Metamucil

 Let's talk meta for a second.

Okay, we're not going to talk so much as I am going to write and you will eventually read. And depending on your interest level and speed reading skill it will probably take more than a second. 

See, right there I just did something "meta." I popped out of the traditional reality of you reading and me writing to break down this fourth (fifth?) wall between us to discuss the act in which we are participating rather than simply providing content you can feel comfortable with. It makes us both feel very clever, doesn't it? That may be the reason why Mark Zuckerberg, who never had an original thought in his life, decided to rename his company "Meta." Very subtle, Mark. Right up there with dropping the indefinite article turning his "invention" into just Facebook. Because The Facebook was just too clumsy. 

But Mark is not alone in all this meta-business. The world is full now of self-referential media that is meant to cause us all to reflect on just how full of media our lives truly are. Have you noticed how many people are talking directly to the camera these days? Suddenly I am being drawn into a place where I do not feel completely comfortable. I am sharing secrets with very rich "celebrities" and characters in sitcoms. I don't know about you, but I was much more comfortable when I was an outside observer. I don't want to be in a relationship with these people. 

Of course, this isn't to say that I am completely devoid of interest in all things meta. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has become a seemingly endless flurry of self-referential connectitude. The more you watch, the more clued-in you feel. Reboots and prequels and the like begin to spiral out of control until the only possible defense is simply to go with the flow and recognize that I bought the ticket and I am on the ride. Even when I am outside the theater standing in line. 

Then there is the lengthy discussion about "fake news," which puts us all in one bin or another depending on which network we feel is bringing us "truthiness," a term coined by meta-newsman Stephen Colbert back when he was portraying a character known as Stephen Colbert. Faux News continues to get around this distinction by insisting that a great chunk of their programming is "entertainment" and not news, so they can feel free to bend facts in whatever shape they please. Depending whom you believe, Alex Jones is either a conspiracy peddler or an actor portraying a conspiracy peddler, depending on whether you're talking to Alex Jones or Alex Jones. 

For me, one of the more challenging bits of the metaverse appears as the sitcom from Ukraine titled Servant of the People. It stars comedian Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a high school history teacher who finds himself elected to the presidency. Of Ukraine. Which seems about as likely as a comedian ascending to the same office. It should be noted that nobody in the sitcom dies in a rocket attack. Mass casualty events are pretty hard to do meta. I guess that's how we know which one is the real world.