Ashley Simpson vs. Entertainment

Sad news.  Ashley Simpson is getting a divorce.  Not really surprising, but what bothered me was this line from the article:  The singer, who was slammed for her now-infamous lip-synching performance on “Saturday Night Live” in October 2004, blah, blah, blah...

Really?  Is this such a big deal in an industry where everything from Kim Kardashian's "reality" to John Travolta's sexual preference is fake.  You'd be hard pressed to find a middle aged actor who hasn't had a face lift, nose job, tummy tuck, implants, botox, capped teeth or liposuction.  And are you telling me that 99.9% of men in Hollywood just happen to keep all their hair?  So, why does everyone feels a need to slam this girl for not being "real".

Nobody is complaining about the artificial breasts on ridiculously thin actresses (no men, anyway), so why is everyone concerned with a performer actually singing on stage?  It's entertainment.  When the General Lee jumps over a 100 foot ravine tooting its Dixie horn and drives away without breaking an axle, blowing a tire or bending the frame do people complain that it's not real?  No, they go with it.  It's fun.

In the late 80's Milli Vanilli rose to fame with catchy radio songs and everybody was happy to jump on the band wagon.  They even won a Grammy.  When it came out that the songs were actually performed by talented, albeit unattractive people, Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan became pariahs and their "friends" jumped ship.  To cope with this Rob turned to drugs and crime.  It ultimately lead to his death.  For what?  Because he was a good looking guy who didn't really sing the songs he performed on stage for thousands of screaming fans?

For me, when it comes to "entertainment" I want to be entertained.  It's nice that Jackie Chan performs his own stunts.  It adds to the fun of the movie.  But, when Jamie Lee Curtis is dangling from Arnold Schwartzenegger's massive arm, leaning from a helicopter over the burning wreckage of a bad guy's limo, I don't care that it's all green screen.  It's entertaining and nobody got hurt.

I think the same can be said of Ashley.

The Law of the Hurdle

The Law of the Hurdle:

We ask for strength and God gives us difficulties to make us strong.
We pray for wisdom and God sends us problems, the solution of which develops wisdom;
We plead for prosperity and God gives us brain and brawn to work;
We ask for courage and God gives us dangers to overcome;
We beg for favors and God gives us opportunities.
(The Laws of Success - Sterling W. Sill)

Why do books like this go out of print?  I don't know.  However, I do know that this is the year I jump the hurdle that's been in front of me for a very long time.