Society has been enamored with television and Hollywood since the Marylyn Monroe and James Dean days.

Since the boob tube invaded our homes it has been directing society’s views and opinions.

Certainly television has given us some great shows over the years such as Cheers, X-files and Lost; however with the advent of reality television, society has begun its nose dive into degradation.

Reality television seemed like a good idea when Survivor and American Idol flooded into everyone’s homes.

Now, many years after, it seems to be goal of networks to bring us shows that celebrate the amazingly stupid and the least of mankind.

Shows such as Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, 16 and Pregnant, and Jersey Shore could be found funny if it wasn’t for the fact that society as a whole holds these moronic specimens up as idols for people to pine over.

From time to time, sophomoric annotates and slap-stick comedy certainly have a place in society to relieve tension and allow individuals to cut loose and have fun.

The problem arises when a society seeks to emulate the lowest forms of its citizens.

Parents watch Honey Boo Boo and think she is cute and encourage similar actions from their own children.

Teens watch 16 and Pregnant and think having a child in high school is cool and fashionable.

College students and young adults mimic the mind-numbing actions and flamboyant styles of these degenerates.

If society continues to hold up the least of us as something to aspire to then the movie Idiocracy could be a guidebook of our future.

In the movie an Average Joe wakes up in the future to discover that only stupid people have been breeding, the president is a wrestling champ, and there are no plants for food because they used a Gatorade substance to water them because plants like electrolytes.

In the end it may not be nuclear warfare or mega flu that kills us off, but death by society’s willingness to lower itself to the lowest common denominator.

Thomas Jefferson left us with some words of wisdom that predates reality television.

“A nation as a society forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society.”