The (Not So) Simple Life of Being a Celebrity

After watching the media circus that's gone on with Paris Hilton, the thought occurred to me that our society is in danger of crossing a very important line: confusing reality TV shows and the lives of celebrities and the famous with real life and real consequences.

[This is not limited to America. The other night Channel 4 in Great Britain aired a show about the late Princess Diana and over the protests of her surviving children, the princes, showed photos of her last moments. A great debate ensued about whether the princes had a "right to object" and some people argued that celebrities lose privacy rights when they choose to place themselves in a public light. However, in the case of the princes, I would say that they were born into a celebrity status- I don't recall either Prince William or Prince Harry choosing the constant media attention. So that argument just doesn't seem to work there.]

Many feel there is a difference when celebrities choose to be in the public light. Part of why they are paid a lot of money, it is said, is because we the public are buying rights into private aspects of their lives that those of us who are not celebrities retain. And now, with the recent explosion of reality TV shows, there has been further encroachment of the rights of everyone. Cameras have gone further filming private aspects of lives, private conversations, private events and on and on than ever before. We now have 24 hour news stations, the internet, YouTube, etc. which all add to more coverage and quicker coverage than ever before. We have less privacy than ever before.

But have we stopped to think about how our use of technology is affecting privacy issues? Not enough, I don't think . We seem to be like Uncle Bill who had the first Polaroid camera and spent the entire vacation snapping shots of everything in sight because it was just so cool until portly Aunt Tilly smashed the Polaroid and tossed it into the lake after he took a photo of her thighs in her swimsuit.

Some reality TV shows have left me asking "Is this entertainment or voyeurism?" And what is the fallout for the people who are filmed? For example, after Ozzy Osbourne's family was filmed, including during a time when his wife was undergoing cancer treatment, three family members wound up in rehabilitation. Anna Nicole Smith's willingness to allow filming of her private life also ended in tragedy with drug use and the death of her son. Then there's the constant stalking of celebrities like Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and others. Do we need to see their addictive behaviors plastered all over?

I can't say these things would not have happened without the media coverage, but then again, isn't there an even better question here - why are we watching these people in the first place? It's not as if we're going to learn anything from these folks, especially positive. It's disturbing to see celebrities' lives turned into entertainment when they face serious problems and tragedies. It puts money in the pockets of the media , pundits and photographers but distracts the public from more serious issues.

Media attention on Paris Hilton's hearing eclipsed coverage of a massive computer outage that affected most plane flights to the East Coast (as well as every other major news story). Almost apologetically, a newscaster broke away from Paris coverage to mention the outage and explain that if you planned on flying, you'd better check with your airline. Then it was back to the media circus about the star of the Simple Life whose real life has suddenly become not so simple. Paris is just the celebrity du jour - months ago it was Anna Nicole Smith or it could be any of a number of others pulled out of the rabbit hat.

What is happening to Paris is not a reality TV show. It's sad that someone who could be a role model and has had every advantage in life made poor choices landing her in trouble. That, in the end, is something useful to be learned. But those lessons can get lost in the turmoil of constant media coverage.

Maybe, if nothing else, all of this is a reminder that none of our lives are simple, especially when we make bad choices.

All the While

a new poem via A Different Light

for anyone struggling with acceptance

another new poem is up over there: Vroom Vroom Vroom (that's for you electroDude)

National Library for Blind budget cuts pending before House of Representatives

Over at Planet of the Blind, a post about pending budget cuts (up to half) for this program that provides reading materials for blind and disabled readers.

"The House of Representatives is currently considering an appropriations bill that would, among other things, cut by half the requested funds for the Library of Congress "Talking Books"program for blind and disabled readers. At stake are the funds necessary to move the old fashioned casette tapes of the library to digital playback. This transition is necessary because the old fashioned tape machines that play talking book tapes and which the blind have been using since the late sixties are no longer being manufactured. The Talking Books program which is also known as the National Library Service for the Blind must have the full funding in order to continue providing books to people with disabilities."

Via Planet of the Blind


UPDATE: For contact information, please see the first comment.

Wheelchair user becomes stuck on truck - and taken for a ride

A 21 year old man whose wheelchair handles became lodged in the front grille of a truck was taken on a 50 mph ride until police were able to stop the unaware truck driver four miles later.

"Officers stopped the truck — wheelchair still attached — at a trucking company...
An investigation revealed the man in the wheelchair had pulled in front of the truck at a gas station and it somehow became lodged by its handles to the front grille."

