Standards | Mine or What You Say?

It seems like everyone is finally getting on the train about not apologizing for living their lives in the way they do. You may remember that a couple weeks back I was blogging about how I liked something that Crazy Charlie had said about his epic fall from grace.

I just read this little article in the free local newspaper about rocker Nikki Sixx and his new book that he has coming out. As I was a bit of a Motley Crue fan back in the day, I was interested in what he had to say. Not to mention the attraction of what looked like another celebrity train-wreck exposé!

Turns out the book is a collection of his photography, but using models and people that are on the fringe of society. He says that he prefers to look past the “norm” in the world around him. “I’ve always had an eye for the oddities in life. Even as a kid I saw the world in my own way and thought most things that were different were beautiful and magical. Even things that other people thought were horrifying and disgusting and weird … People say I have a distorted lens. I think I see things as they really are.”

Setting 'Standards'

In explaining the logic behind it he says: “One of the problems of our society is basing who we are on standards set by somebody else.” He went on further to trash things like People magazine’s 100 Most Beautiful by questioning why those standards should be set by someone surfing celebrity photographs.

"Somebody that sits behind a desk comes up with an idea of what is the standard (is what) we deem correct. I've been using People magazine as a barometer with the '100 most beautiful people' issue. I really don't think that it's very good to have that dumped into our teenagers brains and systems – 'You have to be this.' Wouldn't it be interesting to base it on what you've done? Then I would think, 'This is a beautiful list.'”

Of course, Nikki isn’t exactly a candidate for the ‘beautiful’ list by People’s standards – as he admits – but I loved how he trounced the idea that society’s standards are being set by a collection of people not really qualified to tell us how to live our lives.

"What I'm going through … we’re going through … trying to become better people, trying to elevate ourselves, and sort of looking around at the world and going, 'F---, what is happening?' With all this reality TV s--- (and) People magazine, Us magazine, Star. It's like, 'What is happening?' I'm watching kids living in a little box this big all the time, not even communicating. A sexual relationship starts with text messaging. We're missing human contact. And I don't know where it's going."

Can't Open Our Minds

I was blogging yesterday about how our society is reaching a point where the only thing that scares the hell out of people is sex. In my parents and grandparents generations going to war was so horrific that countries implemented the draft. Now we have technology that rivals my kids’ computer games, but the killing is real and the people doing it have the ability to complete the task and eat dinner at home the same night.

We have come to accept this level of conflict, but say the word “condom” and people practically run screaming from the room.

Not that would ever endorse any kind of violence, but I find the transition of how we have moved to accept certain elements in life as happenstance – especially things with much more dire consequences – yet that we can’t open our minds and acceptance to something more natural and healthy, frustrating.

But unlike Charlie Sheen just saying, “don’t apologize,” Nikki is pointing out that there is a problem with how our world exists. From those creating these standards, to those of us who unquestioningly follow along, there is a serious lack of individualism and human contact. We’re all supposed to tow the line and follow along like lemmings. It’s “this is the way it because we say so – don’t ask questions” mentality that is clinging on desperately.

I’m even seeing how difficult it is for my own children to establish their own personalities in a culture where every 12-year-old boy wants to be Justin Bieber and date Selena Gomez (They may not admit it, but they do). I guess we weren’t that different ourselves, as each generation has its pop culture icons. Maybe it is me getting older and bolder; reaching a point where what other people think matters less to me than it once did.

Is this where I start to turn into my parents?

Geez, I’m ranting this week … someone ask me a sex question quick!

Andee     xoxo