. That irritatingly nonsensical heart, tick or thumbs up that appears on most social media apps. That simple little intentional narcotic that gets you returning time and time again for a little pulse raising moment, that is an additional affirmation.

People have forgotten the premise behind Linkedin and are using the platform as a Facebook 2, the boringly familiar sequel. I don’t want to document my life for others to see through some superficial like me, like me, tick my heart shaped box app. Surprisingly, I don’t care what your kids are doing or what you had for lunch and I certainly have no appetite to document mine.

And yet having said all that, I write this blog… not as a means of seeking affirmation or love me love me appreciation but as a way of getting those frustrations and mind numbing disbeliefs out of my head, so that I can think more objectively and far more clearly. Once the fog of contempt, confusion and anger are blurted out onto these pages I feel a strange sense of contentment, as though having stated my thoughts on the matter and committed it to an actual medium, I can now relax. I don’t claim to be some deep thinker or to have incredible knowledge to impart but merely don’t subscribe to the cult of celebrity, insincerity or fake news.

Right, spell check, post and relax… hope you like it.