To have brains or no skill at the reins – either can give you at least 15 minutes of fame.

Nowadays anyone has the chance to become famous for any reason – but does that mean they should?

With YouTube and reality TV, people are becoming famous for hardly doing anything, or for a lack of talent. Some seem to be proud of this, just as society is infatuated with their stories.

Last year, during season seven of Canada’s Worst Driver, a man from Lethbridge was showcased. Next month the show’s producers are coming back to the city to look for new “talent” for the new season of the show.

But why would anybody be proud of this? Yes they can learn from their mistakes, they can teach others to learn from their mistakes and they can get their pictures taken with strangers. But having pride in what you’ve done and having no regrets because you learned something new is not the same thing.

Then there are those who work hard, hone their craft and then try to put their name up in lights.
The popular show The Dragon’s Den came to Lethbridge on March 8 to hold auditions. While not everything on that show is gold, it does reveal some unique, well thought out and pertinent ideas, and some of the people put a lot of effort into them.

So which is better: to be known for something you’re good at or something you’re not?
If what you want is notoriety, it would seem to be the latter.

 In society those who gain infamy also seem to gain the right to coast easily on whatever they have or, for all intents and purposes, have not done for a considerable amount of time, while those who gain fame seem to have to work in order to stay known.

And if they don’t they fade away as a has-been, someone who went from sizzle to fizzle. If that’s how you’re going to end up being remembered you might as well have just gone for infamy.