February 10, 2007

MBC's response to Steve

Unfortunately, you weren't funny. At all. You were just vitriolic.

Carlin, et al

Actually, Ms Crain, I'm a fan of all the comedians you mention (though, to be honest, Mr Black's yelling gets on my nerves a bit -- I prefer my wit to be a little more low key, like, say, Harry Shearer's "Le Show").

If Ms Crain's posting was intended to be risible, then I guess we're just on humor wavelengths. I guess I don't see much funny in calling someone "white trash" (as opposed to "brown trash"? "black trash"?) or deriding their accent or tone of voice, as if that's a mark of intelligence or lack thereof. Sounds like bigotry to me, but hey, I'm not able to dig humor, so what do I know?

Anna Nicole Smith

I think when it is said and done we will learn we didn't know Anna as well as we thought we did. I believe the term "drug user" has been freely thrown around to describe her as if she snorted and shot up 24/7 but what if we find later this woman lived with chronic pain, fought demons from her abusive childhood, loved her son so much she felt it was worth fighting for an old man's money so her son could have what she never had only to loose him. This boy and Stern seemed to be the only 2 people in the world that loved her unconditionally. Maybe she knew all along who impregnated her but felt Stern would be the best father to her daughter as she did her son. None of us knew her, even her relatives didn't know her. Many a woman have either played or appeared dumb but were far from it. She's dead and we are still talking about her, she must have done something right. One thing was for sure,she had the weight of the world on her shoulders and that was no joke.

I feel bad for her. She seems to me to be the victim of recogition dependancy disorder, a common disorder these days usually shown in young females who think they can find their way to the top using a slide. We loved her when she was slim, naked, and not talking. She however wanted us to love her for who she was and that was never going to happen.

Her death has been such a big deal because she was a playmate and a tragedy, the stuff of good stories. If she were alive today after a near miss, she wouldn't have stolen the headlines, and we would have nothing good to say about her.

Anna Nicole Smith did however do one thing very well this last week. She gave us all a reason to stop looking at the Iraq body count which has, in media terms, become just about the most boring story lately. A blonde Paymate dead in a hotel room was always going to be more important that a very unsexy war in a very unsexy place.

White trash or not, I hope wherever she is, she is peaceful now.

The country that voted for George Bush, twice, is now mourning the death of Anna Nicole Smith, another great Texan. We do love idiots.

What further proof do we need that the American Empire is in decline?

In Response to Steve

Steve: Just one question: How do you trash trash? Hasn't the trash already accomplished that? I'd say I was merely taking out the trash.

But the real point is that you seem unable to differentiate between humor and mean-spiritedness. The job of a humorist is to point out the absurd. I don't happen to be Scott Simon--sorry. I'm known, if I say so myself, for my savage wit, which plenty of people appreciate. I take aim at the patently ridiculous, in this case a media inappropriately obsessed with someone who made a religion out of bad taste. To me, it's a scandal to give Anna Nicole Smith's death as much air time, for instance, as Princess Di's. The latter will be remembered for her widespread charitable works. Anna Nicole will be remembered for her widespread legs. Sorry, pal, but I'm just telling it like it is. P.S. I'll bet you're not a fan of Lewis Black or George Carlin or Bill Maher or Jon Stewart either...

I feel bad that Anna was messed up, but it is hard to think of her demise as the profound tragedy so many people are making it out to be. To a certain extent, we, our culture, created her, and I doubt many of her tabloid consuming fans really wanted to see Anna live happily into old age. So shame on us.

But shame on her, too. Did anybody catch the videotape of her having a cesarean that she and Howard K. Stern sold to Entertainment Tonight? She was hardly a class act.

JM: Fair point, but I'm not as concerned about Anna's funeral. Just as long as her name is included on the monument for US servicemen and women who gave their lives in Iraq.

Does anyone know if there are plans for Anna's funeral yet? I'm wondering if it'd be more appropriate for her to lie in state at the White House or in the Capitol Rotuna. A horse-drawn caisson, for sure. If only Jackie O were still with us. She'd know what to do.

Anna Nicole and Mary Beth

I am somewhat taken aback at Ms Crain's trashing of Anna Nicole Smith. While I confess I took little notice of Ms Smith in life and am not affected by her passing any more than that of any other fellow human, I am somewhat dismayed at the vehemence of Ms Crain's article.

I wonder what unresolved issues Ms Crain may have to unleash this level of invective.

NPR's Scott Simon commentary this Saturday morning (2/10/07) entitled "What's in a Name? A Face? A Sexual Orientation?" touches more sympathetically on Ms Smith's death.

I would include a URL but this blog refuses to accept them. Go to the NPR site, click on "Weekend Edition Saturday", and find the aforementioned article.

Then you be the judge.