In this brave new world in which we live, one of the crazy things that we’re all getting hooked on, to a greater or lesser degree of course, is called reality television.

I have to admit this concerns me.

A lot.

Something about this type of programming seems to me to be intrinsically negative.

Evil, dare I say?

The purpose of much of this stuff seems to be to make someone look ridiculous, feel humiliated.

Exposed.

Outed.

People are having these horrible public life altering experiences, and it’s all merely to feed the public’s apparently insatiable hunger to view others deal with situations that could best be described as rife with duress.

It’s hard to pinpoint when this plague began.

Could it have been in the 1970s when we had our nightly dose of the all-too-real and up close coverage of the Vietnam war?

Not to mention Watergate?

Regardless of its genesis, there has been a steady evolution of this genre.

The result is the culmination of crap that floods our airwaves today.

Afternoon talk shows such as Jerry Springer or Jenny Jones specialize in using sex and violence to keep their audiences tuned into the saddest parade of humanity you’re likely to find.

Do we watch this junk just to be assured that no matter how bad our lives get there is always some poor schlep out there in a worse situation?

Could that be the reason?

You can watch happy, young attractive couples have their relationships destroyed and their partners humiliated.

On a variety of shows you can catch the weekly ousting of one cast member by another or others.

The more painful the ousting the better the show.

You’d think from watching these shows that producers are convinced tears and retaliation make for good television?

That’s what you’d think anyway.

I feel that watching this stuff is a bit like buying stolen goods. Cheap but dirty.

You’re supporting the S.O.B.s that get rich off of other’s misery.

But enough of my preaching, you can always change the channel.

Or can you?

After all it’s the NHL playoffs, a few goals, a good fight, a Canadian team left standing at the end.

Now that’s reality television.