A Great Misconception

I think that a good majority of people both on this site and in real life have a horrible misconception about the way things seem. This sounds a bit general, but bear with me. I've touched on this subject before in a Blog, but I've never really explained the philosophy of it in detail.

The easiest example I can offer is school. You hear so many people complaining about all the populars and all the jocks and all the sluts, and how everyone in school always follows trends set by them. Everyone is brainwashed by their popularity, and we, the minority, are the ones who can see through this. It kills me when people see school, or life, or family politics like this. In general circumstances, this is actually not the case.

We are in the majority.

Let me see if I can find a good way to explain this. I refer to an old Roman philosophy: People who are in the "higher class," so to speak, are the ones who should "technically" exemplify the way we should live our lives. However, that never really worked out before, and it definitely doesn't translate well with today's culture, word for word. But reading between the lines, it does apply to today. Here's how that previous statement translates into today's environment instead of B.C times.

We see television shows and so many of us wish we could be like that model family in Full House. Hell, I have. We see shows like Extra and Access Hollywood and wish that we could live like the people who are living the good life, all the actors and musicians who might as well be bathing in cash. So many people today look up to them. They're in the "higher class," and we want to model them so we can find success. That's why so many actors who choose to live their lives publicly are followed by the media so intently - people want to see how they live every aspect of their lives so we can see what it's like on the "good side."

I find this applies to school, jobs, pretty much every aspect of life. You've got people who are higher in the social ladder, so to speak, and we DO wonder what it's like over there. And popular people aren't bad. The word "popular" is something of a taboo on GSB. I'm friends with some popular people. They have a certain grace about their status that makes them as average as you and me. There's just that select few of people who live in that famed Circle of Popularity and rarely venture outside who set all the trends and all the unspoken rules of society. That "select few" - the minority out of the population.

Remember when I was talking about actors earlier? This further proves my point. You have SO MANY people who are trying to figure out every detail of their famous lives, but think for a minute. In actuality, how many people out there are they trying to model their lives after? You've got hundreds, possibly thousands of people who look up to people like Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Angelina Jolie, and pretty much any other famous person out there. How many people are in that "Circle of Fame"? Don't even bother the comparison.

So there you go. When we talk about "all the people who are setting the trends," think next time. There's not many people who are doing the setting. You've got about 10% of the population who are in that Circle of Fame, 45% of the population who can think for themselves and make their own decisions, but are either afraid of breaking out or prefer playing it safe and follow, and 45% who couldn't give a crap and do their own thing. But putting together that 45% and 45% of people, you've still got a whopping 90% who can make their own decisions and are just like you and me. We are in the majority and it CAN BE easy to just let that tiny minority of people to keep to themselves and we won't have to worry about any of that stuff. But then you have the media, another great taboo with GSB. Television dramas could have been a good thing, but sadly most sitcomes just promote the "perfect life," which just makes us feel even more crappier about our lives and look up to that Circle of Fame even more.

So why the pessimism? I've found a ton of people who I can relate to in school. They respect my music tastes. They respect my style. They respect me. I just let people who are in that little Circle of Fame to do their own thing. I don't parade all of my beliefs around, waiting for someone to challenge me or anything, but I don't keep them secret easier. It took me a while to find these people though. And you read so many Blogs on GSB about trends and popularity, and how they ruin our lives at school, no one understands, etc. I used to think like that too. But, after my first year in high school and many experienced years before, here's what I've got to say: You are NOT alone. There are people who can accept you for who you really are, you just have to look around.

I think we should have a Philosophy Category. I make a few Blogs about my own philosophies about the world and life, all that, and I have nowhere to put them. Where should I put them?