Pop Culture and the Right

One of the few true issues I have with some sectors of the conservative movement is the puritan tendencies of some social conservatives. In particular, I think that one of the stupidest aspects of a great deal of the social conservative right is its knee-jerk reaction to that trio of horrors: violence, sex, and profanity in movies and on television.

Now, I'll grant you that it's likely that the present moral state of television has resulted in a coarsening of our culture and some erosion of our moral values. I'll grant that. I'll also fully admit that we're seeing something of a slippery slope effect. I'm barely old enough to half-remember the days when The Simpsons were considered cutting edge and controversial. Now their DVD's are filed in the "family" section at the local video store.

But, to put it bluntly: sitting on your ass and whining about it isn't going to do anything. I recently read a list of complaints field by something called the "Parents' Television Council" which, so far as I can tell, is a group of eighty-something women in tennis shoes watching television shows in a desperate, grasping effort to determine how many times the word "dick" is uttered. It's a complete waste of time.

Instead of throwing hissy fits about the evils of television and popular culture, the social right needs to learn to embrace it and turn it to its advantage. One major reason why the Hollywood lefts feels so free in attacking the beliefs of conservative and Christians is that they know, for the most part, they aren't buying their products anyways.

It's a freeing thing, to know that you owe people nothing. When I ran for School Board, I knew that the Teacher's Unions were never going to support me, so I felt free to say whatever I felt like about them. In view of the fact that I lost, the wisdom of that strategy may be questionable, but that doesn't change the reality of the impulse.

I don't sleep much and I have a grossly-overpriced PVR, so I watch a lot of television. I can tell you, there's plenty for conservatives to watch and enjoy.

To begin, I'd encourage conservatives to watch Boston Legal on Sundays, where the fact that the character played by William Shatner (a role he won an Emmy for playing!) is a Republican has been allowed to stand without negative attacks.

But, more broadly, I'd encourage conservatives to try out any of a number of shows I watch fairly regularly: Battlestar Galactica (on SciFi in the States, Space in Canada, and Sky One in the UK) is easily the best new science fiction show in years. The Dead Zone (USA Network in America, Space in Canada) is another first-rate show (though it's between seasons at the moment, you can pick up previous years on DVD).

In addition (I'm embarrassed to admit this), I never miss The O.C., which could be fairly rated as my favourite show on television at the moment. Other first-rate programs include Scrubs, Lost, Arrested Development (the funniest show on television), The Gilmore Girls, and Joan of Arcadia. The CSI and Law and Order families are also worth watching most of the time (though, I admit, Without a Trace is my personal favourite)

Now, I'm not the world's biggest fan of the last one (I've probably seen about half of the episodes), but I find it bewildering (to say the least) why conservatives have failed to embrace that show. A television show about a girl who talks to God (and has God give her advice that verifiably improves her life) and conservatives aren't holding it up as an exemplar? Only a certain sort of myopia could result in this.

Further down the list is 24 (though, I've yet to miss an episode this season), only because I'm still angry over the utterly stupid plot twist that ruined the entire second half of the initially-perfect second season for me (the "evil white men trying to start a war in the Middle East" stuff).

Even The West Wing, long a liberal fantasy-land, has managed to break into new ground this year, finally becoming interesting again with the coming of a new Presidential race (as a side note, I now expect Alan Alda's Republican character to win the election, a prediction I make based upon the laws of casting economy. When he showed up last week and it was revealed that his chief aides are now played by Stephen Root and the woman who played the wife on Home Improvement I said to myself, "yeah, he'll win).

So, basically, my message is as follows: lighten up and watch some more TV.