Chicago Celebrities

I just had my picture taken with Rod Blagojevich, and he told me that my hair looked "nice."

I'm not sure how to assess this situation, seeing as how I can't seem to stop giggling like a maniacal girl scout in a roomful of thin mints. Is this funny? YES. Is this weird? Absolutely. Is this something I should think about with a little more depth? Probably.

Here's the thing:

I was just getting off work when someone came in and said, "Rod Blagojevich is sitting at the Starbucks patio right now," and everyone around me FLIPPED OUT. Some people wanted to start a fist fight. Some people wanted to ignore it. And some people, like myself, wanted to see it -- the dirty, criminal, celebrity politician -- firsthand. I checked my bag to make sure I had my camera with me, which I did, and said, "I want a picture with him."

The thing is, I didn't quite know WHY I wanted a picture with him, at least I didn't know until it was snapped, and I stated, "I now have a celebrity photo!"

Blagojevich IS a celebrity and whether it's for reasons that are good or bad doesn't matter anymore. He's made national, if not global, headlines. He's Britney Spears. He's Paris Hilton. He's OUT THERE, and that fact is undeniable. Why is he out there, though? Is it because he was the governor of Illinois, the governor of the state that our new president came from? Or is it because of Chicago's history of crooked politicians? Is it the fact that he's a delusional weirdo? Or is it because he's famous for being so unbelievably BAD at what he was supposed to do?

It doesn't really matter, when you put it into perspective. He's famous, rather INfamous, for being himself, and being himself was all he was being when I met him. He was shaking hands, getting introductions, and taking photos with perfect strangers. He was OWNING it, whatever "it" might be.

I suppose that's what it means to be a celebrity -- taking what comes, and taking it all.

Journalism FAIL

I saw Robert Fisk tonight. Rather, I heard him speak at a lecture called, "Politics, Journalism and Globalisation of the Middle East." Man, what a crock of shit.

Not only did he do his damnedest to sell his book(s) but he wouldn't answer my question. At all.

FISK: Yes, the young lady in the back.
ME: Mr. Fisk, since you have mentioned that online journalism isn't going to succeed, and print journalism is a dying art, where do you recommend readers get their news, and moreover, how and where do you think journalism is going?
FISK: Oh. You're an American, eh? Well... journalism is changing, and that change can be seen on the internet, and making sure that online journalists can maintain a readership is important, but completely different from MY experiences... blah, blah, blah, buy my book(s).

Listen up, Fisk, I know that you're a big shot and you don't have to answer to anybody because you've achieved a buncha great things in your life, but your profession has to answer to someone, and that someone is The Rest of Us.

I wish I'd gotten an answer and then I wish I hadn't re-read his articles, because now I'm just pissed off that this guy gets to write garbage and is revered for it.

i don't know that for a fact. i can't say that. he obviously has some serious in-depth analysis and his writing is cohesive and well-supported. but it's still biased. and now, so am i.

Can you answer to THAT?

it's a dress.

the election is over. why do i keep finding articles about Michelle Obama's attire from Tuesday night? sigh.