Kids these days, with their loud music and their scandalous outifts...

Last night (Sunday) was the Grammy awards, and I watched the majority of the telecast. The live performances were not consistently great, but pretty good in most cases. The decisions about awards, at least the ones shown on TV were odd, to say the least (for example, Lady Antebellum won what seemed like 138 Grammies for a mediocre song they put out about a year and a half ago). What captured my attention most, though, were all the crazy things performers did to capture people’s attention. From Lady Gaga’s horrible pointy shoulders to the multitudes women with hairstyles that required an impressive amount of neck strength to support, it seemed like everyone was trying too hard to be noticed. I’m all for freedom of expression, but it seems as if people are resorting to greater and greater lengths to stand out, even though they are already quite famous. This speaks to the nature of celebrity in the world today, and what is required, or what people think is required, nowadays to realize the classic “American dream”.

Nowadays, it seems as if stardom doesn’t come to those who are the most talented, attractive or intelligent. Instead, it comes to those who are the best at garnering attention. The time was when a band didn’t need outrageous outfits or flashy gimmicks to get noticed. The Beatles, arguably the best and most famous group in history, performed in suits and ties. The biggest celebrities then were talented movie stars, musicians, and athletes. Now, Lady Gaga is inexplicably climbing in and out of eggs and Cee-Lo Green is dressing up like the Froot Loops parrot. There’s nothing wrong with this per se, but it seems to me like they’re trying too hard to stir up public interest, when it shouldn’t really be necessary. Case in point: Arcade Fire’s performance near the end of the telecast featured blinding strobe lights that probably caused dozens of seizures in the audience, and also several random people riding around on bicycles. It’s as if they forgot that they would be performing onstage, and that everyone in the audience would already be looking at them. I’m ambivalent on the band and its music, but I came away from the Grammies hating them, just because the show was so ridiculously overproduced.

I don’t mean this post to be too old-geezer-esque, and I don’t mean to be overly nostalgic about the past (though looking over it, it seems to be both these things). I realize that Elton John dressed just as flamboyantly as most modern stars, and that Zsa-Zsa Gabor was probably no more deserving of fame (to the extent that anyone can be objectively judged in that manner) than Kim Kardashian. Still, the trend of people doing more and more outlandish things just to get noticed speaks to a decay, however small, in our culture and it might be nice if people could get attention simply for being good at whatever it is they do.

Shots Heard 'Round the Nation

Lately, the news has been dominated by the continuing protests in Egypt, and rightfully so. That the Egyptian people are rising up to reject quasi-dictator Hosni Mubarak is both exciting and inspiring. However, there has been another development in the Muslim world that has gotten very little coverage and that, while not as globally important, is perhaps almost as interesting.

For my history class, I’ve been closely monitoring Pakistani news, and this news often involves the United States. Last week, a U.S. official identified as Raymond Davis was arrested in the murder of two Pakistani men. A full summary of the story can be found here.

As many of the circumstances surrounding the murder are unknown, it’s hard to avoid speculation. It’s clear, though, that nationalism is playing a big role in how this crime is viewed. The U.S. government was quick to defend Davis, saying that he acted in self-defense and that he was being robbed by the two men that he shot. Pakistan, on the other hand, insists that the two men were completely innocent and that Davis is a murderer. These diametrically opposed perceptions of the same man are intriguing, especially considering that this entire case is steeped in mystery, and that no one really knows who Raymond Davis is exactly. I’m kind of curious as to why a consular official would need to walk around the streets of Pakistan packing heat, but I feel unqualified to render any further judgment on this man. It seems as though the average Pakistani has the same amount of facts as I do, but they have made up their minds to the point that there are daily protests calling for his hanging.

It’s hard to believe that nationalism can drive people to such extreme measures, but that’s really the only explanation for what’s happening in this situation. Davis is seen as a symbol of the U.S.; if he is acquitted, Pakistan’s subservience to America will be on display for the world to see. On the flip side, Americans see this man as a symbol of their government as well. Therefore, he must not be guilty; surely he had good reason to shoot and kill those two men, just as the U.S. government has good reason to launch unmanned drone attacks on Pakistani citizens.

No matter what the verdict, this trial will be huge news in Pakistan, and possibly on the global stage as well. I know that I will be following it closely. The trial will most likely say just as much about the balance of power between America and Pakistan as it does about Davis’s innocence or guilt.