The Thing About Scholars Is...

Maybe it's only natural to find new ways to critique something rather than new ways of appreciating it once it's been a part of your life for long enough. I'm referring, of course, to the Mass Communications major I had chosen it originally because it allowed me to study visual media and still come out with a more flexible degree than one in film. Bitching about its impracticality is nothing new; what liberal arts field isn't? Still, while we're learning the basis of how public opinion operates, there must be a less cynical approach available.

Never mind that repulsive "symbolic violence" argument that pretty much condoned property destruction as long as it's getting people's attention for the marginalized. Across all of the core courses, there's this mile-wide anti-capitalist streak, bemoaning "corporate oligarchies" that sap our modern media of true democracy and creativity.

Where does scholarly capitalism come from? Sure, a sense of social justice and other idealized beliefs might play a role. But one would venture to guess that of course they would criticize into the ground a system that doesn't work in their favor.

Let's face it: lengthy celebrations of anarchic anti-WTO protesters don't sell. Verbose dress-downs of 1950s pop music doesn't sell. 40-page studies on how this or that demographic is ignored doesn't sell. (well, maybe if it helped market to those poor, marginalized folks.) Ideas sell when they are of use to someone; if they aren't, find a way to make it so they are. So rather than using all that analytical and creative energy to come up with something that does sell, scholar-types perpetuate this narrow mindset by continuing to churn out works that inflate flaws into monstrous injustices.

Get it through your heads, people: socialism doesn't work. At least, without sacrificing to some degree certain freedoms and privileges that have become intrinsic to what we believe this country to be about. Critiques against the inalterable are useful to keep our egos in check, sure. Beyond that, though, what value do they have?

It's time that universities, even public research institutions like this one, put a little usefulness back into their curriculum. Those of us who don't want to be thirtysomething career students would love to be released into the professional world with more than just a head full of Neo-Marxist tracts.