ALGEBRAIC EQUATIONS

Today’s posting comes from my 12 year old’s algebra text...

in⋅e⋅qual⋅i⋅ty   [in-i-kwol-i-tee] –noun, plural -ties.
A mathematical sentence stating that two quantities are unequal, indicated by the symbol ≠; alternatively, by the symbol <, signifying that the quantity preceding the symbol is less than that following, or by the symbol >, signifying that the quantity preceding the symbol is greater than that following.

I am wondering if most of contemporary culture failed algebra.

Look at a prevalent, societal equation: Celebrities = Role Models

Dr. Drew Pinsky and S. Mark Young have co-authored the book, The Mirror Effect: How Celebrity Narcissism Is Seducing America. Narcissism is an excessive interest in oneself. “Dr. Drew,” as the TV/radio personality is known, sat down with USA Today this week and detailed the problem:

“I’ve been working with celebrities many, many years. I’ve treated many for chemical dependency and the like. They have profound childhood trauma. It’s not something to do with their job or the life they lead. They just happen to be people driven to seek celebrity as a way to make themselves feel better. Then the question becomes, why are we preoccupied with this population? This points toward the mirror. We, too, have been increasingly narcissistic. I speculate that that’s what drives us toward this phenomenon of elevating people to almost godlike status.”

This perceived status is the substantiation for hollow self-credence, propelling the Sean Penn’s and Ashley Judd’s of the world to shame all with whom they disagree. Narcissistic individuals fixate on the reactions of others in order to validate their own sense of self. This distorts our societal equations.

Drew goes on to say that our culture’s promoting of this focus on celebrities is indubitably harmful, especially to our teens and young adults, “the sponges of our culture.” He adds: “Their values are now being set. Are they really the values we want our young people to be absorbing? Do we want them to have a revolving-door love life, or stable relationships? It harkens back to the question of how much are young people affected by models of social learning.”

Back to the inequality: Celebrities ≠ Role Models

Perhaps our culture needs to immerse itself in algebra.

AR