A little reality in "reality" television

I have stated several times that I rarely watch television, because most of what I see is either mind-numbing nonsense, or techno-babble where the human element is next to zero. Now, no one would ever accuse Kim Kardashian of engaging in the latter, but certainly the former circumstance. Nevertheless, while the current episodes her ridiculous “reality” show (not that I’ve seen them, but I’ve read about them and watched a few clips) are doing exactly the opposite of what she hoped that they would do (rather showing her as the psycho partner in her very brief marriage to basketballer Kris Humphries), we are learning a lot more than what happens when dim-wittedness and idle richness coalesce. Humphries is obviously no uneducated lump, even if he is “clumsy”—like breaking poor Kim’s million dollar toenail or being “responsible” for Kardashian losing a $75,000 earring in the ocean. On the other hand, as someone on Young Turks pointed out, it was rather odd (let alone conceited) that Kardashian would be wearing a diamond earring in a watery endeavor--especially when the most prominent feature on this so-called “celebrity” is her (artificially enhanced?) boobies; in this regard it is useful to remember that she first gained "notoriety" from the release of a sex tape. Humphries is clearly more “adult” than the pampered, spoiled brat Kardashian, who apparently has the emotional maturity of an eight-year-old.

But what has some viewers fascinated was that after the toenail episode, Kardashian took a swing at Humphries. And not just any swing; it was the distinct impression of most commentators that the wild-eyed Kardashian was actually trying to inflict as much pain as she could muster—over a frigging toenail! Some are calling this an act of domestic violence, and that gender and relative size difference doesn’t matter; domestic violence is not the one-way street it has been portrayed by the activists and advocates. Of course, I’ve suggested that before, but it is nice to receive support in that conclusion. Kardashian’s bizarre reactions and actions in front of the camera demonstrated that she has no self-control and is self-obsessed; how might we expect her to act when the cameras are off? If anyone was “saved” from this marriage, it was Humphries. It also tells us that if “reality” television has any useful purpose beyond exposing the pointless existences of the participants, it is that rather than “celebrate” these made-up “celebrities” exploiting easily exploitable viewers, people who actually waste their time watching this stuff can learn something from their embarrassing antics, and avoid them as “role models.”