An Experiment in Blogging: August 2008

Celebrities and their millions-it's enough to make me gag. Howcome celebrities get special treatment? It's just not something I can let go of. We as a nation are forced to see the headlines of the Enquirer or People Magazine any time we check out at the grocery store. It's a conspiracy, I tell you. Who really cares about the Spears or the Lohans? Not I. In fact, the more I read about them at the store, the more my abhorrence for them grows.
I have noticed, however, that they tend to get away with horrible behavior, and the worse they are, the more their popularity and fame increases. It's as though they get red carpet treatment not only on the red carpet, but for their whole lives. Case in point: Fred Savage. Now, I am a fan of The Savage, but there are things going on that still make me mad at society. For instance, I heard him say on a talk show once that he had dropped out of Stanford his senior year to start a sitcom (which, unfortunately never took off. Bless his heart, they needed to give him more to work with). At any rate, Stanford graciously allowed him to walk in graduation with his class despite the fact that he hadn't met the requirements for graduation. I know of no other regular students who are granted such liberties. I mean, really, people. I know it's Fred Savage, and he is a national treasure after all, but why the special treatment? Was he really one of the more scholarly students? Which leads me to question how it is he even got in to Stanford. I'll tell you how alright-it's because he's a celebrity; an adorable child actor. I can't imagine that he really got top notch academic tutoring while acting as a child. But Stanford went ahead and let him in anyway. I could be wrong. Perhaps he is a brainiac that noone knows about. Maybe there's a future Ben Stein in the making, but certainly not an Einstein.
Now:back to the tabloids. You know the Jolie-Pitt franchise is cleaning up. Why is it that they are plastered all over the media? More than any one person could possibly care to see? Despite all the drama going on with the pabarazzi, I have a sneaking suspicion that Brangelina are making bank on all those photos of them and their children, who, by the way, have no choice in the matter. And if not, they can sue for the millions they so desperately need. I know that in some cases there are people of interest to the public that really choose not to be photographed 24/7, but why is it that there are the usual celebrities on the magazine covers and all over the internet, and others are rarely seen? Are the Tom Hankses and Harrison Fords getting out of the limelight just by sheer luck? Again; I think not. Let's face it, too; they can probably afford to pay off the pabarazzi. I would guess that these muckraking mags could spoon feed any celebrity to the public, though. I feel I don't have a choice.
And why is news about these celebrities getting the headlines on msn and yahoo at all? Why do they take precedence over world news and politics; you know, the things that actually affect our lives. I know it's probably true, yet I hate to accept that the masses are really this stupid. Talk about the dumbing down of America. Yes, the media is tainted and definitely biased, but the root of that is money. Whatever sells, they sell.
And why oh why do celebrities get to make so much stinking money? Because they can read some lines in a script? So? Why millions? And not that I agree with equal distribution or anything, but couldn't what they get paid be cut down even a little bit to feed the poor? Or dare I say it, educate students about matters of import? I remember what celebs did during Katrina. Sure, lots of them pitched in to help out the victims, but I'm still wondering if maybe they could've given a little more. I heard that Sandra Bullock donated 1 million to the relief of Katrina victims. While I do think that is admirable, couldn't she have spared a bit more? I'm sure she's worth quite a bit more. Doing the math, I figure she makes roughly 8 million per movie (and that's a modest estimate, I'm sure), and let's say she turns out about 2 movies per year for even ten years. That's a whole lot of millions. Why exactly does Paris Hilton need any money? I realize she's probably in it more for the attention, but isn't it sickening that she's making money doing.....whatever it is she's doing?
You know that most celebrities have shady dealings too, whether it be with drugs or prostitutes, or shoplifting, and they seem to get away with it. Sure police may intervene at first, but you never hear of celebs doing any real hard jail time. All it does is make for more tabloid fodder, too. I'd say for most it probably boosted their careers.
And who are these people to tell us who to vote for? Most of them are half-wit, high school dropouts claiming to know anything and everything about politics and issues. Please. Won't they give me a break? They must be lobbied by whomever, just because when they speak people listen. Why? I'm not sure. Most of them hold no truths nor morals. They will bare themselves to the public for money. Hmm...that sounds strangely close to prostitution to me. Not to mention the horrible language and violence they put out there. Yeah, that's really heroic. That being said, I can't help but wonder if they ever feel any twinges of guilt ever. True, most are probably not as offended by nudity and language as I am, but I can't help but wonder if they ever feel bad deep down inside. Surely they don't consider that 92 seconds of themselves in a steamy, naughty love scene in a movie as their classiest moment. As far as the Gwyneths and Madonnas are concerned: England please take them off our hands for us. I beseech you. That's one export we don't ever need back. They can take their America-hating remarks with them. Johnny Depp, you were truly a traitor. It's a darn shame, too. I really liked you. So, in fine, this special treatment of those who merely provide some cheap entertainment never ceases to annoy me. I could go on and on, but I'd have already killed a tree by now if I were working with paper.

Horse Dressage

Gabby rides again

Hercules (Unrelated to topic, but so cute!)

For fun we went to the State Fair in Springfield last Saturday. It was a state fair unlike any I'd ever been to before. We walked a lot, ate a lot, and then were sore and achy a lot. We saw horse competitions and arts and crafts exhibits. My favorite part was taking the tram ride across the whole park and seeing all there was to see that way. The Mid-West is known for its farming, and they take their state fairs very serious. We saw stables and animals a-plenty. Great fun for all. John somehow survived it all walking around with his broken toe. He wanted to stop at Godfather's Pizza while we were there. It was there that John's dad noticed our car was making a funny noise or something. So we went to the gas station and got some oil to put in our car. Not much longer, on the highway (late at night) we got a flat tire! It was similar to that movie, "A Christmas Story," and it took forever to get the tire changed. Finally, we were ready to drive 2 hours home on our spare tire. Good times.