1. The commercials on MTV are a problem. They’re nothing but ads for things pertaining to sex and alcohol. That’s probably not even the worst of it. The proactiv ads make me want an uglier world. People can only be confident if they have unrealistically clear skin?

Add it all up and you can see the source of a lot of craziness. Kids think growing up is nothing but sex and drugs. They have standards for physical beauty that allow them to dismiss others far too easily. Anyone serious about education has to make it clear inside and outside the classroom that school, reading on one’s own, making something of oneself are a real alternative to this shallowness. It has to be shown the shallowness goes nowhere, too: many people do trade their physical beauty for gaining experience. They want to achieve and know more than bask in their own resplendence. Many want to sacrifice on behalf of others.

I guess what I’m seeing is that “merit” can’t really replace “honor” or “nobility” in their fullest sense. Weirdly enough, sex and drug abuse can be seen as providing an alternate set of goods to those had by “having a job” and “being educated.” As long as we emphasize acquisition alone as the end of education, we’re going to run into this idiocy.

2. Adult Swim’s “stoner” shows seem to have grown-up. A lot. And they’re good. Delocated captures the spirit of Arrested Development well and has an edge to it that is most welcome: not often I see two characters killed in one episode. Children’s Hospital has its sight set on hospital drama generally, but gets its relevance from the utter preposterousness that is House. And NTSF: SD: SUV is a gem – the procedural format is thoroughly eviscerated while itself exploited. The show moves fast even for 15 minutes.

3. The conference went well. I’ve got a bunch of stories, but some of them are still playing out. The whole issue is who keeps up and what we do for each other. New Orleans was a refreshing city and I do want to go back.