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dead celebrities

Is it me or does anybody else find it annoying or ridiculous that there are television shows, panel discussions and a host of other media outlets that devote time discussing celebrities who are dead as if they are alive? There is a new show "Diana at 50". There have been numerous shows about Elvis, Bruce Lee, Ayrton Senna and others. We're not talking about memorializing them by discussing their achievements when they were alive. But they speculate on how much greater their careers would have been if they had lived. What is it about us that we can't say they are dead end of story. Your thoughts?

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Permalink Reply by Richard K. Emms on August 26, 2011 at 7:08am

You're right. I'ver never given it that much thought, but did find it anoying. I would think that our time could be much better spent. Perhaps they are all waiting to die so they can see thier idols again.

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Permalink Reply by Steph S. on August 26, 2011 at 10:22am

Maybe they are hoping for better ratings by discussing popular late celebrities and hoping that their fans all are watching the show.

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Permalink Reply by mojo5501 on August 27, 2011 at 8:11am

Definitely related to our cultural fascination with 'celebrities'. Dead or alive. I sometimes fear that people want to know more about what's going on in Hollywood and in the private lives of celebrities than they do about Washington DC or their own home town and state history! It's a kind of obsession with re-visiting the death of these celebrities too...tragic death trumps death from old age.

Mourning the loss of Elvis in 2011 seems pretty pathetic to me...but I try to 'move on' from loss rather than dwell on it. People are still shedding tears over ELVIS.

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Permalink Reply by Brian Wood on August 27, 2011 at 11:15am

If it came down to musical talent, Bo Diddley would be "god," and Elvis, denied success and drugs, would be working juke joints in Tupelo.

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Permalink Reply by mojo5501 on August 27, 2011 at 9:31pm

Nicely put. Celebrity worship...and just remember that fan is short for "fanatic"!

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Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on August 27, 2011 at 10:42pm

Im so sick of seeing LIVE celebrity "news" everywhere - all over the internet, on the airwaves, in the grocery store line. I shouldn't even know who the fuck Kim Kardashian is - let alone that she's making millions by having married some guy. It's no wonder that our social and political system is so shallow - too many people only care about gossip, not about understanding the issues and challenges in our world.

It's OK to be interested in favorite characters, but it's way out of hand.

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Permalink Reply by mojo5501 on August 28, 2011 at 9:18am

I completely agree with this statement: I shouldn't even know who the fuck Kim Kardashian is.

I avoid getting 'sucked into' those shows like "Entertainment Weekly" & Enews. I like to stand in the line at the grocery store and proudly (insert smug face) think to myself: I don't know who ANY of these people are on the front pages of these magazines. (Ha)

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Permalink Reply by annet on August 28, 2011 at 1:11pm

There is a meme that she is fauxmous for getting peed on in a sex tape. If true, this alone is solid evidence that there is no god. lol.

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Permalink Reply by annet on August 30, 2011 at 8:51pm

lol!

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Permalink Reply by Brent Feeney on August 28, 2011 at 10:29am

I see so many gossip rags, tabloids, psuedo-celebrity items and such at the grocery stores, drug stores, you name it, and I just want to take a banner over all of them that says this:

WHY THE FUCK SHOULD AMERICA CARE?

Sadly, as a society, we care more about fluffy "celebrity" news, crapola psuedo-stories and other distractions instead of what's REALLY going on out there. I fear all this stupidity is setting us up for a major fall, and that fall may already be starting to happen.

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Permalink Reply by mojo5501 on August 28, 2011 at 11:29am

So true, so true. Information and entertainment have become so intertwined we have a hard time distinguishing which is which. Ask yourself the question: "Is this information useful to me in my life...to make decisions about my future, for example". If the answer is no, grab the "Consumer Reports" or the "Time" or the "SmartMoney" issue. Your brain will thank you for it later.....be informed.

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Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on August 28, 2011 at 12:10pm

Even our politics is saturated with celebrity attitude. Superstars like Palin, Perry, Bachmann, most of the people who support them don't know what they have done or what they plan to do or how - just that they are political & religious celebrities. I wouldn't be surprised if Brent is right that this stupidity is setting us up for some kind of a fall and already happening. Our politics shows it. Our standing in the world is declining as well. We might as well elect Elvis to political office.