"Sister Wives" And The Reality Of Reality T.V.

~Look out channel surfers, it seems every channel on television has their own fill of reality T.V. shows. Everything from surviving on an island to living with mean, wretched people, producers will do almost anything to get you to tune in and get hooked. Let's face it, the world of television has changed since the days of carefully scripted shows like "Little House On The Prairie" and the industry has become soaked in sexually explicit, reality T.V. and yet most of the time the show that is "reality" is anything but real...Did you know that many of these shows have scripts? Of course if you didn't you were wondering. The producers call it simply setting the tone for real world life.Otherwise we would be watching hours of nose-picking, slow-witted, boring television. How many times have you watched an interview of a contestant who claimed that their "bitch" persona was carefully formed and all non-bitchy, potentially friendly conversations of a reputably mean person is edited out..."I wasn't as mean as they made me look...They only showed me when I was yelling or being a jerk" (or something to that degree...)

It really makes one wonder, if Reality TV isn't at all realistic, then why do we bother watching??

~Come on, let's face it. Those who watch Reality TV aren't looking for the sugary moments where people are getting along and brushing each other's hair. Even those who wish they knew better are attracted to the arguments, screaming that borders physical fighting. It gives our own crappy world something to compare to..."At least my life isn't that bad!" we think as we watch...

~Then there is the new show "Sister Wives". A little too realistic, this show is a "coming out" of palygymists/. In other words a man who is married to not just one woman but 3 (going on 4 soon) with 16 plus kids living in one house separated into 4 apartments.No, they are not all "legally married" I learned today but they are married in every other way we know. They claim there is no "hanky panky" between them, that the husband only has (Ahem) "time" with each woman separately and that they are just like any other married couple out here in the world......WHAT? I am a married person and I can tell you now, my hubby is ONLY married to me, Only has kids with ME (after meeting me since he does have one kid with his ex) and we do NOT share a house with 2-3 other woman for which he bunny hops around to each one on a different night of the week. 

~Watching a talk show about them today I learned a new yet not surprising fact. The state they live in (I believe its Utah but I need to look that up) wants to charge the husband and three wives with Bigamy. He will get several years they will each get 6 months. The kids, who are ages 5months old to around 17 years old will be sent off to relatives or,worse, foster care, while their parents pay the price for breaking the law. As usual it will be the kids who will and do pay the price...Will they grow up to be polygamists? Will they follow the rules and only marry one person? Who knows. Kids do what they are taught. They either go with the flow or rage against it but either way these parents are going through life being taught that their life is okay, almost as normal as normal can be (who's really normal in this world) and then one day the parents they have trusted to teach them the right way will be imprisoned for their very life style.

~Here's the deal. I don't want to put it down, I also don't wish to make an argument FOR it. I just wonder, really ask, why would people who are living in a country that is as free as possible without being uncontrollable, chose to put this way of life on television if they know that what they are doing is not only illegal but is grounds for taking their children away? No, I am not saying that they should have hid it or lied but I wouldn't go out onto a huge network TV station and let the world know what I am doing. Do I think what they are doing is awful? No, people do so very many other awful things daily without a moment's thought and have no regret or thought for any other person's life...Its not for me to decide if what they are doing is morally right or wrong. I am NOT perfect, I am not the judge and jury and not at all God. I am just a viewer who happened upon the show one Sunday night. Still, what was the intent of these 4 adults in putting their big secret out there? One of the "Sister Wives" got let go from her beloved job, the husband will most likely pay for his coming out and the kids....well, you know how hard kids can be on each other. Is it okay that people will make opinions and decisions of these people based on their personal beliefs? No, but when you put it out there on tv you are asking for judgement just as much as you are hoping for understanding.

~The world of television has gone from unrealistic half hour sitcoms where everything horrible in the first 10 minutes gets fixed, wrapped up and decorated with a big beautiful bow at the last few seconds to this....What can possibly be next? I remember many many years ago, before reality tv became reality a 60 minutes type show posing the question about how would we react to a show where they broadcast people on death row being put to death...Guess what, we see it everyday in away and I hate to say it but in the direction we seem to be going and the speed of it, that seems to be next.