10 Annoying Things

There are probably a thousand things in the world that I find annoying. Well, maybe more than annoying. For that matter more than a thousand, but here are 10 in no particular order.

(1)Political ideology. Political ideology qua political ideology doesn't annoy me. What's annoying are people who believe a particular political ideology contains all the cures to society's maladies. Nonsense.

(2) Religious discussions. Both the religious and atheists are equally annoying. The religious presume the moral high ground, with atheists presuming the intellectual high ground. By presume I mean assuming to be true without any supporting evidence. Not only that, but I find the question of whether or not God exists wanting for practical meaning. You may as well ask how much yesterday weighs. More importantly, a personal belief system is just that, personal. Shhhh.

(3)Celebrity magazines. It's jarring that a market exists for this type of magazine. It demonstrates two things. First, regardless of age, some never mature. Second, a significant number of people wallow in quiet desperation.

(4) The current level of discourse. I'm not asking for much. I'm just asking that, should you send me an email or some other missive, it be apparent you know the difference between "your" and "you're."

(5) Homogeneity. Sameness is boring. Boring is annoying.

(6) Media as social narrative. From a psychological standpoint, I understand the need to give our environment order, and the necessarily attending framework with which to create that order. That framework just shouldn't consist of talking points, sound bytes, Newspeak, and Ted Baxter. Instead, how about reading a book written by some social commentators. Cornel West, Howard Zinn,Robert Nozick, and Noam Chomsky come to mind. Whether or not you agree with their ideas, you can be sure "vapid" won't apply.

(7) Using the word "existentialism." It's overused and rarely understood.

(8) Starbucks. Their business plan is unconscionable.

(9) Wal-Mart. See above.

(10)Using the word "postmodernism." See number seven.