Appropriate Behavior
I have actually been thinking about this post for a couple days. Then this morning, CBS’ Sunday Morning ran a piece about the same issue. They focused on TMZ and how they get all the celebrity news faster than anyone else. Looks like TMZ beat me to the story this time, too. I am not really into following celebrities. I don’t really care much in knowing what they had for breakfast (not that many of them eat breakfast). I think all that gossip is just a trivial waist of time. However, it seems that more and more these celebs have been invading my news. I have been quite over the oil spill in the gulf and wish they would find something else to report on. Then along comes a news story about a celebrity getting arrested, filing for divorce or misbehaving in some way.
August 31, 1997 I was watching television before going to bed when my program was interrupted. They reported that there had been a car accident in France involving Princess Diana. I had come to admire this woman and sat watching in wonder. The last reported before I went to bed was that the princess suffered a broken arm and was sent to the hospital. I felt sure she would be fine and went to bed. When I arose the next morning and turned on the news, I learned of the complete tragedy. Princess Diana was dead. Through the months following I learned of the chase her car was put through by the paparazzi and blamed them for her death. It really brought to light what reporters and photographers will do to get a story, even cause the death of a kind and generous lady like the princess. If I want to be that intimately involved in someone’s life, I will marry them. This is the main reason I don’t go in for all the celebrity gossip. People have a right to their privacy, let them have it.
This post is not about that kind of gossip people seem to thrive on. I saw last week when Lindsey Lohan went to court and was sentenced to 90 days jail time. The experts stated that she will probably only do 30 days and in solitary confinement at that. More and more celebrities are behaving badly and expecting not to have to answer for their misdeeds. Mel Gibson has once again ticked someone off. Personally I didn’t think there was anyone left for him to tick off. Now he has charges pending once again. Will he answer for this? I doubt it. Being a celebrity seems to give a person a get out of jail free card. they are allowed to behave as badly as they like and then they don’t have to pay. Had that been a regular citizen in that courtroom last week, they would have been hauled off to jail straight-away and put into general population for the entire 90 days. However, Ms. Lohan went home and planned how she was going to party that night for her birthday.
I was raised to respect other people and especially authority. Even back then the celebrities didn’t get out of line that badly. Our local celebrities seem to think they can behave how they wish and not have to face consequences. With previous football coaches I have seen some of the UT VOLs go out and break the law, get arrested and nothing happen to them on the team or in school, even if they broke the law on campus. Now there is a coach who does things differently. He believes the “stars” of the field should be good examples on the field and off. Recently a few team members were involved in a barroom brawl and were arrested. One has been expelled from the team and the other were suspended indefinitely. I have not been a VOL fan in the past, but to this coach I lift my glass.
Celebrities, no matter who they are nor how much they are worth, should be afforded the same rights as the rest of the population. No special treatment, no solitary confinement. Give them what anyone else would get. The new appropriate behavior for our role models in the US is misbehavior. Just like burning Lebron’s tee shirts fed his narcissism, allowing celebrities to get away with anti-social behavior shows them that they can get away with what they do as well. And they will continue to be the ill model of behavior for our children and teens until we show them we will not tolerate it any longer.
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