Joe, Kanye, and Serena: It's The Economy, Stupid!

Our media are making much of the recent "trio" of rude outbursts from three very different people in disparate professions:  U.S. Representative Joe Wilson, entertainer Kanye West, and tennis player Serena Williams.   I don't think these three cases by themselves are particularly significant.  In fact, I'm sure there were probably more than three very public breaches of decorum around the country last week that might be included if we were doing a survey.

And the fact is, celebrity doesn't make these people important.  Joe is a minor Congressman who achieved his 15 seconds of fame by his outburst; Serena (not living up to her name) is a tennis star on her way out, getting beaten regularly by younger players these days; Kanye is a popular entertainer, but not a great talent who's contributed anything original to the world of music, or ever will (and come to think of it, that also applies to the other players in his little drama, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift).  People who mistakenly believe their own self-constructed legends of entitlement don't concern me much; they're always that way.

So enough of them, except for the general observation that a public display of boorishness, in my book, calls for a public apology or recantation.  Serena did that (though making clear with her Dubya-Bush smirk that she didn't really mean it); I don't really know if Kanye did; and Joe has made a point of saying he won't.  So there's work to be done still.

But there can't be much doubt that there's a lot of rude 'tude afoot in the land these days.  Looking beyond celebrities, we see nonentities getting involved in shouting matches at Congressional town hall meetings, hysteria over minor political developments, people fighting over parking spaces, telephone "customer reps" being snippy, and whatnot.  Media attempts to "explain" this trend really haven't come up with an answer. 

Here it is:  It's the economy, stupid.  What should we expect when every day there are headlines like this one?  No, uncivil behavior isn't going to disappear when the Dow is back to 13,000; and George Will is right about the issue of entitlement; but at this point, I have little doubt that the stresses and strains of job loss, reduced income, concern about nest eggs, and the plain old inability to afford things that might be comforting are the factors that are influencing a lot of ordinary, normally civil, people to be short-tempered.  They'll be more at ease, and less on edge, when the economic sun is shining on them again.  A rising tide not only lifts all boats, it also lifts all moods.

Comments

[Joseph Lott]

I actually would welcome an uncivil outburst from a Republican leader telling the Rush Limbaughs and Glen Becks to sit down and shut up because their kind of right wing nuttery does not represent the real Republican leadership. Alas, none of the leaders are brave enough to face what will happen if they challenge one of these non-elected spokespeople.