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Jewish World Review
Jan. 26, 2007
/ 7 Shevat 5767
Various and Sundry Dept.
By
Greg Crosby
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Last week, if you were paying attention, you know that my column was about the rain and how we, in L.A., don't get much of it anymore. I lamented (which I sometimes will do - that is, when I'm not bemoaning) how there seemed to be more rainy days when I was a kid then there are now. That column stirred a reader to write (an interesting turn of phrase). I found the letter interesting and thought-provoking so I'd like to share it with you here:
"You must have grown up before the late 60s, when the weather changed.
We were going through a slight cold-spell, planet wise, then. In the South the rain came like clock-work during the summer: 4:00pm...30min rain followed by steaming streets and rainbows. But it was the South, just like any tropical landscape, 4o'clock rain was the rule. That hasn't happened in the South since the 70s. Along with the Chesapeake Bay freezing up, the Hudson Bay freezing up, and the Great Lakes icing over. Used to be the freezing of the Chesapeake was announced each year by the national evening news anchors, like the swallows coming to Capistrano.
We grew up in the last burst of cold of the Little Ice Age. Now we are re-entering the climate that dominates between real Ice Ages. England will grow competitive wines again, Greenland will be green again. Weather will be very different around the globe, and 100 years from now our grandkids will be wondering what all the fuss was about with the "global warming"..."Didn't they want it to be warm, Daddy? Did they really LIKE it cold?"
Rain will fall, in different places.
Snow will fall, in different places.
Life will adapt, grow, thrive.
New nations will become economic powerhouses in new ways, old nations will find other ways to live.
The Sahara was once moist.
The Asian highlands were once forested.
Antarctica was once tropical, and only a few centuries ago was livable in the coastal areas.
Our Living Planet is always changing. And now you have SNOW in LA.
Enjoy....
Lee Bailey, in Iowa"
On another subject completely, at first I thought that I was about the only one in the world who didn't care about the Rosie O'Donnell and Donald Trump "feud," but now I think that most people are probably with me and it's only the MEDIA that really cares about it. The media obsess over certain things; things they THINK people care about. Things like Paris Hilton. In fact, I've yet to meet anyone, at any age that has anything positive to say about this over-hyped, talent-challenged girl. No one I've talked to has any interest in her whatsoever. It's purely a media thing, I'm convinced of it.
It seems that the people who work in the press, in television and radio and magazines and other forms of news/entertainment, feed off each others shallow, simplistic interests and regurgitate it back out to the masses, framing the information in such a way so as to tell the public who and what they should "care" about. Most people don't buy into it, but the young naïve ones unfortunately will.
There is a segment of the population that will buy into almost anything. When something like 12 percent of all Americans actually believes that Elvis is still alive, is it any wonder that there might be millions who swallow the hype that Paris Hilton is worth focusing one's attention on for more than three seconds?
And by the way, what is this media obsession with celebrity babies now? As my sister said, "I don't remember the press making a big deal over Liz Taylor's children when she was the hottest celebrity around. Or any of the other big stars years ago, for that matter." The media didn't focus on it back then. This is a relatively new thing, and once again I must say that my interest in what a movie star's baby looks like is about as much as my interest in what a Guatemalan roofer's baby looks like - maybe even less.
And furthermore, my interest in Brad and Angelina, their children, their aunts and uncles, their cousins, nephews, nieces, grandparents, and house pets is totally nonexistent. Why anyone, who actually has their own life, would care is beyond my comprehension. So there.
But for those of you who do have a life but might be interested in seeing who has a much richer one, take a gander at the list of top twenty richest women in entertainment according to Forbes Magazine last week. They are (in order of net worth):
1. Oprah Winfrey $1.5 billion
2. J.K. Rowling $1 billion
3. Martha Stewart $650 million
4. Madonna $325 million
5. Celine Dion $250 million
6. Mariah Carey $225 million
7. Janet Jackson 150 million
8. Julia Roberts $140 million
9. Jennifer Lopez $110 million
10. Jennifer Aniston $110 million
11. The Olsen Twins $100 million
12. Britney Spears $100 million
13. Judge Judy $95 million
14. Sandra Bullock $85 million
15. Cameron Diaz $75 million
16. Gisele Bundchen $70 million
17. Ellen DeGeneres $65 million
18. Nicole Kidman $60 million
19. Christina Aguilera $60 million
20. Renee Zellweger $45 million
The huge paydays of these gals proves that in the entertainment industry, at least, the old "glass ceiling" has done been broken. By the way, mull this one over - Judge Judy makes more than all 9 of the Supreme Court Justices combined, and probably more than all the Supreme Court Justices that ever existed in the entire history of our country, combined. As the title of that song goes, "That's Entertainment."
I will say this; most of the women listed are hard working, smart and talented. But I still don't care what their babies look like. And here's something to be eminently thankful for - Paris Hilton hasn't made the list. At least not this year, anyway.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Greg Crosby, former creative head for Walt Disney publications, has written thousands of comics, hundreds of children's books, dozens of essays, and a letter to his congressman. A freelance writer in Southern California, you may contact him by clicking here.
Greg Crosby Archives
© 2006, Greg Crosby
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