Devaluation

Noi's been watching something on tv about couples in debt - huge amounts of debt, they're American. The lady doling out the advice, which was sensible enough stuff in practical terms, told one of those involved she had 'greatness' within her. I think this was intended to shore up the poor woman's morale, but it struck me as extraordinarily misapplied. What she had lots of was stupidity. Actually viewers were told not to sit in judgement on the folks on the programme, but this seemed a bit silly. What else were they on for? They'd been stupid, as we all can be, and it was time to face facts.

In attributing potential greatness to people who're notable for great stupidity we are in danger of devaluing not just money but language itself. How can we ever recognise the real thing when just getting yourself on prime-time is enough to be assured you've got it?

Now reading Alex Ross's The Rest Is Noise which has finally come out in paperback and made it to the shores of this far place. Now this is a book that might well deserve to be described as great, centering on music whose greatness is slowly coming to be recognised. It takes time and sometimes a century is not enough.