Just let it be known that we had nothing to do with it.  There's no way we'd put ourselves ahead of any of the jobs that follow us on the list of most stressful jobs in America.  Sorry.  'Murca.

How is it that the first five jobs listed on Forbes' list of the 10 most stressful jobs in America are jobs that we could ultimately live without?  Of course it's stressful!  You chose a job that contributes nothing to the greater good.  Sure, an actor/actress can bring a smile to your face or make you think, but they also get paid MILLIONS OF DOLLARS to do the job in question.

The 2nd-most stressful job is newspaper reporter.  How'd you find that out?  Ask the last two newspaper reporters LEFT IN THE INDUSTRY?  I'd be stressed, too, if my job was a thing of the past (and it is - more on that in a moment).  You COVER the news. You're not THE news, like the bottom-half of our list of most stressful jobs.  Unless you're also Superman, being a newspaper reporter isn't THAT stressful.

Photojournalist is certainly a position that has potential to be stressful.  If you find yourself in a war zone you've got every right to be stressed.  If you find yourself in the middle of an American riot you've got every right to be stressed.  As for the remaining 99.99999999% of photojournalists taking pics at a local press conference or a ribbon-cutting, get over it.

I never leave the house thinking my job as a radio DJ will get me killed. It's a daily reality for cops everywhere, including slain NYPD officer Brian Moore. Photo credit Getty Images.
I never leave the house thinking my job as a radio DJ will get me killed. It's a daily reality for cops everywhere, including slain NYPD officer Brian Moore. Photo credit Getty Images.
loading...

Being an event coordinator must be extremely stressful.  It must be terrifying to have to worry about everything from Mother Nature to the mother of the bride.  Still, we're talking about weddings, reunions & such.  If you screw up, a spoiled bride gets pissy on Facebook and gives you a bad Yelp review.  Unlike some of the latter jobs on the Forbes list, if an event coordinator has a bad day, it doesn't mean somebody's died.  If it does, you're a TERRIBLE event coordinator and should find another field of work entirely.

Broadcasters? Come on.  Seriously?  Yes, our job is stressful in the sense that we can do our jobs 100% right 100% of the time and still get the big, ugly ax for no apparent reason.  Still, regardless of what happens at work, I'm going home at the end of the day.  I'm not staring death, mine or otherwise, in the face.  I'm hitting buttons on a touchscreen to play music and opening my mouth to talk four or five times an hour.  Not exactly rocket science.  This particular job may not exist in another decade, but for now, "stressful" isn't the word I'd use to describe being a radio DJ.

You're right. This looks far less stressful than planning a wedding for a bridezilla. Bob Greenspan/Kansas City Star/MCT via Getty Images
You're right. This looks far less stressful than planning a wedding for a bridezilla. Bob Greenspan/Kansas City Star/MCT via Getty Images
loading...

The rest of the list is actually believable, although still unbelievable these jobs fall lower on the stressful jobs list than those already mentioned.  A police officer can't make anyone happy.  95% of people automatically hate you.  You're constantly under threat of violence and/or death.  Every person you talk to lies to you, tries to run from you and will try to make you into the criminal.  Do your job right every day you go to work and the best you can hope for is to make it to retirement.  Have one slip-up, and the world knows about it.  That's stress.

Airline pilots may be stressed out and overworked, but until earlier this year and the crash in the French Alps we never knew just how much the job took its toll.  Hundreds of faces on every flight solely and completely entrusting you with their lives.  Not only had you better be safe, but you better make the flight smooth and get them there on time, or suddenly you get to see & hear every crappy comment and eye-roll from the ungrateful customer on the way off the plane.

Yup, I'm a clear example of the stressful life lived by a radio DJ. Photo by Lloyd.
Yup, I'm a clear example of the stressful life lived by a radio DJ. Photo by Lloyd.
loading...

I'm going to go ahead and call TOTAL B.S. on the next two positions in the list of most stressful jobs.  To think that a military general has more stress than a grunt is unbelievable.  Sure, there's a lot more paperwork at the top, but give a soldier a choice and they're not stupid.  They'll choose TPS reports in an air-conditioned office hundreds (if not thousands) of miles away from the battle over humping it dozens of miles at a time with a hundred pounds to carry an day.  Maybe I'm naive, but I think it would be much more stressful fighting in the battle than planning the battle elsewhere.

Firefighters may be the perfect example of why this list is so bogus.  Firefighters shoulder a lot of stress that builds up over time.  Irregular shift schedules keep their body from developing a good internal clock.  Going from full REM sleep to alarms ringing and lives being on the line in a matter of less than five or ten minutes must be incredibly difficult to handle.  You're every family's last hope as everything they've ever owned, and sometimes beloved family members, go up in flames.  That's stress.

I know it's just a list, and I shouldn't stress out over it, but to think that someone out there somewhere sees an actor or actress as the most stressed out job in America makes me weep for the future of humanity, or at the very least the future of 'Murca.

More From KUSJ-FM