Poppagator writes:

"What's wrong with helping ~ hell, causing ~ an audience to feel good about themselves? Isn't that what performers are paid to do?"

I don't agree with this. Performers are not paid to make an audience feel good about themselves. A performer presents art. Could be a comedy, could be drama, could be a tragedy.

Should we all affix fake smiles to our faces like the artists on the Lawrence Welk Show?