Celebrity crushes

[Bruised_Reed]

Ok, I can tell that none of you will change your minds. But personally, I simply can’t imagine why anyone would resort to fantasy and crushing on celebrities if they are completely happy with their own lives.

Resort? You make it sound like using one’s imagination is a horrible thing. Next people will be saying we shouldn’t read. Oh, wait…some religious sects already prohibit reading anything but approved texts.

The old question comes to mind, of whether humans would prefer to live a real life which potentially contains hardship, or live in a virtual reality filled with nothing but pleasant experiences.

Dystopian/post-apocalyptic genres examine this to a degree. Thoughts and activities are controlled so that there is no conflict or war but there is order and the appearance of peace. Most, if not all, of these stories are cautionary tales against this. Yet, you would suggest that I not have my own thoughts because you think all I do is fantasize and that it’s wrong. You don’t know what I think about all day; you have been given a snippet and have exaggerated it like the others. Instead of being a sliver of the pie you make the time fantasizing the majority of the pie.

Hardship. Hmm. I don’t think I experience much hardship in my day-to-day life. But I see it happen to others. Everyday. I have one of those jobs where I watch people struggling to overcome some serious **** in their lives and I also observe some of the worst examples of human behavior, although nothing that would make the news. Oh, wait, that’s not true. Pretty much all I see every day is how messed up this world is and I don’t even watch the news, I just go to work. Not even going to start with my personal life.

So, in conclusion, to all those who think celebrity crushes are wrong or are judging me for fantasizing or whatever: Bite me.

 

[Cat]

Ok, I can tell that none of you will change your minds. But personally, I simply can’t imagine why anyone would resort to fantasy and crushing on celebrities if they are completely happy with their own lives.The old question comes to mind, of whether humans would prefer to live a real life which potentially contains hardship, or live in a virtual reality filled with nothing but pleasant experiences.

What do you think of people who are completely happy with their lives reading fiction (pretend stories, viewing visual art, or attending theater/opera?

What do you think of use of the imagination by people who are completely happy with their lives not just to create new inventions and scientific discoveries, but to create fiction/stories?

 

[Cat]

This is quite possibly the dumbest thread I’ve ever seen…

If you watched Today on NBC yesterday morning, you would see that this topic/thread is NOT “the dumbest thread I’ve ever seen.”

20,000 young girls (and older ones, and boys/men, too!) screaming, crying, reaching for the boy band One Direction down in Orlando, Florida. It was absolutely wild and so much fun!

I was watching, too. I think they’re adorable and very talented young men.

The newscast had a little challenge to find the biggest fan, and they showed the bedrooms of some of the teens–walls completely wallpapered with One Direction photos, and huge scrapbooks full of pictures. Reminded me of my room back when Barnabas was as popular as One Direction!

One really touching photo showed a young girl with a homemade “One Direction Girl” t-shirt, and her dad standing next to her with a homemade “One Direction Dad” t-shirt. Now THAT is a wise and loving father, and his investment in his daughter and willingness to take her crush seriously instead of ridiculing or condemning it will bring many good results in his daughter’s life! Good for him for encouraging an interest in a talented group that to date, has done nothing scandalous, and much to be commended.

If you had been there and called these girls “dumb” yesterday, you would have been strung up!

 

[migueltojose]

If you watched Today on NBC yesterday morning, you would see that this topic/thread is NOT “the dumbest thread I’ve ever seen.”

If you had been there and called these girls “dumb” yesterday, you would have been strung up!

I didn’t say they were “dumb”. I said the thread was dumb. I have daughters and sisters too. Maybe it was not very nice of me to say it that way. Maybe silly and immature would’ve been more appropriate.

Did you see the One Direction skit on SNL when Paul Rudd was the “over the top” fan. Now that was funny.

 

[migueltojose]

I didn’t say they were “dumb”. I said the thread was dumb. I have daughters and sisters too. Maybe it was not very nice of me to say it that way. Maybe silly and immature would’ve been more appropriate.

Did you see the One Direction skit on SNL when Paul Rudd was the “over the top” fan. Now that was funny.

My point is that today’s culture seems overly obsessed with celebrity wealth and fame. Life is to be lived to the fullest, not in the head, but on the ground. This is not a rehearsal. Note my signature. Drop out of the culture of death. Trust me, One Direction’s advertisers, handlers and managers support SSM, Susan G Komen, Planned Parenthood, Girl Scouts and all the other nefarious PC organizations the Church battles on a daily basis. Innocence is lost.

Condoning this “celebrity crush” thing, however you define it, only adds fuel to the fire.

And I would not include teen girls cheering for the latest boy band as having celebrity crushes. You know they did that for Frank Sinatra a long long time ago. Nothing new here.

