Ep. 284 — So, You Want To Be Famous?

hello there everybody I decided I'm gonna say ladies and gentlemen and boys and girls from now on or at least when I remember to do you realize this is very sad what I'm about to say it is actually somewhat controversial to actually now say ladies and gentlemen boys and girls because it's considered to be non-inclusive of those who are neither male nor female well I won't get into that at length only to say that it is clear that you can tell people anything and a fair number will believe it if they hear something enough but the human species like the rest of the animal kingdom is male or female that's it this is not anti-anybody it is anti-lying it is anti-fuelishness it is anti-chaos my heart breaks for kids today who are told some even being raised by parents raised is not the proper word ruined by parents who tell them that they will decide what quote-unquote gender they will be anyway hi there welcome to the fireside chat I'm Dennis Prager and it is a chance to talk to you about life every week in the hope that it enriches your life so I always begin with some thoughts on something and then take your questions so here's a thought on a subject that is not discussed much at all now that I think of it it's one of the most famous words and yet nobody really analyzes it and that is famous being famous or fame famous the adjective Fame the noun on the assumption that you were actually taught the difference between an adjective and a noun at school or are being if you're at school a lot of people especially in America a lot of people want to be famous so allow me to offer you some thoughts on that issue it's a very very foolish yearning on the part of people when I have asked kids why do you want to be famous I mean really kids like Elementary School age because a lot of them want to be famous and I will then ask the killer question famous for what and they say for anything I say like most hamburgers eaten yep most hamburgers eaten well look Tick Tock is filled with most hamburgers eaten whatever it might be obviously it's not about hamburgers but I'm using that as a metaphor and let me tell you because I have a certain degree of Fame that it is extremely foolish and ambition I'll give you a few reasons first of all it is not in and of itself at all fulfilling it it doesn't it doesn't really mean anything I have a great phrase and that is the significant or rarely famous and the famous are rarely significant when you think about it and I won't name names because I I don't like to insult people even if I don't have a high regard for them but we all know names of people who are quote famous for being famous what did they actually do they got famous and they're of course in big on social media and so on well I'll give you I'll give you one example and this is because it's not knocking her I feel free to to comment on her Britney Spears Britney Spears is very famous is that fair to say oh okay good no no I wanted to make sure okay Britney Spears I think anyone who follows her and I I somewhat follow pop culture because I want to know what's going on I don't know uh her her uh music but I I do know about her somewhat and it's not controversial to say she's not a happy person it is so therefore I think it's completely fair to say being one of the most famous people in in America and perhaps in the West or even Beyond I I don't know how popular her music is elsewhere but it may might well be being one of the most famous people period has not in any way contributed to her happiness and one might add had she never become famous she might well be a much happier person she might have settled down to a quote unquote normal life perhaps married uh happily she has been unhappily married a number of times to the best of my knowledge watching the the pop the pop culture articles down Daily Mail For example that's where I get a lot of my pop culture Knowledge from there's another problem with Fame and that is it's only available to a very tiny fraction of humanity by definition Fame you not everyone can be famous by definition right it's it's restricted to a certain tiny number so most people will be chasing the end of a rainbow it is it is not available so it's sort of a waste of time to chase something that is generally unavailable but even if it's available these people are not happier for being famous they might seem it but there is a a big problem uh there are a number of big problems one of them is in almost every case Fame ends pretty rapidly it's sort of like a football player's career it's it's a limited period of time and then it's over and it's certainly over even in the most famous cases when you die now that you may say well I don't care I'm dead that's which is a fair answer to be honest but nevertheless please know that I I get a big kick out of asking younger people five names that were household names that were it easily as famous as Britney Spears is today a famous then and they've never heard of any of them so it's certainly in in almost no instances unless you're in Napoleon or Churchill does your name go on uh for uh any period of time after you die and for most people it is gone while they're still living it it's it's empty Fame is empty it's not bad it's just empty and I I you might say well who who are you to say that well that's why I noted earlier I have some degree of Fame and so I I hope I have a little more credibility than somebody who isn't famous saying it although they should have just as much credibility in my eyes truth is truth whether it comes from uh somebody who has experienced it or not so if you are a a person in your teens or twenties and you're pursuing Fame for the sake of the belief that that will give you this tremendous High well it does it does give you a high for a period of time but then it it like everything else built on excitement you have to get more excited in other words today's amount of Fame will not be satisfactory a year from now you will have to be more famous a year from now if Fame is an end I'll I can speak for myself feigned for me is completely a means it has never been an end uh and in fact I have suffered from in some cases I don't I've not pushed myself I've always hoped that if I did good work it would be recognized and the work would would Garner an audience if you will but uh I regard Fame a hundred percent as means the more people who know me the more people know my work if you know me and don't know my work it's a it's of no consequence to me a reminder at this point we ask you to go over to prageru.com and watch the rest of the fireside chat very very important stuff always in part two the reason we do this is We Fear the day might come when prageru is simply not allowed on YouTube for example and we want people to start watching what we do at prageru.com and to ideally subscribe and download the app so please go to prageru.com for the rest of the fireside chat thanks

Channel: PragerU

Views: 112,439

Keywords: Fireside Chat, Famous, Dating, marriage, Dennis Prager, Podcast

Id: KIJewxa2kZY

Length: 10min 3sec (603 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 13 2023