I’m not a celebrity watcher at all, but I’m trying to avoid work, so here’s my completely wild speculation in response to the OP:
I think the reason for the disconnect is twofold:
One, it’s hard to tell if a celebrity is genuinely mentally ill or simply abysmally spoiled. Since celebrities are frequently pampered and deferred to to a ridiculous degree, one tends to assume the latter. Unfortunately, that same deference tends to eliminate any chance that a genuinely ill individual will be bitch-slapped into treatment.
Two, there is such a thing as history. Someone who has a history of throwing attention-seeking tantrums over nothing in particular, going to wild parties at innappropriate times, and wailing miserably about her life to anyone who will listen will not garner much sympathy when a possibly genuine trama (such as losing your children) strikes. If, say, Natalie Portman, had publically melted down and needed to be dragged to the hospital in restraints, I think a lot more people would be concerned.
I was going to bring up that 9-11 thread in the other CS thread too. Good memory.
I think with that 9-11 thread in particular there was a need for the participants to deal with their grief and that was an outlet that offered a break from the constant seriousness of the situation. It wasn’t quite the same as this, although maybe we need a break from the constant circus surrounding Britney and a thread like the CS one is a way for posters to express their disgust for the situation with a comical release.
She could pay to go to college and acquire skills. Shirley Temple, for example, became an ambassador. Or she could spend the rest of her life traveling to exotic places, having sex with exotic men, doing exotic drugs, and being an exotically rich and famous person. Or she could retire with her children and nannies and servants to a secluded estate somewhere nice and pretty. Or she could cash in on her fame and fortune in any number of creative or not-so-creative ways.
Or she could continue to act like a fucking drugged-out idiot who can’t tell good attention from bad attention.
Look, it sucks that she’s a drug addict. I know a lot of drug addicts. Some of them burned out. Some of them are dead. And some of them got their shit together and are having pretty good lives. Most of them had meltdowns that rival this incident. But none of them have or had the resources and connections Britney Fucking Spears has.
Would it help put that point to bed for you if the helicopters were media-owned, as opposed to police-owned?
I saw video last night of the situation, and CNN has as part of their coverage on their web site an aerial video of Britney being wheeled out of her house. I know at least two helicopters were in the area (saw one of them flying around in the video from the second), and it wouldn’t surprise me to learn there were three.
So, rather than specify they were police helicopters, can we just say “helicopters” and put that particular nit to bed?
Absolutely. But distinguishing between police helicopters and news helicopters is hardly picking nits. They are dispatched under decidedly different protocols. And it might explain why the majors news sources made no mention of them. They are hardly worthy of mention.
I don’t know enough about Ms. Portman, but if Jodi Foster, for example, had to be dragged out of her house in restrains and her kids taken to the hospital we would show more sympathy. Ms. Foster has not made a profession out of being the screwed up kid in town, and if someone had a good excuse it was her.
Jodi — Britney. Amazing that they belong to the same species.
I didn’t know about B’s meltdown, it’s been raining and I get no signal from the satellite dish, plus I only watch a channel or two, none include gossip. But yes, I find her story interesting. It’s all too human.
I was going to post this very thing. We don’t know she is mentally ill or an addict. She has never been diagnosed as far as we know. I’m sure if she had bothered to see a professional for a diagnosis she’d have a press-conference to let everyone know so we could feel sorry for her or it would have turned up during the custody trials.
She probably does have mental issues and it is rather sad what her life has become but it is really hard to feel sympathy for someone who does not seem to care anymore. I hope that this incident will help her get some real help.
But until such time as she is officially diagnosed by a professional who has met with her in person she is going to be mocked.
Diosa, just wanted to say that I agree with your OP in spirit. The thread you cited is heartless in places in ways that made me wince. I don’t think it’s funny to joke about a mother of two kids under the age of 6 dying, whether it’s a celebrity or a stranger. I have to hate someone’s guts for a very personal reason to even think about wishing them harm, even in jest, and I’m not a very nice person either.
I also agree that the board in general has a confusingly two-faced attitude towards mental illness, though I suspect the people who get outraged in threads about mental illness are not the same ones yukking it up over Britney’s misfortunes. It can be quite confusing-- on one had, if you tell a guy who has OCD to just wash his fucking dishes already, or someone with Restless Leg Syndrome to get some exercise, you are an insensitive bitch who needs to STFU about people’s real, serious problems. But someone has a major meltdown and needs to be hospitalized, as does her 2 year old… bwahaha! Maybe she’ll die and I’ll win Celebrity Death Pool! You, who are saying it’s cruel to mock her? Get a sense of humor! Confusing.
