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The article is two years old, but David Wong’s 6 Harsh Truths That Will Make You a Better Person, still shows up quite a bit in recommended articles. Now, I love cracked.com and have found myself reading their articles every day, but this particular article, in my mind, was a low point in normally entertaining and informative site.
The basic message is 'do things which benefit others', which is not a bad message at all. But it's the delivery which makes it read less like "make the world a better place." and more like "what have you done with your life you useless sack of shit!". To make things worse, this is filled with so much rhetorical bullshit that it reads more like some kind of sermon than any comedy article. In fact, that's exactly what it is, a sermon.
Step 1: Make people buy into their worst fears. (either death or personal inadequacy).
Step 2: Offer an absolute solution with no room for compromise.
Step 3: Assume that any objections are not based on logic, but people's unwillingness to accept such "harsh truths".
Step 4: Profit!
This is exactly what Wong does. He goes after those who are down on their luck, whether it’s job problems or relationship problems and gives them a giant middle finger. Heck, his third ‘truth’ is that the reason people hate themselves is because they’re not doing anything. Instead of, I don’t know, things like depression, anxiety, and things outside of their own control, things which require medication and therapy, not guilt trips. But the most despicable thing about this article is that it makes itself immune to any criticism by throwing it back at the critic. this rebuttal article explains it better than I can. Here’s an excerpt.
So yeah, this article hit a lot of sour notes with me. Ironically, it’s considered by many to be one of the best articles on cracked and even has some kind of cult following. So what the hell?
The basic message is 'do things which benefit others', which is not a bad message at all. But it's the delivery which makes it read less like "make the world a better place." and more like "what have you done with your life you useless sack of shit!". To make things worse, this is filled with so much rhetorical bullshit that it reads more like some kind of sermon than any comedy article. In fact, that's exactly what it is, a sermon.
Step 1: Make people buy into their worst fears. (either death or personal inadequacy).
Step 2: Offer an absolute solution with no room for compromise.
Step 3: Assume that any objections are not based on logic, but people's unwillingness to accept such "harsh truths".
Step 4: Profit!
This is exactly what Wong does. He goes after those who are down on their luck, whether it’s job problems or relationship problems and gives them a giant middle finger. Heck, his third ‘truth’ is that the reason people hate themselves is because they’re not doing anything. Instead of, I don’t know, things like depression, anxiety, and things outside of their own control, things which require medication and therapy, not guilt trips. But the most despicable thing about this article is that it makes itself immune to any criticism by throwing it back at the critic. this rebuttal article explains it better than I can. Here’s an excerpt.
The truth is, I resent Six Harsh Truths because of the tone it strikes and the assumptions it makes. I refuse to accept the premise that negative reinforcement always works. I refuse to accept the idea that all the 'world' demands the same kinds of output from individuals. Or that all individuals (in order to feel constructive and happy) must all become heroes of the same 'makers' myth that Wong suggests turns the earth.
I reject the idea that people have to be spoken to like petulant children in order to learn to walk. The assumption that epiphanies must be forced on people in a funk in order to wake them up. SHT appeals to a vast, universal fear, one most of us share, that we haven't accomplished enough in our lives, then says 'this is the only way you'll learn to be a better person.' it offers little except tough love. Instead of acknowledging its thesis as a very valid piece in a broader puzzle, it says "this is all there is. These facts are absolute. There is nothing else. Deal with it."
I reject the idea that people have to be spoken to like petulant children in order to learn to walk. The assumption that epiphanies must be forced on people in a funk in order to wake them up. SHT appeals to a vast, universal fear, one most of us share, that we haven't accomplished enough in our lives, then says 'this is the only way you'll learn to be a better person.' it offers little except tough love. Instead of acknowledging its thesis as a very valid piece in a broader puzzle, it says "this is all there is. These facts are absolute. There is nothing else. Deal with it."
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