A Grown Woman: The Bully Cycle

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The Bully Cycle

edited to add even more below.

So I'm watching the news today and all the Paris Hilton/Larry King recapping, and once again I really am disappointed in our media coverage - although I don't think Paris even qualifies as "news", but if you're going to report, do your research and report accurately.

It seems that everyone feels that the big bad bully (Paris) has been pulled off her pedestal, so now it's okay for US to be the bullies. Isn't that how it works? We're all better than Paris now because we didn't go to jail, so to make us feel even better about ourselves we're going to keep kicking her just to prove a point.

First of all, Larry King conducted a stupid interview.
Larry: "Do you have your license back?"
Paris: "Yes, it is fully reinstated."
Larry: "So you won't be driving anymore, right?"
Paris: "I, uh, what?"

Why would she not drive? She has a license, fully reinstated. Apparently Paris needs to become Saint Paris in order for Larry to forgive her. He tried to push her into saying she won't ever drink again. Give me a break, let's all please act like adults here and acknowledge that we never saw Paris slumped over in her car with her mouth hanging open (Lindsay!) or bashing a car with an umbrella after shaving her head (Britney!) or driving the wrong way on the highway (Nicole!). She did drink and drive, that is inexcusable, but she did her time, and she did more time than most people do for that crime. She may prove me wrong but I don't think she's going to do that again, and she has the resources to pay for other options. She doesn't have to join the Amish, she doesn't have to wear high buttoned up collars, she doesn't have to adopt seven orphans from third world countries to change her ways.

Today on the news they slammed her for not having the details already set for how she's going to give charitably. SHE JUST GOT OUT OF JAIL for gawd's sake. How is she going to set up a charitable foundation in 48 hours?? She DID mention the causes she wanted to help, and she DID say she was willing to work with MADD. But there was no mention of that on the news.

She was slammed for not being able to instantly name her favorite Bible passage after Larry King asked the question completely out of left field. I have read the Bible and I'm afraid if I was put on the spot to answer that question I'd probably say "The story of Noah's Ark" which would sound pretty dumb, eh?

Believe me, I hate that I am defending Paris Hilton. I shut down our televisions for two years partly because I was so disgusted with "The Simple Life". But we can't all just jump on the lynching wagon here, that doesn't make us better than her. If you haven't given up drinking, can't name your favorite Bible passage, don't have a charitable foundation in your name and/or spend quite a lot of visible time donating your time and money, and haven't spend 23 days in jail then you cannot keep stomping Paris Hilton into the ground unless she shows that her lesson has not been learned. She did her time, she says she wants to do good in this world now, and I think we should all leave her alone and let her get on with her life.

Another reporter this morning AGAIN claimed that Paris has no job and does "nothing". Except that Paris listed out the things she does and she is correct: She has made movies, written a best-selling book, had her own jewelry line, stars in a very successful television show. That doesn't mean she is talented or that she succeeded in all her ventures, but that doesn't mean she doesn't work. If you're going to hold yourself to such high standards as we are calling for Paris then I hope all of us are president of the companies we work for. I know I am not.

Lindsay, Brittney, Paris and Nicole, I have ranted and railed against each of these girls at various times in the years I have been writing. And until Brittney went wacko I probably hated Paris more than any of them. I absolutely loved that she was sent to jail, twice, and I spent time gleefully laughing at her. But she did it, she completed her time, she completed 90% more time than the average person does for that crime, and she is coming out of jail stating that she is going to make changes that the average person does NOT make. It is time to step back and see what she is going to do (good or bad), it is NOT time to put her on an even higher, saintly pedestal and wait for her to fall off, and it is WAY past time for the media to start reporting accurately instead of like little spoiled brats.

edited to add:
Speaking of spoiled brats, The Today Show really earned that title today. They lost their coveted "first interview" with her so they conducted a horrendous interview this morning bashing her. The female reporter had obviously not even seen the interview as she contradicted what happened several times so she could just report what The Today Show wanted you to hear (the bashing of Paris). Her interviewee, from TV Guide, made comments like "Paris spent a lot of time complaining about the food." Well that's because stupid Larry King spent a lot of time asking her about the food. This is a Larry King defect, not a Paris Hilton defect. "Her written notes were pathetic." Well, yes, they were. Paris is stupid and uneducated, she wasn't taking university classes in jail, and her drawings were borderline mentally or emotionally retarded. Does that mean she's a bad, unforgivable person? No. "There was no point of contrition." Blatantly untrue. She absolutely said she was wrong to drink and drive, she said she hopes others learn their lesson from her and was happy to say that she received letters from people stating so, she said she would work with MADD, and she said she had a lot of lessons to teach her future daughter. "...and she complained that she was treated unfairly." She did say this, and she is also correct. The fact is, normal people serve 10% of their sentence for the crime she committed. I think it took the 23 days for her to learn her lesson, but the fact is that she was treated more harshly than the average person. It is also a fact that she did NOT complain, but said that things happen for a reason, that she learned a lesson and hoped to teach others from it.

The fact is, she did not act like a spoiled brat on Larry King. It is the media who are acting spoiled and holier than thou. US Magazine, you're fooling nobody with your "100% Paris Free" issue. You didn't score the first interview but you'll be back to reporting on her just as soon as you can.

I don't care if she drives, I don't care if she parties or drinks while she parties. It would just be nice to see her put some good into this world that has treated her so kindly up til now. That's how you live a good life, by giving as much good as is given to you. There should be no person in this world bashing Paris unless they are holding themselves to just as high a standard.

edited also to add: Yes, She flat out lied when she said she never used drugs before, as the pictures of her smoking pot and openly carrying pot in her purse have been all over the internet for forever. This is where Larry King should have stepped in and called her on it. In the end, I don't really care what Paris does... I just would like the media to start reporting stuff accurately. Larry did a shit job yesterday, and the rest of the media did a shit job of reporting on it today. So let that be the end of any Paris update from me for quite a long while. Whew!

Posted by Pischina at June 28, 2007 9:45 AM

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