As I said in the other thread, I wonder if people will feel differently about Britney if it is discovered that she actually has a serious psychiatric problem like bipolar disorder. I feel sorry for her either way, because she’s a fucked up girl who has never really had a normal life. Sure, to us, retired at 23 sounds like bliss. To her, not being famous probably feels a lot like not existing. In any case, I wish she’d go away, get help, and disappear. I think it would be better for everyone.
I came in here thinking I’d argue in defence of pouring scorn on celebrity train wrecks, but actually, I think the OP has a point, and the Craig Ferguson link left me feeling chastened.
I think that’s exactly what it is. We have worries like paying bills, getting our kids looked after while we’re still at work, feeding our families, saving for the future, etc - it’s ever so easy, when burdened with these mundane concerns, to view celebrities as having an easy life where every concern is handled for them. Because of this, and because we can’t really see what it is that drives them to behave in such a fucked up manner, it seems like they’re consciously, or stupidly choosing to do it. In short, it seems not like they’re messed up, but just that they’re unbelievably naive and stupid.
But I think you have persuaded me that mocking them is heartless and hypocritical. I will endeavour to reform.
Britney is dying now? How’s that? She needs to read the fine print of her celebrity contract–she lives in a fishbowl. She can’t have just her “good moments” filmed, taped, photographed etc.
I pity her kids. I don’ t have much pity for her. I do hope she gets help, and I hope her kids have someone stable in their lives (not sure if K-fed qualifies). I think it highly unlikely that anyone here, even those who were cracking jokes in CS don’t want her helped.
Thing is, people exchange morals and values through talking about such things as celebrity behavior. Britney is way over the line when it comes to both acceptable and normal behavior. A few jokes at her expense on a message board don’t hurt her in the least. Should she be fodder for late night monologues? That’s another question.
Having known, only tangentially( thank god) girls like Britney, I can safely say that people in RL talk about them just as harshly as Dopers have BS. It sounds so righteous and pious to say, “we shouldn’t do this”, but humans do this. Deriding person X for crossing lines may not help X, but it keeps the lines visible to all. That’s not a bad thing. I think she would also find that the press etc would be quite forgiving IF she straightens out her act. Second chances (although for her, it’s more like 4th chances). I will continue to roll my eyes and talk about trash getting money and fame and blowing both.
In the original thread, people were lamenting that they didn’t pick her for their Celebrity Death Pool 2008. That’s the only reference to Britney dying that I’ve seen, but it seemed kind of callous to me.
I wonder how anyone can see her behavior over the last few years and NOT draw the conclusion that she is deeply disturbed and clearly suffering. I think Homer Simpson said it best: “It’s funny 'cause it’s not me.”
Sorry, I will reserve the right to use her as an example. Wish her harm? Never done it, never will. Maybe even mock her. I know people who have mental problems and little or no resources, and yet manage not to become laughingstocks and cautionary tales.
Out of of politeness I will not mock her to her face, just as I don’t mock my screwed up acquaintances to their faces. I feel sorry for her and her kids, but cautionary tales are not always a bad thing.
I’m quite fine with that - we must do as we see fit. My own conscience has been pricked and I don’t think I have any valid cause to do it any more (maybe if I had need of examples, for instance if I was teaching psychology).
This isn’t directed at you in particular,** Diosa**, but one thing I find quite annoying is the proposition that a twenty six year old mother of two is a “young girl”. She is not. She is an adult. Clearly she is an adult who has issues, and there can be a lot of discussion about whether it is caused by addictions of various sorts (alcohol, drugs, or even to being famous) or by mental illness, but nevertheless, she is past the age where she should be accountable for her life.
That “young girl” language came up a lot for Paris Hilton and to me carries an implicit justification for being less responsible than other adults.
Do you really think she’s college material? Even if she is smarter than she seems (I guess she’d almost have to be), would you want to go to school if the whole world was waiting to laugh at you for being stupid? I wouldn’t trade places with her for the world. Money can’t buy happiness; it only lets you pick your misery.
You do have a point. I will try to bring a little understanding to you though, about why people seem so cold towards Britney. The popular perception, not entirely un-earned, is that she has brought this trouble into her life. She calls the paps to come photograph her, and created such a feeding frenzy she got kicked out of one of her favorite hotels. She behaves in bizarre manners in public, to further chum the waters and bring more attention to herself. She has refused to listen to those who want to help her, and go to rehab and get counseling. She is blindly running towards a cliff, just as Amy Winehouse is. If she had followed the law, and court orders in the first place, and behaved in a socially acceptable manner, she wouldn’t have as much stress in her life. She’s outdoing the poor salmon going up waterfalls to mate at this point, that is how much she’s fighting the “system”. If she’d worked within the system she wouldn’t have so much woe. In a way, she poured a vat of hardship, woe, and trouble over her head, willingly and publicly. That is why some have hardened their hearts and won’t offer her sympathy. Because she doesn’t care enough about herself to work within the system, to take the help that is offered, and to try to get better so she can be there for her children.