The following letter was written by an associate of mine in the anti-noise movement. I am posting it because I unequivocally share the thoughts expressed in the article. Based on personal experiences, I have come to the conclusion that what is expressed in the following article is a part of what contributes to the declining of the day to day peace and quality of life in neighborhoods across the country.
The promotion by “The Merchants Of Cool” of noise and loud behavior, disrespect and regard for the law and rules, and the disrespect for other’s right to peace–has been for a long time, unprecedented by any previous generation–and with no end in sight. Please read the following and share your thoughts if you can see the problems in promoting bad behavior as ‘cool.”
I am likely going to share personal and deeper thoughts about this issue in another post, but this was so compelling, I had to post the article below right away. Thank you Mike Smith of Pulaski, Virginia. To my understanding, you have endured more noise assault in your neighborhood than should ever be humanly expected to be tolerated.
Glamorizing Disaster – Today’s Hip-Hop Culture
By: Michael W. Smith, January 11, 2009
The past couple of decades have been witness to the making of a new culture amongst young people – known as the Hip-Hop Culture. Never before have young people from every walk of life been as easily influenced as they have been during this time. Every generation since the beginning of human kind has had their own identity and popular culture – known as right of passage.
Today’s youth, and that of the past couple of decades, suffers from social ills like no other generation has in the past. Young people today have been raised by TV shows, violent video games, computers/internet and Gangsta RAP music compounded by absent parental guidance. Peer pressure amongst young people today has taken on a whole new meaning as it has formed the very character of our youth – not to mention their legacy.
Peer Pressure has given over to the “Cool Phenomenon” thus once deemed cool the youth adopts that way of life regardless its social characteristics. Regrettably such cool trends center on loud music, defiance, aggression, violence, sex, drugs, disrespect, rudeness, and dumbing down intellectually. Culture Spies infiltrated the youth underground and determined these cool trends only to market them back to the youth regardless the negative social impacts on society. Corporate America has become “Merchants of Cool”.
Corporate America has realized that use of “cool” marketing concepts reaches the easily influenced youth today. Thus Corporate America has stooped to the lowest possible social level in promoting everything from cars to hamburgers as being cool. Knowing that the word cool is a cash-cow, Corporate America is now influencing young people as early as 2-3 years of age as they plant that seed glamorizing “cool”.
Now the matured Hip-Hop Culture rips at the very fabric of our society as they inflict our neighborhoods, city streets, and even department stores with loud anti-social behavior. Our streets and neighborhoods have become loud and violent all across America and the innocent suffers silently in their homes. Most police departments across the country suffer from budgetary restraints and out-of-date laws as they yield to this activity.
America has been reduced to the lowest negative social norms in history and suffers form ills like “the broken-window syndrome” that has degraded quality of life for everyone. The broken-window syndrome was brought on by out-of-control youth as they glamorize the Hip-Hop Culture with no end in sight.
Many have approached solutions to the ill affects of the Hip-Hop Culture only to be accused of making a racial statement. But the truth is that the Hip-Hop Culture in America has nothing to do with race whatsoever – thus playing the race card is inappropriate. Blacks fathered RAP music that the Hip-Hop Culture embraced as the main genre of music but now more White Rappers are joining the ranks of those so-called artists of mayhem. Main Street America suffers from the loud anti-social behavior of this culture without discrimination and regardless the ethnic recipe.
The fact remains in any society that our youth is our future. The Hip-Hop Culture is refused by the majority today so how will it be accepted as our future? America is doomed unless new laws are enforced and this anti-social trend reversed. Corporate America needs to be held accountable for their promotions and marketing strategies.
To Glamorize Hip-Hop is to Glamorize Disaster on a grand scale.
Posted by Angry Man In The Basement at 12:24 PM