 

[BHL_20]

Resort? You make it sound like using one’s imagination is a horrible thing. Next people will be saying we shouldn’t read. Oh, wait…some religious sects already prohibit reading anything but approved texts.

Dystopian/post-apocalyptic genres examine this to a degree. Thoughts and activities are controlled so that there is no conflict or war but there is order and the appearance of peace. Most, if not all, of these stories are cautionary tales against this. Yet, you would suggest that I not have my own thoughts because you think all I do is fantasize and that it’s wrong. You don’t know what I think about all day; you have been given a snippet and have exaggerated it like the others. Instead of being a sliver of the pie you make the time fantasizing the majority of the pie.

Hardship. Hmm. I don’t think I experience much hardship in my day-to-day life. But I see it happen to others. Everyday. I have one of those jobs where I watch people struggling to overcome some serious **** in their lives and I also observe some of the worst examples of human behavior, although nothing that would make the news. Oh, wait, that’s not true. Pretty much all I see every day is how messed up this world is and I don’t even watch the news, I just go to work. Not even going to start with my personal life.

So, in conclusion, to all those who think celebrity crushes are wrong or are judging me for fantasizing or whatever: Bite me.

I cannot believe how worked up you are getting over this. I’m not saying you’ll go to hell or anything for having a crush on a celebrity.

FYI, the Catholic Church used to prohibit reading books it considered bad for the soul, e.g. The Catcher in the Rye.

What do you think of people who are completely happy with their lives reading fiction (pretend stories, viewing visual art, or attending theater/opera?

What do you think of use of the imagination by people who are completely happy with their lives not just to create new inventions and scientific discoveries, but to create fiction/stories?

Classically, art, theatre and literature are not there to let us escape from reality but to help us reflect on the meaning of our lives. Most “stories” have a deeper meaning to go with the entertainment they provide. Any art form without one is just an adrenaline ride with no risk. Video games are just that (I don’t consider them an art form in general but they fit the adrenaline ride description perfectly), and even though they are fun, I’d consider them a waste of time in general.

As for your second point, I don’t see how science is in any way related to this. Using one’s imagination to visualise the real world or a possible invention, cannot be considered fantasy.

 

[BHL_20]

One really touching photo showed a young girl with a homemade “One Direction Girl” t-shirt, and her dad standing next to her with a homemade “One Direction Dad” t-shirt. Now THAT is a wise and loving father, and his investment in his daughter and willingness to take her crush seriously instead of ridiculing or condemning it will bring many good results in his daughter’s life! Good for him for encouraging an interest in a talented group that to date, has done nothing scandalous, and much to be commended.

I pity this girl and I think this father is not doing his duty. I really don’t think he should encourage it. From the sound of it, she may be committing the sin of idolatry, and because of his parenting she is not at all aware this is wrong. He should remind her that the members of this group got their talent from God, and encourage her to discover her own talents and cultivate them. To paraphrase migueltojose above me, this girl would be much happier if she lived on the ground, not in her head.

 

[Bruised_Reed]

I pity this girl and I think this father is not doing his duty. I really don’t think he should encourage it. From the sound of it, she may be committing the sin of idolatry, and because of his parenting she is not at all aware this is wrong. He should remind her that the members of this group got their talent from God, and encourage her to discover her own talents and cultivate them. To paraphrase migueltojose above me, this girl would be much happier if she lived on the ground, not in her head.

How do you know she isn’t cultivating her talents? How do you know she doesn’t live "on the ground’? It’s possible to cultivate one’s talents as well as appreciate another’s. Do you think the only people who go to concerts are people lacking in education, skills or talents of their own?

Another thing being ignored is the social aspect. When going to a concert or convention one meets others with similar interests. I’ve meet people at midnight releases and a couple of times texting/emailing later.

One of the coolest things I’ve seen was a picture of a girl wearing a tutu that was mostly white but the bodice looked like the TARDIS. She was on pointe so she was a dancer not just wearing a costume. I surmised she is a dancer and a *nerd. How wonderful!

*She would have to be a serious Doctor Who nerd because that costume was very well done.

 

[BHL_20]

How do you know she isn’t cultivating her talents? How do you know she doesn’t live "on the ground’? It’s possible to cultivate one’s talents as well as appreciate another’s. Do you think the only people who go to concerts are people lacking in education, skills or talents of their own?

Sounds like not much else occupies her time:

The newscast had a little challenge to find the biggest fan, and they showed the bedrooms of some of the teens–walls completely wallpapered with One Direction photos, and huge scrapbooks full of pictures. Reminded me of my room back when Barnabas was as popular as One Direction!

And I have nothing against going to concerts, musicians are there to perform, I’m against idolizing them during one’s free time. Putting up posters of them in one’s room is not a social activity, has no real benefits, and it’s not what a person with high self-esteem does.

