Every time I look at American Idol now, people are putting their hands in the air and waving them like they just don’t care. You can’t sing a ballad on this show anymore without the hand-wavers. “We just don’t care!” their hands cry out. “We just don’t CARE!” Okay, I realize that the cigarette-lighter-style wave is different from the hip-hop “He-ey! He-ey!” wave, and maybe it’s the second one that means you just don’t care, but seriously, people: get a hold of yourselves.

I understand that David “Let’s Hear It For The Boy, And By ‘It,’ I Mean ‘Ch-Ching!’” Archuleta’s rendition of “The Long And Winding Road” moved you practically to tears, because you were so happy that he remembered the words this time. And maybe because he sang the actual melody most of the way through once, which is more respect than he showed poor “Imagine,” the melody of which he was kind enough to rewrite — you’re welcome, John Lennon. Please note that in that clip, you can see him practically begging you through the screen: “Do you see? DO YOU?” He thinks a lot about world peace, you can tell. Note also that in that performance, you hand-wavers forgot to show up. Maybe you care. You really care. You also failed to arm-wave when he sang “Another Day In Paradise,” so maybe you know that it’s disrespectful to wave ‘em like you just don’t care when he’s singing about homeless people.

At any rate, last night, you just didn’t care when he sang “The Long And Winding Road,” and you just didn’t care again when Chikezie sang the beginning, ballad-y part of his arrangement of “I’ve Just Seen A Face.” So apparently, you don’t care about public works projects or people’s faces. I hope you’re happy.