Via MSNBC

Apparently the wheelchair user was unharmed but was taken for a medical check.

It's A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Childrens' shows like Mr. Rogers and Sesame Street usually show a neighborhood and try to teach kids what I call sandbox 101- how to get along with each other- through the neighbors. It's a great learning tool for kids but I do think adults should have a show where they can get a refresher course every now and then.

And I think we could use an extra credit course on the topic of being a neighbor to a person with a disability.

I have had good experiences getting along with my neighbors. When I was growing up, my neighbors were like second, third and fourth sets of parents - right around the block. In Michigan, my neighbor who was elderly became a good friend. When I moved back East, I got along well with my neighbors.

I always took care of outside things like the lawn, would bring in and put out the garbage cans in a timely manner and do a neighborly favor. Going on a trip? I'd take the mail. Expecting a package? I'll watch out for it. Need a babysitterin an emergency? That's fine. Need help shoveling? No problem.

Then I acquired my disability. Suddenly I couldn't physically do some of the things listed above. My relationship with my neighbors changed. I had to hire and depend on others to do the outside things - and sometimes the garbage cans were not brought in and out on the exact day but a day or two later. Hints were dropped - verbal and nonverbal. Things became tense .

Once I was able to develop over time better ways to get these things done, things calmed down. Talking about it also helped - although it took time. What folks didn't get - and don't get - is that behind closed doors, I was dealing with the same situation that's outside 24/7. There were gaps in help due to limited resources.

But my neighbors didn't know that for one simple reason: they never came inside to find out despite invitations.

This is a ticklish subject because by no means am I criticizing anyone, just pointing out that humans tend to judge what they don't understand. It's not a matter of making it someone else's problem, but working toward understanding the change in circumstances living with a disability creates. I'm not trying to put anything on anyone or place expectations on people. For example, I'm not expecting my neighbors to help with my garbage cans on that one, two or three weeks out of 52 weeks a year when my help can't come over. It would be nice, but I don't expect it. I pay someone else. It's just that it might take a day or two to get someone to do it on those rare occasions. What I'm asking for is a reasonable response to my reality - not a free ride.

As I watch other people with disabilities move into the community and deal with similar issues, I am haunted by one question:

Where is Fred Rogers when we need him?

A wheelchair built for two

[visual description: A man and a woman sit on a couch that has two large wheels at the sides. There are pedals in front of their feet to propel it.]

When I saw this picture, I realized that it might make more sense for me to design a double occupant rather than just a single passenger power chair since I seem to spend half my time convincing my cat that he doesn't have to ride shotgun with me. Ever since I got the power chair, my cat has displayed an inordinate amount of interest in it. This includes jumping up in my lap as I speed by, sleeping in the chair when I exit it, making re-entry an engineering feat, and overseeing the battery charging every night.

My cat never showed this kind of interest in my manual wheelchair. He would cuddle up for a nap on the air cushion once in a while but nothing like this. What makes this couch look good is that my cat is large. I call him fluffy and he is, but he also weighs in over 20 pounds. He could use his own seat. Sharing mine isn't working out.

Tonight I decided to put a kleenex box on the wheelchair when I transferred onto my armchair to keep the fluffy beast off of it. He peered up at the box, sulked and decided to jump in my lap where he stretched himself out to his full length, falling off the sides of the armchair and kicking me in my chin with his long legs. At least my wheelchair was empty and ready for me. The only problem was I couldn't get him off my lap so I could transfer back into it.

This could all be avoided if I had a couch on wheels. I could stay on my side and the cat could stay on his. It would be comfy.

The only difficulty would be getting around corners.

Woman convicted of neglect of disabled relative

"A Fayette County woman faces up to 35 years in prison after being convicted of neglecting her mentally retarded cousin, who was found naked and covered in waste and sores in a camper-trailer on the woman's property.

A seven-men, five-women jury convicted Jewel Parsons on a charge of intentional neglect of an elder person on Tuesday after more than three hours of deliberations. Parsons, 44, of Fayetteville, also was found guilty of intentional neglect of an elder person, misappropriation of funds that belonged to an elder person and embezzlement by misuse of a fiduciary relationship, all felonies"

Via FoxNews

Her attorney argued to the jury that she gave her relative the same kind of care anyone else in her family did and that no one else wanted to do it. She brought her a meal every day and claimed she wanted to give her relative privacy.

The woman also misappropriated her cousin's money, spending it on items for herself such as tennis shoes and DVD's.

The cousin died a week after being found.