It's reality, dawg!

Even as someone who is so staunchly against capital punishment, I really love the spectacle of public execution that is "American Idol."\n"American Idol" isn't just a competition; rather, it is the purest form of reality television -- because it is honest. It dishes out brutal truth in black-and -white terms as millions of dreamers are swiftly whittled down to a handful of finalists who are reduced to just one winner. \nBut even then, how great is it to be the next "American Idol?" I mean, seriously, it's only been two years and Kelly Clarkson's name is already in the same bin with Pogs.\nAnd will someone please tell Ruben Studdard years don't have feelings?\nFor every person with the talent and drive to become something great, there are 500 others who need to focus on their day jobs. I applaud "Idol" judge Simon Cowell for his overindulged, brash condescension and honesty. People love to cut him down, calling his British uppity shtick a gimmick, but they need to remember the same person who told Cowell to be a bastard also told Paula Abdul to treat the competitors like children and told Randy Jackson to say "dawg" so much I want to throw my damn TV out on my lawn. Instead of sugar-coating, Cowell delivers a sting that is not just good for the fun of reality television, but for the good of reality itself.\nWhile we regale someone like pro basketball player Lebron James with praise, we're neglecting the mathematical truth -- almost no one can do what he's done. There are kids watching him right now who aren't just dreaming of skipping college to play pro basketball, they're counting on it. It's all they've got. The odds, consequences and risks are never mentioned amidst the clouds of contracts and endorsements. If you don't believe me, go rent "Hoop Dreams." It does for pro basketball what "Requiem For a Dream" did for drugs. \nIn that regard, I wish there were more shows like "American Idol." We'd have "American Actor," which could finally get rid of all those people who think good acting is achieved through unnecessary European accents, goofy facial expressions and disgustingly perfect enunciation. Someone could pitch "American Filmmaker," where we would give an New York University film student a fun reality check by destroying his 35-minute "art" film that shows someone washing his or her hands as a symbolic representation of sexism. Or how about "American College Band," which tells dudes who sing in that Dave Matthews/Eddie Vedder hybrid voice to be content with their job at Guitar Center.\nThe American ideal of pursuing our dreams is consistently prevalent in all aspects of our culture, yet we've gotten into this habit of teaching our kids that achieving your highest goal is always possible.\nThe tragedy is, it isn't.\n Drive, talent and ambition aren't enough anymore. It takes connections, education, money and resources. So when something like "American Idol" comes along as an expressway to fame, everyone wants in. Yet it's just as unforgiving as the real world, sometimes even more so, as it does it all on a public scale.\n So let Simon Cowell crush the dreams of the dreamers -- if not just to weed out the terrible, but to strengthen the strong. There will be one winner, but we all know how long he or she will last. Among the remains of people doing terrible acapellas of "In the Still of The Night," there might be someone developing some healthy scar tissue, taking the snide advice of Cowell to heart while hopefully remembering the poetic wisdom offered up by some old wise men …\n"You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you'll get what you need"