A&E has been plugging a new program this weekend. My Strange Addiction, they are calling it.
Really? I haven't seen anything on the commercials that look like an addiction, except possibly the girl drinking nail polish. There's a man in love with his car to the point of intimacy with it. I call that a perversion. A woman who is 'addicxted' to her finger- and and toe- nails. How does that work? What is she addicted to about them? Does she eat them?
These things are behaviors, they are not addictions. An addiction is a bodily medical function. Yes, there;s often a psychological or mental factor, but the primary cause and cure are physical. Deviant behavior, however mild, should be treated, but should it be lionized in this fashion?
Why is A&E giving these people fame for their perversions and delusions and willful acts?
A&E has, over the year, introduced many serious problems and helped the incomprehensible be understood. Hoarders, Intervention, Scared Straight. These are all good ideas, good programs, and no doubt, in their day, they helped a few families. Maybe even more than a few.
But they -- A&E -- don't know when to stop. Intervention has become a roll-your-eyes cliche, Hoarders has become an excuse, and Scared Straight programs have been so demystified that they have now had to go Beyond Scared Straight. That helps no one.
Needless to say, I will watch none of these shows -- they've outlived their usefulness. The only reason they are on is for viewers to feel superior and/or to be titillated by how some people (of lower class, of course, live.
If you think like I do, please don't encourage this type of programming by watching this (or these) programs. It puts money in their pockets, anyway, if you watch and then write a letter of protest, and then watch again to see if your letter had any effect.
If you don't agree with the content, DON'T WATCH.
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