Desperate Housewives

Not exactly politics, but Desperate Housewives appears to be a new bellwether for determining the direction of America. Moral values? Forget about it! Columnists suggest we have found new moral compass. ABC’s new show is the hottest hit on TV, following only CSI in the national ratings.

The intriguing aspect of the show is the moral values followed by the “housewives.” Admittedly one of the wives isn’t a paragon of virtue. Eva Longoria is cheating on her absentee husband. No one pretends this is moral behavior. No one believes this is appropriate. The other wives have their own problems. Motherhood overwhelms Felicity Huffman’s Lynette Scavo and has resorted to stealing prescription drugs. Teri Hatcher’s character Susan Mayer accidentally burned down a rival friend’s house. Bree Van De Kamp, played by Marcia Cross, is a “Stepford” wife who will undoubtedly go to any length to keep her crumbling family together.

What makes these wives so watchable? Is it their above average beauty? This is a compelling factor among the large male audience, but what about the female viewers? There must be some substance there. Does the show appeal to the rapidly growing number of Americans who aspire to be voyeurs? It is quite possible that the show strikes a nerve. Americans either believe this is the standard of behavior of their neighbors or they want it to be.

Right or wrong, and they are probably right; they want to see people with problems. They want to see people struggle. They want to see people come together and overcome their problems. America’s political parties might learn something from this. Even though the American people barely favor one party over the other, they would certainly appreciate government coming together and overcoming their collective problems.