People have been glued to their TVs this week watching all the news coverage about the birth of a new British royal. I wasn’t one of them, because frankly I couldn’t care less. I have camping to do, and then a business trip to prepare for.
At the same time, I can’t understand why so many people were complaining on the social networks about those who were hooked on the baby watch.
Mood music:
The common complaints went something like this:
- We’re Americans. Our ancestors fought for independence from Britain so we wouldn’t have to care about this shit anymore.
- A lot of serious, newsworthy events took place this week, including a huge prison break in Iraq in which some of the most bloodthirsty terrorists on Earth escaped.
- There’s too much to do in an average day to be distracted by something so trivial.
Fair enough. But shouldn’t we save our indignation for bigger fish? The thing is, there is a lot of seriousness going on out there. We continue to exist in an economy that’s anything but healthy. Violence among the youth is as bad as it’s ever been. Politicians keep letting us down. People keep getting cancer.
If a day or two of distraction over the British royalty helps people forget about all these troubles for a few hours, what’s wrong with that?
The birth of a baby is always a happy event in my book. And it’s fun to watch it happen when the parents are super-famous. In this case, the parents and baby live in a palace. That’s fun to watch, right? People love castles and enjoy stories about kings and queens. And they are doing no harm to those of us who don’t care quite so much.
If a royal baby watch makes you happy for a little while, I say have at it. All your troubles will still be there when you’re done, and maybe the spectacle will be enough of a breather to help you deal with what comes next.
To everyone else, get over it.
