wow, you guys seem just as excited about yr inner hip hopper as erica and me! i will *obviously* keep you updated on how the dance progresses and when our first STREET BATTLE will occur. cos it’s gonna be THROW.
i’m having one of those days where i can’t really think of something to write about… my brain refuses to settle on one topic and, instead, insists on meandering through various ideas. gah, just take yr sweet time! so, when those writer block pants sneak up on me, i always like to turn to YOU, oh pants world, cos there’s gotta be at least one person with an opinion on SOMETHING.
today’s topic is, of course, about politics… but not specific politics. more like, the process.
i read a post on jezebel today about this MTV promo featuring the girls from “the hills” telling people to go out and vote. i hate to make you go through the pain, but, uh, watch it (i’m sorry).
ok, so i get that this ad is aimed at teenagers. but COME ON?! do you guys think this is effective? this is the dumbest thing i have ever seen, and it’s not really cos of the whole “text message” story line or the song (even though they totally remind me of a health class PSA).
it’s because the girls from “the hills” are telling me to vote. for those of you who have seen “the hills,” uh, since when have LC, audrina and heidi cared about anything besides themselves (ok, and skeezy guys and clothes)?! well, aside from heidi saying she’ll vote for mccain, which… yeah. and since when should i look to them as role models or inspirational figures? i basically feel the need to do the exact opposite of whatever they do. like, What Would Heidi Not Do (WWHND, yo!).
and yes, i get that registering to vote is important. i still feel like voting is important. and the more people who vote, the better. but don’t you think, just maybe, that it’s misleading to somehow separate the act of voting with the thought behind voting? what i mean is… do campaigns like this focus too much on the ease of voting to the detriment of weighing the issues?
there’s no way to force people to really *think* about things. i mean, i’d hate to sit down with audrina and try to get her to grasp the u.s. policy in iraq, for example (i can’t even think of a metaphor she would understand… expensive vs. cheap make-up? number of times justin bobby has made her cry?). heck, i don’t think *i* even understand what’s going on in iraq.
but what do you guys think is the most effective way to get people active? i’m not asking for a nation of policy wonks, but i guess i feel like this MTV campaign is, bottom line, pretty superficial and ultimately ineffective in bringing about any kind of real change via voting.
and now, if you so desire, discusssssssssssss.
I will NEVER forgive you for putting me through that video. Never.
I’m not sure how to get people out and vote who just don’t want to… I really think that more compelling candidates produce more voters. And a whole lot of people are just utterly done with politicians. Remember the people in school/college who you knew were going to go into politics? Ugh.
I honestly think that superficial as it may be, it is really important to go out and get votes, and get people in booths. The more of us responsible for crappy leaders the better!! Good old democracy.
That’s pretty dumb… more dumb than the PSA itself though was letting us know what the song was after that because, of course, it matters who’s singing the song more than the message of the PSA and at the end of the PSA are you going to remember the performed by, or the PSA itself?
I suppose it can’t hurt to try and get high-schoolers interested, but I don’t know that The Hills girls are the ones I’d have promoting civic responsibility
I’m going to make a new T-shirt this year to replace my old “Voting is For Old People” tee. The new one will say, “Voting is for Ignorant Rich Bitches on TV Only.”
Maybe if we (as a society) broke our addictions to gas-guzzling cars, Wal-Mart, and TV, then people would actually discuss the political issues at hand instead of what Fox news is telling them to think about. Seriously. Also if we had a better education system. I am not a conspiracy-theorist, I don’t think there is a room full of old, white men somewhere saying “Let’s keep ‘em dumb, hyped up on soda and sugar, staring at their TV screens and We will Rule the World!”
But I do believe that corporations (hence: lobbyists and politicians) thought (and think) nothing about profit and rising stocks for so long, that now the systems are set up and in place and out of date. Unfortunately, and I hope I am wrong, but I think now it is going to take something big, like a major crash or or further destruction of natural resources, for our society to wake up and change. Again, I hope I am wrong. I hope we can break free of this corporate/political chains.
I also am not claiming to be an expert on political systems, the war in Iraq, the CEOs of corporations who go through the revolving door of government…this is all based on observations, reading Cold War young adult novels when I was younger (The Girl who Owned the City, Z for Zachariah, Beach, etc…) that probably made me sensitive to the ‘end of the world type scenarios” and my profound disgust in the educational system of America and Texas. Ugh.
Now I am going to go get a drink. At 630 in the morning.
I think it’s important to remember that the PSA wasn’t about voting, per se, but registering to vote. I doubt if we’ll see Spencer trash talking candidates in October or Lo talking about how Bush stole the election like Stephanie stole LC (yes, I watch The Hills - shut up), so maybe MTV believes that “The Hills” girls are best suited for something as easy/casual as just registering to vote. Voter registration is not the most intense thing and something that even Heidi’s new nose can pick up on.
