Saturday, August 05, 2006

Doctor, doctor, Mr. MD, can't you see what's ailing me?

I can't believe Doctor Phil has his own television show. I can't believe companies pay money for ad space during that inane hour, and I can't believe people actually watch. Yet all those things are true, and I am left baffled. What is it exactly that people see in that bloated sack of insipid pontification? Do they like that he "confronts" people? Is it simply the "suck it up, loser" tone? Or is he, for some, a figure of genuine insight?

It is the easiest thing in the world to tell others what they should do. This is because most tough decisions are really quite easy, objectively speaking. When weighing the alternatives and the costs, recognizing the proper choice is often a small matter. If you don't have the pay consequences yourself, it is easy to tell someone else what they should do. And this speaks to the heart of the matter. It isn't figuring out which choice is the right one that's tough, it's sticking to your guns and paying the price.

That's my problem with people who, like Dr. Phil, become rich celebrities by peddling easy answers. It's a simple matter to tell someone else to suck it up and get off the couch, but actually doing it is much harder (judging by his own physique, the good doctor has some experience in this).

6 comments:

Bethany said...

I have no problem with what doc phil does in theory... it is what you pointed out that irritates me: that he has become a rich celebrity doing this. I have no qualms with his profession; sure, sometimes saying the right thing can be very easy -- there is still value in it though, to the person who benefits from hearing it.

RE Your Comment on My Blog: That was a fictionalized account of a real interview I had that day. So the first names were real (well except Julia Stiles... I never found out what her name really was so I called her by her celebrity look-alike name).

Gurn said...

Alas, the powers that be won't show anymore Dr. Phil over here because we're "not ready for it". I think it's because he's got a qualification in something - our Trisha version wasn't qualified as anything.. well.. maybe holding a microphone and wandering about an audience.

Dr. Phil takes on Judge Judy - now THAT would be a tv show!

ateegoy said...

I can't stand him either. He just annoys the crap out of me. Most americans seems to love-HEAPS! ;p

Sky said...

You know who else is really annoying? Dr. Phil's son. I'm not even sure what he does, but he seems to have garnered some fame by riding on his dad's coat tail.

Molly said...

I have never understood the draw of Dr. Phil either. But hey more power to him if you can find a schtick that people are willing to buy, good for you!

Matt Kanninen said...

I'm jealous of Dr Phil. I would love someone to pay me to just talk to people. Sounds so much better then real work, like coding.