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American Idol:
Danny is the true talent, the true singer. But he is stodgy and not very good looking.
Kris (with a K) is much cuter, a little like a laid-back rock star. His voice is above average, but I think it is his self-confidence that sets him apart.
Adam is the strange creature, who looks like a vampire on stage. When he sings, I almost get the impression that he will start to uncurl his tongue. He has a sweet smile before he starts singing, but is truly frightening once he sings.
And the fans eliminated...Danny, the true talent. People really do want the unusual and the good looking. Even the clueless judges find Adam the Vampire exceptional. This is how stars are made.
Dancing with the Stars:
This show can really be quite exceptional at times. The Viennese Waltz and the Quickstep are classics, elegant and refined, and the show does them one hundred percent credit. But, ballroom also includes those body-baring and body-shaking "dances": the Salsa, Rumba, Cha Cha and Samba (I don't think I missed any). These are truly embarrassing dances to watch.
But, that is the legacy of pop culture. Overt sexuality is always there, and even shows which could redeem this obvious tarnish revert to it at one point or another.
At times, all I can say is, "Strauss would be turning in his grave right now."
Miss California:
When Miss California's brave answer about defending marriage as between men and women was aired, all I could think was how beautiful she was. More so than the other contestants there. Then, awful photos of her started springing up, showing her half clothed, in quasi-revealing poses.
This of course doesn't sit well with her conservative, Christian (as she says) world view. But, once again, pop culture is so tainted that a young Christian girl feels it is alright to pose semi-nude, and speak of traditional things like marriage in public.
There is an artistic tradition of the female nude. It is imperative in art school to learn to draw the figure, unclothed. But, in drawings and paintings, there isn't that immediate and raw reality one gets from photographs. Paintings defuse the harshness of an exposed body, trying to give it something other than an erotic (or pornographic) effect. Miss California's photos, unfortunately, were not art.
The problem is partly exploitation. Photographers will do all they can to get very young girls (Miss California was 17 when some of these photos were taken) unawares.
But, the bigger question is why is her family letting her do this? And why doesn't she have enough prudence to not have such photos taken?
"Beauty pageants and modeling jobs demand this", is the response. That only means that beautiful girls like Miss California shouldn't be attending pageants and modeling sessions. I would make that clear restriction if I were her parent.
Even the now infamous Sarah Palin defends these photos, and of course the whole beauty pagaent industry. But then, she was the one who exposed her pregnant daughter to the world during the RNC.
