Thursday, December 22, 2011

Hating on House Hunters International

I've never liked House Hunters International much, but more because of philosophical reasons than anything else. It pains me to see some small-minded Americans acting like ... well, small-minded Americans and all that the stereotype implies. They expect things their way, constantly comparing things to how things are in the US.

Wake up call: You're not in Kansas anymore, asshole, let alone the US! You don't go to Morocco looking for a riad with modern amenities for a cheap price. You don't go to metropolitan Asian city and complain how there's no backyard space. You don't complain about how small rooms are in urban European cities. And you don't find areas full of other ex-pat Americans to live because you're afraid of mingling with the locals! You are lucky enough to have the experience of traveling and living abroad but you're narrow-minded and full of yourself to try to experience life as a local.

And now to top if all off, the show is completely fake. I think a lot of people already were aware of this, but it was news to me. Apparently, the whole "take me to three or four different locations and I'll choose one at the end" is all a set-up. The clients have already chosen the house and are already in escrow. They get paid $500 for the filming, and only have to go through the motions of being taken from one place to another. $500 is still $500 so good for the home purchaser, but for HGTV to build the show on the premise that it's real, that kind of makes it the opposite.

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