not surprised

  Things I hear in the news that surprise me when they shouldn't. Some baseball player is signing a 700 million dollar contract. Just goes to show where folks are willing to put their money. Sports and entertainment. And yes, it is the general public driving all of that, they are the ones buying the tickets. I read were Taylor Swift sold over a billion dollars' worth of tickets. Her fans are paying a hefty price. Same people I suspect paying seven or eight dollars for a cup of coffee. But whatever the market will bear it what is going to be charged, it's as simple as that. Those same people will complain vehemently about the cost of healthcare, a steak, or rent prices. All of that is outrageous! Three hundred to watch a ball game, no problem. Fifty or sixty thousand for an automobile not an issue, finance that for six years. 

  I shouldn't be surprised by any of that. People have always been willing to pay for entertainment regardless of their wealth or lack thereof. Always money for vice, always. We tend to focus more on the things we want more than things we need. That's a bit of irony in life that goes overlooked a great deal. Today we have "professionals" insisting that entertainment should be provided to everyone. Entertainment is an entitlement. It is the distraction that we seek. I believe that has come about as our occupations do not keep us entertained in ways that it used to. Most skilled workers in the trades enjoy their jobs. They take pride in their ability and their workmanship. It takes years to develop those skills. More modern occupations do not have that attraction, their attraction is a bigger salary. Thing is that salary will never fill that void, that's why they spend so much on entertainment.

  Now we are seeing a rise in artificial intelligence to do tasks. Robots are making inroads; automation has been on the rise since the days of Henry Ford. "Workers" that work 24/7 for no pay at all just occasional maintenance. They never get tired, never complain, and do the same task millions of times in exactly the same manner. The more time is freed up, the more entertainment becomes essential. The problem becomes how to pay for that entertainment. The entertainers keep charging more and more, can't blame them for that, and the public keeps on paying the price. That isn't going to change. It's like all the boycotts you hear about, how effective are they really? People will not deny themselves entertainment. And the fact is, we are all like that. It's just a part of our makeup, always has been. Shouldn't be a bit surprised by that but sometimes I am. A carton of cigarettes in Maryland is about $120.00. There are ten packs in a carton, twenty cigarettes per pack. The cost is about 60 cents per cigarette! And who is still smoking them? It isn't those living in a penthouse on fifth avenue that much is sure. No job, no money, no home but they have cigarettes and street drugs. Entertainment. I'm not surprised.