MTV may be thinking, if we actually DO get someone interested down the road, if they’re not registered to vote, it’s useless. Given that many teenagers do not understand the process of voter registration, pointing out something simple like, “it takes little time to register,” is a good thing.
We have six months to get the mind-zombies off of their couch and convince them that Grand Theft Auto IV or Brangelina’s baby pics are not nearly as important as choosing the leader of our embattled country. But for now, let’s get the basic procedural stuff done - voter registration - so when the time comes to choose, they’re equipped.
So - I guess I don’t really have a problem with the ad. Although, I don’t think that those suspenders really suit Lauren that well and you would think the new stylist for People’s Revolution would have told her so.
double true, randy. double true (and i mean yr whole comment, but esp. about the suspenders).
Well, the first thing I would like to say is…props for Sarah using Throw in the perfect context. Your lil sis would be proud.
Hmm, that video did not really make me think but it did confuse me a bit. I get what they are trying to do, but agreed TOTALLY WRONG WAY!! Please go back to the rock the vote campaign, still might not always discuss the actual topics, but a tiny bit of a more effect campaign.
I see the point of trying to get the young people out there, and I completely agree with that concept. We should have the future of America (us included) deciding on the future president of America, but I am not sure that I would like people that were motivated by this add to register to vote to actual choose my new leader. But definately different.
Uhm, who are these people? Who the hell is named Justin Bobby? Is that a real name? Did you just make that up?
I think MTV is advertising to the lowest common denominator, and yes it may seem superficial but they are hoping to reach out to those people who may not have even given a second thought to registering to vote. MTV is assuming that high schoolers are swayed by seeing “characters” from their favorite TV show telling them to go out and make a difference in a way that they can relate: texting. I don’t know if we should expect more out of a network whose most popular show is The Hills or if we should congratulate them for doing something, shallow as it may seem.
I’m trying to think back to when I was in high school and if I would have been affected by an ad campaign from the cast of Friends (my fave show back in HS) telling me how easy it is to register to vote. Would I have even cared?
A Helpful Syllogism:
-Justin Bobby is a character on The Hills.
-Characters on The Hills are not real.
-Justin Bobby, therefore, is not real.
I think that we see the return of Justin Bobby this season. Something that I’m not exactly excited about. BTW - when did Heidi turn stupid? She doesn’t even say cogent words any more. Has anyone here had plastic surgery and noticed a dropoff in mental capacity? That might help explain some things . . .
I really like the point that Celina made that maybe they should get some cred for trying to do something. But I agree that the whole cocept is quite hypocritical. The Hills is a show for a very basic audience and it perpetuates base entertainment. Then they ask the same audience to not be so basic. If they REALLY wanted to help out, MTV should start programming something that engages more than the reptilian part of our brain. Of course, that won’t sell, right?
BTW - I’m so happy that 30 Rock is back on tonight . . .
I agree with Meredith! The only things I know about the Hills I’ve learned from Jezebel, and I watched one clip and didn’t understand why they made show about the most boring people ever.
I didn’t watch the clip you posted here - but for the dumb people in society, apparently voting is a hassle and takes too much time. If that’s the case, there’s no way that these people are going to take the time to look into the candidates, they are going to vote on first impressions.
First impression of John McCain: Old, ugly, boring.
First impression of Hillary Clinton: Female, Bill Clinton, kinda boring.
First impression of Barack Obama: Black, killer smile, talks a lot.
Now, if I was a dumb person, which obvs I am not, here’s how I would use my dumb logic: Old, ugly people are gross, so McCain’s out. So Hillary’s married to Bill Clinton right? That’s pretty cool. Oh wait, when she talks I feel like I’m being lectured by my mom…. Obama - that’s a weird name. Is he a terrorist? No, wait, he’s American. He sure does talk a lot, I guess that means he’s smart. Wow, look at that smile! Okay, I’ll vote for Obama.
Obviously that’s one of the smarter dumb people for figuring out that Obama is not a terrorist. But my point is, when voting is cut down to 5 minutes, the democrats win! Old & boring will always lose!
“Old & boring will always lose!”
You said it.
Heidi and Spencer are, I am not even kidding you, my two favorite people on this planet. I love them so fucking much.
Oh my gawd! I just noticed I made it on your list-o-links! I am so honored! I knew my stalking…er, I mean frequent commenting would pay off!! Thanks posh.
PS I am moving back to austin next week. Let’s keep in touch and hang out in real life more.
All I can say is that unless young people will vote for exactly who I tell them to, I don’t necessarily want them voting at all. Young people are stupid half the time, too, just like old people. Hell, it was young people in that high school in Plano who voted to freely give up their right to privacy because, “If you need your privacy, it’s because you’re doing something wrong. So teachers should totally have keys to our lockers!”
Screw you, young people, and wait your turn. I just got the keys to the world yesterday, and I’m still playing with it. Boo ha ha ha aha ha!