The Age of Mediocrity

August 10th, 2013

       I've just been accused of being a Purist and I think it's hilarious. I may even be feeling a small sense of pride in the accusation. It means my level of expectation is higher than the accuser's level of expectation. That this whole small battle is about musicianship makes it even funnier. Some people would think it's a useless argument. When it comes to music and entertainment it IS useless, because every individual has his or her own expectations and choices as to what they like or dislike. It used to be judged in ticket and recorded music sales but the digital world changed all that. The music teacher (the first one to get fired in any discussion about school budgets,) would probably understand the point I'm attempting to make. The fledgling opera-singer, the struggling professional classical dancer, the jazz saxophone-player searching for just the right groove knows exactly what I'm talking about. My accuser hasn't a clue. The accuser (or accusers - there is an army of them) have accepted that mediocrity is OK in any form of entertainment, and at my age, I feel it is a great sadness.
       The Age of Mediocrity should replace the current title of "Age of Information" for the time-frame we're experiencing.  There is a huge swath of the Great Unwashed who will always accept mediocrity as the norm. I think it reached its zenith with the advent of Obama and our current government. I don't blame them for their mediocre leadership. That's what happens when popularity and the cult of personality replaces the values we expect in solid leadership qualities. It takes on a downright sinister facade when you count up all the money involved to "get someone elected." The mediocrity is in place because we, the voter put it there. What we should have voted in were public servants who we trusted enough to fulfill their campaign promises - and then kept them. The electorate voted for mediocrity instead of strong leadership. It's not enough to just accept that all politicians are liars and bamboozlers.
       My accuser doesn't know me that well and the fact doesn't bother me. After all, this whole argument started over music and entertainment, but I begin to see in it a whole pattern of how mediocrity has become the new American norm. Remember the old saw, "We can send a man to the Moon, but . . ."  What my accuser doesn't know is I constantly see promise in those who, given half the chance, can better themselves because there is an innate talent involved. The accepted level of mediocrity keeps them off the stage, off the concert tour, out of the recording studio, out of the film studio, because their talent is a threat to the status quo. Instead of artists working together and supporting each other the dividers want it done their way. Or, one person's level of mediocrity soon becomes the copied norm. It creeps in like a disease to hamper the growth of any human endeavor, whether it's the arts or universities, community organizations, even governments. My hackles go up when I hear, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." "We've always done it this way." "Too bad the kid doesn't have any talent." I'm amused by the current demise of national television networks, who wonder in awe at why all national television ratings are down, advertising sales have slipped, and ask why they're in trouble after several decades of copy-cat and cookie-cutter programming relying heavily on script-writers who seem to have come out of the National Smarm School of Wit and Comedy. Like voting for the lowest common denominator, again it's our fault for turning on the television set in the first place. It is our fault for paying for a few sheets of newsprint that no longer serves the purpose as a source of news. Shock waves went through our community recently with the sale of the venerable Washington Post. Why does anyone even think that's newsworthy, when it's a trend happening in every big city in our country? We've come to expect instant gratification when we want the 'latest' and the internet is there to give it to us. Commentary and opinion? Now everyone has an opinion and can comment on any subject they want. But mediocrity again doesn't like, will not stand for, fresh opinion or an enlightened opinion.
       I like a person with guts. Male or female. Doesn't matter. The ones who quietly take charge matter more to me than the loud-mouthed Prussians. I'm even objective enough to listen to a loud-mouthed Prussian if he or she indeed has the capability to admit a mistake, admit a wrong-headed judgement. Some of the simplest working-guys I know right now have shown me more leadership in their little finger than has ever been shown to me by our current president. They just carry on with life. They're surrounded with lots of genuine friends. They never had to con, flim-flam, or bamboozle their way through life. They actually worked for all the good things they have in their lives. The first symptom of mediocrity is not having to work very hard for a lifestyle of mediocrity.

(In case you're wondering, I didn't vote for Obama - or the other guy, either!)