On June 7, 2007 Glynn Birch wrote the article "High Profile Drunk Driving Arrests Deserve Interlocks" in response to Paris Hilton's arrest and other celebrities that have had DUI's. In this article he stresses the importance of "responsibility" and how Hilton has none, but that he, MADD, and his readers do. Birch's (2007) first paragraph is as follows:
Paris Hilton and the number of many other high profile celebrities and
sports figures committing drunk driving offenses are alarming and this
problem needs to stop. Hilton has not been responsible in her celebrity
during this time. She did not acknowledge how much she drank before
getting behind the wheel, she drove on a suspended driver's license and
then appealed to the Governor for leniency in her sentence for that
offence and continues to not take accountability for her actions. We
continue to believe that she should accept full responsibility for her
actions, and her conduct during this time should be more responsible
given the vast young audience watching her every move.
The sheer weight of how important it is for one to be responsible overflows from the page and into the reader, which creates the reality that we are capable of being responsible.
In his first paragraph, Birch uses a form of the word "responsible" three times, and uses other terms and phrases that imply "responsibility" four additional times. The first sentence does not use the term �responsible,� but it does introduce the villain and the supporting villains. Hilton is the particular villain that is being discussed, and other celebrities that drink and drive are the supporting villains. This can be seen by the use of the phrase �problem needs to stop.� Since, heroes do not cause problems, this infers that Hilton and other celebrities are villains for drinking and driving, and must be stopped. The second sentence uses �responsible� in a different type of definition. For how could she not be responsible for her celebrity standing, if responsibility exists, in any action that she performs? �Responsible� in this use refers to Hilton using her celebrity status in ways that Birch would call �good." In the third sentence he uses the word �acknowledge,� which if someone acknowledges some �thing,� then they are being responsible for that �thing.� Further, in sentence three, he brings up the fact that she drove without a license; this is an act that most Americans would see as irresponsible. She also has asked the Governor for leniency, which implies she cannot take care of herself. Taking care of oneself is a responsible thing to do. Birch ends the third sentence with saying that she will not take accountability for her actions. This of course is not responsible. In the fourth sentence, he uses the pronoun �we� to mentally link the audience with the action of thinking that Hilton should accept full responsibility for her actions and be more responsible with her celebrity, because of �the children,� which is an appeal to pity fallacy. Birch shows in this first paragraph that the heroes are himself, MADD, and the audience by using the �we� pronoun.
By defining the villains and heroes, Birch's first paragraph shows some of the triggers that are used to give this fantasy its power. The word �responsible� of course is a trigger, as well as any synonym of the word such as �accountable,� �answerable,� �acknowledge,� and �liable.� Also, any act that is seen as not �good� is irresponsible and likewise any action that is seen as �good� is responsible. So, reference to these triggers, feeds the fantasy. Since, one who is �responsible� is a �good� person then this is a trigger that helps the fantasy, but it also tells us �how� and �why� this fantasy continues to be seen as the truth. It is because people want to have the idea that when something �good� happens that they may be an agent for, is their responsibility. People in general want to believe that they caused good things to happen. Individuals view that if they commit a �good� act and are rewarded or revered for it, then if someone else commits a �bad� act, then that person ought to be punished and despised because of it.
As I said this is a thought that individuals in our society have. The funny thing is that it is the opposite of how most people react to �good� or �bad� actions. When most individuals do something that is �good� or has a �good� outcome, like winning a board game, the lottery, a promotion, or anything that they may or may not have caused, the individual usually says that they were lucky, or they thank God for the �good� things. Taking responsibility for something that was �good� is also seen in this society as bragging or being a narcissist.
With �bad� outcomes from actions, individuals do seem to take responsibility, and often times they believe they deserved it because they did not work hard enough or were not smart enough, and so forth. So, this idea of taking credit for the good deeds and punishing those that do bad deeds, is only a thought, it is not what is practiced by the majority of people who do believe in �free-will� and �responsibility.� So, for some reason, individuals who do believe in the fantasy do not practice it for the reason that they want it to be true. It seems a conflict in ideologies that one does not see, until looking for the truth.