Honey Boo Boo - Everything that's wrong (and right) with America

Tonight was the season finale of “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo”.  In case you are unfamiliar with the show, it’s basically a reality television show about a low income family from rural Georgia.  The young star of the show “Honey Boo Boo” (Alana is her real name) is a six year old girl who loves what any 6 year old loves – child beauty pageants, dumpster diving, and playing with her pet pig.  As one of my friends put it “Honey Boo Boo is to Georgia what the Jersey Shore is to New Jersey.”  In a nutshell, it’s an embarrassment to everyone living in Georgia. 

Despite the fact that “Honey Boo Boo” is mildly amusing at best, I do find myself watching it from time to time.  Though I am not a regular viewer, I am always like a deer in headlights when watching the show.  It is hard to believe that it actually constitutes as entertaining, yet each week people still tune in.  Do we watch because it’s like a car accident and we just can’t divert our eyes?  Do we watch because it makes us feel better about our own lives?  Do we watch because we feel sorry for them? (The latter seems unlikely since I just found out they made $2,000-$4,000 per episode and are supposed to be making more next season.   Maybe dumpster diving doesn’t sound so bad after all?)

Regardless, many people can argue that “Honey Boo Boo” is what is wrong with America.  We have poor, uneducated people starring on a national television show.  They have the mouths of sailors, the hygiene of nomads, and the class of a band of hooligans.  But at some point you have to admit that the family got it right somewhere along the way.  They are the ones carrying that fat paycheck all the way to the bank with a great big toothless smile on their face. 

If you think about it, aren’t they a perfect example of the American dream?  They started from absolutely nothing and are “working” their way up to a better way of life.  Maybe they are not exactly what the Founding Fathers envisioned when they wrote the poetic lines of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”, but they sure are living it.

So here’s to you Honey Boo Boo!  Keep on living that American dream – just try to stay out of the dumpster while doing it.