Why You Should Watch Dr. Phil

I'm one of the few people in my age group (I'm 22, just so you know) who watches Dr. Phil. I guess he's not "cool." Many of my peers write him off as a hack. These same peers have never actually watched an entire episode. What are they basing their accusations on? The fact that he is associated with Oprah Winfrey? I'm not a fan of Oprah, and I never thought that I would be addicted to a daytime talk show, but by God, Dr. Phil rocks. He tackles the same issues that Jerry Springer discepted, only in a classy, informative manner. You won't find any kickboxing lesbians here.

My mother constantly asks me why I would be interested in stories of adultery, drug addiction, and parenting miscues. The answer I give is that I enjoy observing the human condition. Dr. Phil is the most educational show on television. The things I've learned from watching it are immeasurable. Not only do you begin to understand why people do the things they do, but you also learn about yourself. You develop staunch ideologies by listening to others eruct their opinions on everything from marital woes to ungovernable youths.

Watching Dr. Phil is like reading a passage from a sociology textbook. Human beings are interesting, are they not? Not every show is cerebral. I admit that I don't really care about the latest book that his son/wife penned. Dr. Phil plugs a plethora of his merchandise, and while I would probably do the same thing, it gets annoying after awhile. That's the only criticism that I can level at Mr. McGraw. In my estimation, he's a brilliant physician, but what he does on his show is not rocket science. He deals in common sense. He'll tell you that you're an ass in the most matter-of-fact way possible without actually calling you an ass. He gives a precipitous wake-up call to his guests and sees right through their various facades.

A complaint that I habitually hear is that he isn't fit to give advice on weight loss. I mean that literally. He's fat. He may not be morbidly obese, but if he were a few inches shorter, he would resemble a doughnut hole. My rejoinder - so what? People come to him for dieting tips because they're unhappy with their frames. Could it be that Dr. Phil is content with his weight? He doesn't knock on doors and force his fans to fast. His guests plead him for help. Should he respond by saying, "I know how you could lose weight, but I'm not going to tell you because I'm portly myself."? Of course not! It's his job to give this sort of advice. If a chain smoker who has no intentions of quitting gives advice on how to quit smoking, is that wrong? Of course not!

I hope that I've convinced a few Dr. Phil mutineers that they should give him a try. I've spoken with several people who hate the guy, and after informing them of some of his viewpoints, they conceded that they agreed with his erudite ethos. C'mon, he's more tolerable than Montel Williams. You have to give me that much. Speaking of Montel, who wants to watch some guy whisper to rape victims for an hour? Is it just me or is his expertise limited to whispering to rape victims? Seriously. Could someone explain that goof to me?