But, it kind of relates.

We hate what we love. Or maybe it’s that we love what we hate. The chicken and egg problem rears its head: do we make our pop icons who they are because we secretly loathe them, or do we love them, but then not-so-secretly loathe the success they find? Are they sacrificial lambs from the beginning, or do we turn on them with gleaming knives just as they turn to face the crowd?

We have our golden idols. We erect them. We admire them for a month, maybe three.

And then we bash them with hammers. Death by a thousand dents.

Okay, listen–

Britney Spears did not ruin pop music.

Stephenie Meyer is not the end of fiction, nor will she couple with Dan Brown to produce some kind of literary Anti-Christ.

Michael Bay is not currently cornholing your childhood with his exploding penis while George Lucas tags your childhood’s mouth from the front.

Dane Cook hasn’t forever contaminated good comedy.

This is the backlash. This is the hate. The irony is that, we put these people on their pedestals. We carried them through the crowds on a bed made of angel feathers, throwing money at them as they ascend the thousand steps, offering prayers of adoration and delight. Then we get them to the dais, we deposit them, and start hucking rocks at their heads. And we wonder aloud, “How’d these people get up there on that stage?”

Confession time: I love Star  Wars, and despite my criticisms, I’m a fan of the prequels. I read The Da Vinci Code, and found it passably entertaining. I think Dane Cook’s first Comedy Central special and his first two albums are piss-my-pants hilarious. Michael Bay’s Bad Boys and The Rock are both amped-up, pretty fun action pics. (Another confession: I read the first Harry Potter book, said, “Well, that was nice,” and didn’t read any further. I also have no desire to pick up the Twilight series.)

You don’t have to like what these people have produced. Dislike it all you want. Loathe it, even. But critique it fairly. And don’t attack the people who made it simply because they made something you don’t like. We put them there. We put them on their thrones. “We” may not include you, it may or may not include me, but it damn sure includes the majority of peeps.

Michael Bay might be a dick. He may think that making an art film is “easy.” I don’t agree with him. I think he’s being cocky, and I think he’s crassly dismissing other people’s work to make his own sound good. But I don’t hate him. I just won’t go see Transformers 2: Revenge of the Incomprehensible Action Scenes (confession time: I’ll probably see it on DVD. Shhh.) But, to say it again, I don’t hate him. I don’t think he’s ruined anything. He’s probably given new life to the Transformers as a brand–revived sales to the show and the cartoon film, brought new toys for kids to play with, whatever.

That’s the thing. A good side exists to these people doing their schtick. Dan Brown, go ahead. Hate him, hate Stephenie Meyer. They’re also getting people to read. They’re reminding people that books are a lovely distraction. If you’re a writer, thank them. Thank them for building an audience. And I don’t agree with the idea that their audience is not your audience. Readers read widely. Maybe not immediately, but over time. Money going into the industry is good, because it means publishers are willing to publish more books. Every book can’t be a paranormal romance series or a “mystery of symbology,” so publishers will need to spread their wings and find other subjects.

Is it perfect? No. And maybe I’m wrong. Maybe this work has no up-side. Even still, even with that being true, you can’t blame these people. Blame us. Blame ourselves. We bought the books, the tickets, the albums. Transformers 2: Vengeance of Robot Bloat came out and is getting smacked around by critics and viewers. And it’s also making ludicrous bank. What, seven people bought millions of Hootie and the Blowfish albums? Dan Brown’s audience is fourteen very rich housewives in Topeka? I don’t think so. They’re just doing what we want them to do. They’re doing the dance. Hate them for it, if you like. I don’t think it’s worth the energy. I think it’s far better to exalt the things you do like than to rain piss and vinegar down on that which we hate. I used to do that, and more and more, I just don’t find it productive.

I’m not against criticism. I’m for criticism. I think even the things we love should be held up to the magnifying glass.

I just think criticism should be pointed at the work, not the creators.

And I also think it’s time to stop erecting glorious statues just so we can blow them up.

Anyway. In other news:

“Product Placement” has had its product placed at the fore of the Jet Pack site, thanks to the courtesy of Will Hindmarch and Wood Ingham. So, go there, and check it out. Please, feel free to comment there. Let me know what you think. My goal is to grow as a writer, and I’ll only do that if you tell me your thoughts (provided those thoughts aren’t, “Die, you talentless hack pig fuck”).