Susan Boyle Was Not The AberrationSusan Boyle stunned and thrilled the world when she unveiled her prodigious talent on “Britain’s Got Talent” the British version of “American Idol.” Different Promotions Each Week This Week 7% Off Examine Delicious Home Style Dinners Under "Our Menus" When this sweet faced 47 year old stepped on stage she exuded an air of confidence, but certainly not cockiness. However, that did not stop the audience from immediately assuming an air of discomfort. It did not get any better when Simon Cowell asked Susan who she’d like to pattern herself after. When she answered Elaine Page, you’d think she’d said Princess Diana. Immediately the judges gave a looked of, “are you kidding me.” They quickly turned to each other in disbelief, like how could this women have the audacity to mention herself in the same breath with a great stage star like Elaine Page. Meanwhile what looked like a majority of this immature, elitist audience squirmed in their seats, laughed, rolled their eyes and generally acted like a bunch of children (apologies to the children). It was a truly disgusting exhibition. Susan handled it all with great poise and dignity and didn’t seem to let it bother her a bit. Before she finished the first line of I Dreamed A Dream, (not an easy song to sing) from the smash Broadway musical Les Miserables, these same sniggering fools were cheering as if Elaine Page herself had suddenly made an appearance. Take a look. YOUTUBE The last I’d heard, Susan had received over 20,000,000 hits on the internet. She became an inspiration for all those who have dreamed dreams of achieving their life’s goals. But what bothered me, was the initial greeting Susan was given upon stepping on to that stage. Have we become so jaded and so self absorbed that we have to judge everyone by their cover instead of their content. Martin Luther King would have been appalled by the treatment that lovely woman received. I have lived long enough to remember major stars such as Fanny Brice, a.k.a Baby Snooks. Fanny certainly was no beauty and it was much harder to make it in show business as a woman in her era. As depicted in Funny Girl, a Broadway Musical, loosely based on her life, Fanny had to deal with hard times, as depicted in the show. However, I doubt she was treated with the same disrespect as Susan Boyle, when she made her stage debut. Here is a short video of Fanny Brice. YOUTUBE Another grand lady of the entertainment world was the talented and beloved Kate Smith. I don’t remember anyone ever judging Ms. Smith by her looks. People treasured her as a symbol of our American way of life. She was revered by the people of the United States. YOUTUBE So why were the judges and audience so disrespectful to Susan Boyle? My theory is, we don’t seek approval from ourselves anymore, but rather from those we feel a need to impress. We are so pre-occupied with worshiping looks and celebrity, we forget to look within for answers. We need self approval for everything. Years ago the public schools began pushing self image over self responsibility (I taught in the public school system for nine years). Suddenly, everyone had to be equal. Giving someone a D was verboten because it made the child feel inferior, even though that was the grade they deserved. Non-athletic kids had to get in the game even if it resulted in the team losing. Spelling books we were forced to use required us to teach students how to misspell a word before learning to spell it correctly. Kids who were trying to excel were lumped in with every one else. Shamefully, I was drawn into some of this nonsense for several years. The result of all this is what we have today, the “Me” generation Members of the Britain’s Got Talent audience and the judges were attractive and well coiffed. These were the beautiful people. Then, when Susan stepped on stage, and they were exposed to an older ordinary looking woman, it made them uncomfortable That’s when they laughed, rolled their eyes and hid their faces. That was the moment when they bared their ugly souls. Susan proceeded with dignity and grace, and as soon as she emitted the first lines of “I Dreamed A Dream,” the audience and judges breathed a group sigh of relief, did an immediate about face and the snickers and cynical expressions were replaced by thunderous applause. I wondered if any of them were aware of these appropriate lyrics from the song. "But the tigers come at night, with their voices soft as thunder ... as they tear your hope apart, as they turn your dreams to shame." As Susan continued her face took on a beatific expression and you could see the beauty of her soul within. It was a stunning and inspiring moment of triumph. No, Susan Boyle was not the aberration on that night, the audience and judges were.
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