Poll of the Day > If given the chance for fame...

(+) Yeah! (+)

...but it's not a package deal and the other people who you worked with in order to get noticed don't get to come along, is the right thing to do to turn it down unless they get included, even at the expense of losing out on success for yourself?

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why would anyone want fame

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Mead posted...

why would anyone want fame

YouTubers do because then they can live off producing videos.

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I personally wouldn't want personal fame or glory at the expense of those who helped me.

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On the surface this looks easy. Leaving behind people who helped you is a crappy thing to do.

However, on the other hand now no one has anything. It's not like you couldn't use your game to help them in some way. You can use that game to make changes in people's lives in general.

Technically all it says is they can't come along, not that you can't use that game to get them somewhere. If you're famous enough you can help support them.

So there's about a million (hyperbole) variables that make this actually super complicated...

Personally though I don't exactly want to be famous. I'd be tempted if I could find a way to get something for all of us though, because I'd end up feeling like I owed them it for having the opportunity.

Who gets to be famous is not an egalitarian process.

It is generally understood in creative fields that not everyone achieves fame to the same degree, even if they contributed more or less equally to what generated that fame. It is also generally understood that it's "who you know" and as long as you remain a good person to know for people who helped you along, you're probably doing more for them by accepting your 15 minutes than playing martyr.

This is what happened between Andy Kaufman and Bob Zmuda. Andy could have comfortably gone on to fame and fortune and left Bob selling road side vegetables for the rest of his life. Instead Andy spent time building up his career to a point where he could afford to bring in one of his old friends from the club circuit, and then did so. From that point on the two of them collaborated until Andy's "death". So maybe it's not a package deal at first, but that can change.

On the other hand, just moving on can also be acceptable. Maybe their stars didn't rise for a reason. Maybe they're too weird or not photogenic enough. Not everyone can or should make the transition from obscurity to spotlight and no one should be held back because of that.

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