Idiocracy

[pshaw_raven]

 How a TV Sitcom Triggered the Downfall of Western Civilization - on Medium, soft paywall

Full disclosure: I have never actually watched an episode of Friends. For the first half of its run I didn't even own a TV. But sitcoms are also not my thing - so Friends is not the type of show I would have watched even if I did have a set. However, what little I know of the show makes it seem to me as if it definitely falls into the category of things where everyone gets mocked and made fun of and not in a gentle way. Like one of those things that makes it feel like it's okay to substitute sarcastic put-downs for actual conversation, and like your friends aren't your friends unless they are pointing out what a loser you are.

I am not really a fan of television in general though, so this article is "preaching to the choir." I like having a set as a monitor - I stream and download movies and of course some anime. But I deeply dislike and avoid TV shows, broadcast or cable. There have been some exceptions to this, but I'm not the type to just sit down and watch TV. 

Star Trek, tho. No seriously, I love Star Trek.

Comments

[we_are_spc]

Star Trek, Star Wars. I'm a spanner (I coined the term 'Starspanner because I'm one of theres, apparently rare few, who love the fuck out of both)

...

Star Trek, Star Wars...and the shows my friends and I stream, yep. Otherwis we don't usually watch TV, either.

I'd much rather read, thanks. And get lost in the deliciously dark world of Roarke and Eve Dalas. Among other things...

-T~

[pshaw_raven]

I like both series, but if I had to pick one it would be Trek. Star Wars has kind of lost me with all the new movies and apparently long-running animated series, of which I've seen four or five episodes. Not that Trek hasn't suffered from "sprawl" too.

[dorchadas]

like your friends aren't your friends unless they are pointing out what a loser you are

The number of people I see on dating apps who put "fluent in sarcasm" as though it were a selling point makes me sigh, a lot.

[pshaw_raven]

It's good to have a sense of humor, but I think a lot of people mistake making fun of others for being humorous. I'm guilty of relying heavily on self-deprecating humor, but making nasty remarks about others just to get a laugh isn't that funny.