I loved Mike’s essay and would have to agree with the majority of points he rose. I liked the way he brought humor into the passage through amusing similes, noting a similarity between his own personailty and a “Mormon in Afganistan”! He accepts that fact that his is part of the MTV generation, however, does not agree with messages some of the shows portray. Instead of inspiring him to become one of the “sheep” of society and following the trends at the time, MTV showed him how not to act and what was unacceptable in society. The popular reality tv show “next” is supposed to be a funny show, however cruel it may seem to be humiliated like that. Mike realises this and instead of laughing along with it, he learns from it the one thing we are all taught at an early age; treat others how you would like to be treated. the reality show “parental control” made him realise how superficial some people can be in that they can chose between two people they have known for an hour or less and a girlfriend or boyfriend that his or hers parents do not like. who does that look worse on, the parents who can put their child up to that or the child who is asking for a public humiliation. i loved the fact that watching mtv shaped his personality into an individual, one who in some way, went against popular beliefs. while mtv was trying to dictate the trends of the time, mike was going against them, rather than seeing that beavis and butthead were cool and acting like them, as is the case with most main characters in shows or movies, he takes from them what he does not like or find appropriate and applies it to his own life, making him a better person.