March 16th 2008

The Lilith eZine Sunday Edition

Letter from the Editor

Years ago I kept overhearing people talking about a hotel in Paris. I wondered why they kept mentioning the Paris Hilton this, Paris Hilton that, until I eventually clued in... Oh, some idiot billionaire named his daughter Paris Hilton, and she's one of the heirs to the Hilton hotel chain.

The amount of media attention dedicated to Paris Hilton (and Britney Spears) is ridiculous. Certainly we have better things to talk about than some snobbish rich person's sex video and drunk driving charges?

Like the war in Iraq. Or Afghanistan. Or the American Recession. Or obesity rates in Canada and the United States. Or global warming and climate change.

Except we can only take so much of such topics. Sometimes we just want to tune them out and listen/watch/read something that is braindead and vaguely humourous. That is where Paris Hilton comes in. She satisfies the basic human desires of curiousity and mocking rich people. It is entertainment in the lowest form, but we still enjoy to mock celebrities and their mistakes (and in Paris Hilton's case mock how she even became famous).

We should talk more about controversial issues, but will it do any good in some instances? In many cases lengthy talks always end in stalemates and nothing happens. Wars continue, the White House continues to ignore the economy, fat people still eat more and more because they're depressed and corporations refuse to change or slowly change.

So reading the latest braindead gossip about Paris Hilton is basically a favourite past-time for some people. It keeps their minds off of issues that bother them, but can't do anything about. We can protest the war all we want and demand George W. Bush pay more attention to the economy, but Bush doesn't listen to polls, or protests and doesn't give a shit about the economy.

But hearing the latest stupid thing a celebrity did brightens our existence for the moment and take our minds off these pressing concerns. We laugh, and laughter may not fix the economy or bring peace to the world in a hurry, but it certainly helps. Paris Hilton reminds us that we are human, alive and that we all make stupid mistakes.

Sincerely,
Suzanne MacNevin
Editor of the Lilith eZine


The Art History Archive
Mordechai Ardon - Polish-Israeli Abstract Painter

The Canada eZine
Lose Weight Canada, Get Lower Taxes
Canadian Obesity Statistics
Should We Stop Coddling the Obese?

The Entertainment eZine
Paris Hilton - Socialite and Tabloid Star

The Fashion eZine
Nike Sweatshops in China
Lars Burmeister - Male Supermodel

The Feminist eZine
The Ten Worst Countries for Women to Live In.

The Politics eZine
American Economy Collapsing - The US Dollar slipped 18% in 2007 and GDP went up 2.2% = Economy Down approx. 16%.
Don't Teach English in South Korea

The Sex eZine
Sex Jokes and Cartoons III