Don't mean to rant, but I have to say this

Posted by Syantani (69.230.226.32) on March 12, 2006 at 15:54:51:

In Reply to: Greedy Dance Teachers posted by Syantani on March 11, 2006 at 20:44:02:

This is a classic "All art is quite useless" argument. Since economics is driven by utility, and the arts are so poorly paid, all art must be useless! That would be true if and only if it came with the disclaimer that utility is defined by money alone and economists the world over beg to differ! The fact that you think the arts don't create a "genuine need/necessity", says a lot about your attitude to the former.

To exemplify, Edvard Munch's Scream defined the sensibilities of an entire generation and continues to inform attitudes of people (not just artists) the world over. I cannot begin to enlist the kind of contribution artists like Rukmini Devi had to Indian nationalism and modernity. People kill and maime for (because of) art - as the incidents following the Danish cartoons evince. (Not arguing in favor or against the specificities of this contoversy; just trying to point out the impact of art).

And oh, this is how the Merriam Webster defines the word 'profession': 1:the act of taking the vows of a religious community, 2 : an act of openly declaring or publicly claiming a belief, faith, or opinion : PROTESTATION, 3 : an avowed religious faith, 4a: a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation b : a principal calling, vocation, or employment c : the whole body of persons engaged in a calling.
There is no mention/hint of need or use or necessity.

We don't "need" the internet for survival. But can you imagine society really functioning without internet any more? And why on earth is pleasure not a need? If anything, it is basic for sanity. And if we are to believe Robert Zemeckis or William Broyles ('Cast Away'), we don't really need a lot for survival. This is a slippery slope: this regression back to the basics for survival.

This forced dichotomy of necessary and unnecessary professions is painful. We don't bat an eyelid to pay thosands of dollars to become a doctor, but we kick and scream if we have to pay a pittance to learn an art form. Ethically, that is wrong! Pay your due, if you want to learn *anything*.