 

[Bruised_Reed]

I cannot believe how worked up you are getting over this. I’m not saying you’ll go to hell or anything for having a crush on a celebrity.

FYI, the Catholic Church used to prohibit reading books it considered bad for the soul, e.g. The Catcher in the Rye.

I can’t believe someone started a thread on this topic.

And the operative words in your second paragraph are “used to.”

Classically, art, theatre and literature are not there to let us escape from reality but to help us reflect on the meaning of our lives. Most “stories” have a deeper meaning to go with the entertainment they provide. Any art form without one is just an adrenaline ride with no risk. Video games are just that (I don’t consider them an art form in general but they fit the adrenaline ride description perfectly), and even though they are fun, I’d consider them a waste of time in general.

As for your second point, I don’t see how science is in any way related to this. Using one’s imagination to visualise the real world or a possible invention, cannot be considered fantasy.

Um…what else is it then? Science fiction, maybe. That’s awfully close to fantasy. What do you think thing the people thought of when looking at the sky or stars and wondered how they could get there. Some people faked it and made up things that aren’t remotely correct. But how many imagined something similar to airplanes or rockets even though they couldn’t conceive how to make it work.

 

[Bruised_Reed]

Sounds like not much else occupies her time:

How would you know? Do you know her and her friends and family?

And I have nothing against going to concerts, musicians are there to perform, I’m against idolizing them during one’s free time. Putting up posters of them in one’s room is not a social activity, has no real benefits,

Putting up posters does not take vast amounts of time. When I had posters in my room I put them up and they stayed there until I didn’t want them anymore. I wasn’t putting them up and taking them down on a regular basis. And my friends and cousins were fans of the same people so it was one of the things that we bonded over. One of the things. My friend C and I might have been fans of a celebrity but she was in 4-H but I was in skating with T and we were fans of someone else.

and it’s not what a person with high self-esteem does.

That’s your opinion. You won’t find anything to support that claim unless the example is pathological.

 

[Cat]

I didn’t say they were “dumb”. I said the thread was dumb. I have daughters and sisters too. Maybe it was not very nice of me to say it that way. Maybe silly and immature would’ve been more appropriate.

Did you see the One Direction skit on SNL when Paul Rudd was the “over the top” fan. Now that was funny.

Oh, yes, I agree. That skit was hilarious!

 

[Cat]

Sounds like not much else occupies her time:

I agree with Bruised Reed that you’re making an assumption based only on my description of one photograph that I saw on a TV newscast. For that matter, I’m making an assumption, too, by assuming that the father and daughter get along well. It’s certainly possible that the father and daughter hate each other, and that the shirts were made by one or other of them or perhaps by another relative (mom?) in a desperate attempt to try to find some common ground. Or maybe they created the shirts for a Halloween party and they actually can’t stand One Direction.

But you do realize that both of us are merely fantasizing about their lives. What a waste of our time!

And I have nothing against going to concerts, musicians are there to perform, I’m against idolizing them during one’s free time. Putting up posters of them in one’s room is not a social activity, has no real benefits, and it’s not what a person with high self-esteem does.

I have to disagree with that. I have a very healthy self-esteem and other than that awful year in 5th grade that I described above, I have always been happy with how God made me and with the life that I have been blessed to live so far.

We hang up pictures of people to be reminded of people that we love and admire, and that has great benefits–it makes us happy and reminds of to think outside of our own little world and worries. And yes, for teenagers, this type of decorating will have benefits in their social life; often teenaged girls will hang out together in their bedrooms and talk about the “stars” that they all have crushes on. (Ah, memories! I did plenty of this with other Dark Shadows fans.)

Many people hang a portrait or photo of the current pope in their home. Many people in the U.S. hang a photo of the current president, or a past president they admire in their home. Many Catholics display images of various saints.

Some people have an interest in a historical figure like Abraham Lincoln, William Shakespeare, Martin Luther King, Eleanor Roosevelt, etc., and have images of him/her throughout their home.

For others, it’s an actor or some other performer. I’ve seen plenty of homes with lovely portraits or artistic renditions of Marilyn Monroe, John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, etc. My father-in-law has several nice portraits of John Wayne, one of his heroes, in his home.

And some people love the movies, and decorate rooms in their home with movie posters. I think this is appealing and fun.

I really don’t see a connection between low self-esteem and hanging posters, images, etc. of people that you like or admire. I think it’s more likely that the person with low self-esteem would NOT hang posters, since he/she would feel so inadequate to be in the same room (even with just a photo) of the “star.” For those people suffering from low self-esteem, having pictures of “stars” who are successful just makes them feel even worse about themselves. Also, many (but not all) people with low self-esteem are so focused on themselves and their inner suffering that they aren’t able to reach outside of themselves to get interested in and admire someone else.