Jun 10, 2007

The Washington Post ran a feature on Five Brothers.

The Washington Post ran a feature on Five Brothers.

The writer commented that "wholesome does not really begin to describe them . . ."

What do the writers want Five Brothers to talk about? Do they want Craig to start using crack? Selling Crack? Would that satisfy them?

The column claims they are more Brady Bunch than Simpsons. I don't get Jose Antonio Vargas, the staff writer for The Washington Post. Is the Romney sons talking about their dad's campaign supposed to be controversial? What are they supposed to say? That they hate their dad? That they don't want him to win? That they hate each other? That they hate the other candidates? Is this where they are supposed to confess all the problems they have had?

The media likes Paris Hilton. She at least gives them something to talk about.

Why can't these Romney boys be more like Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, and Britney Spears?

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Lis Wiehl of Fox News asks, "Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, and Britney Spears: Where's Our Generation's Jackie O?"

Getting jail time for drunk driving with suspended license? "That's hot!"

Millions of strangers watching you have sex? "That's hot!"

Snorting coke in a dirty bathroom at a club? "That's hot!"

Snagging a DUI while proudly dangling a sobriety shield from your rearview mirror, only to collapse at a club the next night and check into rehab a second time at age 20? ...Priceless.

Our daughters are bombarded with images of scantily-clad celebrities, stumbling in the street, only to take a drunk-driving joy-ride around town in their $400,000 Mercedes. Celebrity gossip is thrust upon us by radio, TV, magazine covers and pop-up ads. I am sickened by the messages that pop icons are sending my daughter: that underage drinking, drugs, and driving under the influence are tolerable. These celebs and heiresses should be setting a better example.

Gone are the days when our daughters looked up to a poised Mary Tyler Moore or Jackie O. Those women valued their public image built upon morality (even if it wasn't really the case). Once upon a time, it was embarrassing for celebrities to be caught doing something naughty. Today these wild girls have made it commonplace to misbehave. Web sites like Perezhilton.com even celebrate bad behavior. While some argue the effect of widespread exposure of bad girl antics won't lead "ordinary" girls to mimick their behavior, I disagree. If these are the role models for our children, it's very likely our girls will copy the celebrity behavior, especially because they are seen as the new "it" girls.

It seems that celebs are arrested for driving while intoxicated without so much as batting a false eyelash. Some of Hollywood's most notorious bad girls — Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie and Britney Spears — have all recently been accused of drunk driving and/or doing drugs.

The legal blood alcohol content for driving in all states is .08. That means for a 120 pound female, legal intoxication can be reached in as few as two drinks. Need I mention that celebutantes such as Richie are estimated to weigh 85 pounds? Meaning it takes even less than two drinks to legally intoxicate her past the point of safely driving a vehicle. Furthermore, though this is the legal limit, many people experience significant impairment before the legal point of intoxication! And let's be honest, who believes these girls are only having two drinks?

In Hollywood, overusing drugs or alcohol, followed by rehab, is commonplace and celebs do so with impunity. But unlike Hollywood-land, though real world employers are not as forgiving and many would face a chance of losing their job. Repeated rehab stints followed by a quick retreat back to bad habits have provided temporary sanctuary from retribution. But this isn't monopoly, and rehab should not be used as a get out-of-jail free card! This sets a horrible example for our kids. Spears and Lohan went drinking days after their "rehabilitation."

Until recently most of these girls have avoided any real consequences for drunk driving or doing drugs — thanks to their expensive lawyers. However, celebrities should not be above the law merely because they can afford clever lawyers. These Hollywood bad girls deserve punishment, not pity. If these emancipated youngsters are going to take part in adult activities then they must accept adult responsibilities. Having access to such providential lifestyles and tempting adult parties at such a young age should be considered a privilege, not a pardon for bad choices.

I'm not necessarily suggesting that hard time in prison is the best fit punishment for the crime, but whatever happened to community service? Public reprimand and apology? Something to show America that this behavior is not condoned? At the MTV Movie Awards, the pre-show host declared her deepest sympathy to Hilton for her jail sentence. That is absurd. That is what happens when you break the law Paris …you go to jail! Would anyone feel such sympathy if Paris were the town alcoholic driving around in a beat up car and terrorizing the streets by driving drunk late at night? I think not.

Authorities finally seem to be cracking down on this out of control behavior. Richie awaits her punishment after being arrested for DUI in December 2006. Hilton is in jail. Lohan was recently arrested under suspicion of driving under the influence after she crashed into the curb. Did I mention Lohan is not even of legal drinking age?

Must we remind police that these girls are not just endangering themselves but other innocent drivers and pedestrians? According to the Insurance Information Institute, there is an alcohol-related traffic fatality in the United States every 31 minutes and an alcohol-related traffic injury every two minutes.

"To whom much is given, much is expected." (Luke 12:48) These girls are given a lot at such a young age: money, fortune and fame. With this comes the scrutiny of the public eye and a responsibility to set a good example for their young fans and stop acting like heir-heads!

Way to go Lis! But this shows a big difference in the media. You have one media organization wanting more controversy and dysfunction out of kids these days, and ridiculing Mitt's children because they don't get in trouble, and then you have another organization looking desperately for examples of classiness and responsibility. Gosh, I wonder where we can find some good examples?

Well liberalism is a disorder. That is all I can say. Good is bad and bad is good. Liberals don't try to live good lives; they try to live counterintuitive lives, to prove that they are original. They aren't proud when their kids avoid drugs, out of marriage children, divorce, or rehab. They hate parents who raise kids who turn out alright. These things are interesting, and somehow prove that they aren't "too goody-goody".

I think one of the Romney boys said he liked little-miss-sunshine. I didn't. I hated it. I was so much pretence, of the liberal writers just saying how much better they were than everyone else. Our lives may suck. My dad may be addicted to heroin, he may be a pervert, my brother may have been committed for suicide, my 13 year old may have started her long career in S&M exotic dancing, but at least we aren't boring. At least we aren't goody-goody.

They throw in some good parts of the family being nice to each other, and making it threw bad times, but in the end they glorify living on the edge street cred. Which is a loosing game. Watch SLC punk and you will learn that everyone has to grow up. It's stupid to glorify having dysfunction in your life just so you are "cool".

Which brings me back to the media. You have to assume that newspaper writers chose that career so they can tell themselves how good they are. They weren't comfortable yet with the fact that they were good. They couldn't choose their profession with the goal of providing for their family as best they could, they had to choose a career that made them feel good about themselves. And how do liberals feel good about themselves? Just go back to high school, and look at the people who didn't want to admit doing homework because it was nerdy, who would smoke, just so others could see them as being "rebels", and who were always sluting around for that kind of attention.

~Mike

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