BrainBlitz.org

Simon and Paula. The evening news. The office talk around the water cooler. The family gossip over the dinner table.

When you step back and observe – it’s amazing how our brains thrive on negativity. I find myself doing it – sometimes in subtle ways, sometimes in very blatant ways. When I’m reading movie reviews, I am completely uninterested in the “A” and “B” reviews. No, I go for the D’s and F’s. Why? I don’t know. For some reason, it’s much more “exciting” to read the harsh, scathing reviews. Some days, here at work, I find myself wanting confrontation. If there’s a chance of confrontation because someone is being a jerk, I’m perfectly willing – hoping – they push the right button so I’ll have an excuse for an unpleasant blow-up.

Why? Why are people like that? Is it culture? Is it universal?

I’ve been sitting here listening to an employee conversation from my office, that has continued for about 20 minutes now (boss is on vacation). The topics have spanned everything from the way the business is run to the owner’s relative’s personal lives; the latest irritating client to… you name it. It has turned into a festering whine session.

If I wasn’t here today, I have no doubt I’d be fair game for the conversation. EVERYone is fair game BY everyone… nearly everyone anyway. There is only one fellow here does not regularily take part in these conversations, and often actually steers the conversation away from negativity.

I want to be like him when I grow up.

Negativity acomplishes absolutely nothing.

There’s this little oddball topic that bothers me occasionally. Occasionally as in… hmmmm, every other Friday night on average, around 8:00 pm or so.

I was reminded of this topic tonight when I saw this news article on Disney banning smoking in movies. Usually, the only time I remember the topic at all is on Friday night…

See, by 8:00 pm or so, we are usually into the meat of our Friday Night Movie. We’ve finished our pizza and hotwings and soda, gotten a feel for the plot, gotten to know the characters – etc. We’ve put the kiddo in bed, snuggled up a bit, and settled in for the duration of the movie.

ANYway, I will hold you in suspense no longer. What is the little oddball topic?

To smoke in a movie is akin to … gosh, I dunno, something really bad. It’s a no-no. Cigarettes are deadly, right? What are we teaching the viewers? KIDS MIGHT BE WATCHING, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

So, they do away with the cigarettes and all is good. Everyone is happy. So happy that we celebrate over a nice glass of scotch. Or maybe a nice beafeater gin. That’s a weird name, but apparently as gins go, it’s good stuff. Or maybe a 6-pack good ole’ beer. Or a martini? Vodka on the rocks? I don’t even know what that means, but I’m pretty sure that’s what heros like. Movie heros, that is.

Ok, seriously now – literally two of every three movies we watch have hard liquor. Not R-rated movies, mind you; for the most part, we maintain PG-13 and below. Every movie with a slightly depressed person – where are they at night? The bar of course. Every tough guy who’s lost a wife or had some trial – the bar. Every business partner – meeting some bigwig? Well of COURSE he’s going to pour you somethin’… something clear, preferably. It’s classier if it’s clear.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I’m not yelling (in THIS post) at anyone for writing alcohol consumption into movies. Maybe they need to be yelled at – that’s not what this post is about. What DOES intrigue me is how culture and media latched onto smoking as such a critical issue, while other glaring issues flourish, unabated. Alcohol is only one, and it’s the one I’m talking about simply because it’s directly comparable to smoking.

I’m no scientist, but it seems to me alcohol is at LEAST as dangerous as smoking. Yes, smoking tends to kill a person. What effect does unrestrained alcohol consumption have? It doesn’t always kill the person. No. It just kills the person sometimes, tears the family apart, shrinks the brain, harms fetuses, occasionally kills the driver of the other car, etc.

Ok, RANT OVER!