Much has already been written about Lindsay Lohan's recent troubles, some of it musical, so there's no need to go on about them at length here.
Instead, let's briefly discuss the ripple effect, which is what happens with other people decide that celebrity lifestyles are so desirable that they must be foisted on innocent little children. (The words "innocent," "desirable," and "lifestyles" should all be in ironic quotation marks, but that starts to look cluttered, and it "disrupts" the "flow" of "thought.")
After you watch this video -- can it be real? -- a number of questions will no doubt spring to mind, but the one that got me was this one: how can every kid be the tannest kid in the class? Isn't that impossible? (h/t: BWE)
[Ben Greenman's acclaimed new book of fiction, A Circle is a Balloon and Compass Both, is now available. Order it here.]
- Previously: InstaPollAmericaNow™ - Double the Paternity Trouble
Mo Rocca has appeared on a bunch of shows, including 'The Daily Show,' 'I Love the 80s,'...
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Posted May 31st 2007 10:58AM by Ben Greenman
Filed under: Media, Video, Bizarre
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Mo Rocca appears on a bunch of shows, including CBS News Sunday Morning (with the indescribably wonderful Charles Osgood), The Tonight Show on NBC, and NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! He's a sometime judge on Iron Chef and was featured on Telemundo's Amore Descarado. Last year he starred on Broadway in the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. His expose "All the President's Pets" was published by Crown in 2004.
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Reader Comments ( Page 5 of 19)
61. what the **** is wrong with ppl these days i meant that little shouldnt be getting tan. stupid mom1!!!
Brittney at 5:39PM on May 31st 2007
62. i think its horrible. you would think that maybe its okay to look pretty but not when your child is at risk. i dont know any parent that would do anything so harmful.
lura at 5:43PM on May 31st 2007
63. Did anyone notice the little girls religious school outfit. What kind of values does the little girls school instill? As for the sicko mom, you have serious issues!!! Seek more therapy!!! By the way the girl said "no", you talked her into the tannning, great way to teach her to deal with peer pressure. (reminder you are her mom, not her friend, get your own 40yr old friends)
ps the girl looked better before the fake tan.
unbelievable at 6:01PM on May 31st 2007
64. Did anyone notice the little girls religious school outfit. What kind of values does the little girls school instill? As for the sicko mom, you have serious issues!!! Seek more therapy!!! By the way the girl said "no", you talked her into the tannning, great way to teach her to deal with peer pressure. (reminder you are her mom, not her
friend, get your own 40yr old friends)
ps the girl looked better before the fake tan.
Michelle Holman at 8:46PM on May 31st 2007
65. THE MOTHER IS AN IDIOT. SHE NEEDS TO GET HER PRIORITIES STRAIGHT. SHE IS TRYING TO LIVE HER LIFE THROUGH HER DAUGHTER....VERY DANGEROUS. THAT POOR KID, HAVING A MOTHER WHO IS SO SHALLOW AND INSECURE.
ANN at 6:07PM on May 31st 2007
66. Proof that just because people CAN have children, doesn't mean that they SHOULD have children.
Randy at 6:08PM on May 31st 2007
67. I am happy to see this article, especially since I have been so disturbed all day thinking about watching that show last night. I keep thinking, aren't there age limit laws against tanning? If not, there should be. If that little girl had all of the knowledge about fake tanning and skin cancer, would she still have decided to go tanning? Probably not, but she didn't know any better and her mom made the decision for her. People who are incapable of making decisions like this for themselves should be protected by laws that deter them from engaging in the activity. For example, it's not legal for a mom to buy a pack of cigarettes and make her 8 year old daughter smoke them. And what's the difference between that and tanning? They BOTH cause cancer.
If people really want to do something about this I suggest you start sending complaints to your legislators.
Michelle at 6:30PM on May 31st 2007
68. I am happy to see this article, especially since I have been so disturbed all day thinking about watching that show last night. I keep thinking, aren't there age limit laws against tanning? If not, there should be. If that little girl had all of the knowledge about fake tanning and skin cancer, would she still have decided to go tanning? Probably not, but she didn't know any better and her mom made the decision for her. People who are incapable of making decisions like this for themselves should be protected by laws that deter them from engaging in the activity. For example, it's not legal for a mom to buy a pack of cigarettes and make her 8 year old daughter smoke them. And what's the difference between that and tanning? They BOTH cause cancer.
If people really want to do something about this I suggest you start sending complaints to your legislators.
Michelle at 6:35PM on May 31st 2007
69. I think tanning beds should have minium age restriction to protect children from parents with no common sense.
Britany Spears cocktail 80 bucks. that lady is an idiot!
carmen at 6:34PM on May 31st 2007
70. the mother of that girl is a stupid ass. why does she want to have her daughter like lindsy Lindsay Lohan? she is a junkie!!
ianglelove at 6:39PM on May 31st 2007
71. Even though this may be scripted, people may not recognize that. There ARE girls out there who DO model after Lindsay Lohan. They see her in her films, but they do not see anything except the actress. People ALSO need to realize that when an actress with no degree gets arrested, they have nothing to lose. But when a person who DOES have a degree, they put their career, their well-being, and especially their family's well-being on the line. The only way to put an end to the way this society is going is for every person to break away from main-stream media, form their OWN opinions, and speak them out for the world to hear. I'm writing a book, because things like this just get under my skin. I don't care if anyone reads my book. I just want to know that I made an effort to voice my opinion.
Nick at 6:56PM on May 31st 2007
72. Even though this may be scripted, people may not recognize that. There ARE girls out there who DO model after Lindsay Lohan. They see her in her films, but they do not see anything except the actress. People ALSO need to realize that when an actress with no degree gets arrested, they have nothing to lose. But when a person who DOES have a degree, they put their career, their well-being, and especially their family's well-being on the line. The only way to put an end to the way this society is going is for every person to break away from main-stream media, form their OWN opinions, and speak them out for the world to hear. I'm writing a book, because things like this just get under my skin. I don't care if anyone reads my book. I just want to know that I made an effort to voice my opinion.
Nick at 6:56PM on May 31st 2007
73. The mother must have the I.Q. of a tree stump. Whatever happened to little girls being "little girls,"? There's no need for a child to have a tan, make-up, highlighted hair or any of the other beauty treatments that adult women use. After all, they're just children who should be allowed to grow up without a nuerotic parent pushing them to be "beautiful," at all times.
Nora R. at 7:42PM on May 31st 2007
74. What the H!*!**!* was this mother thinking??!?!?!
sherry at 7:43PM on May 31st 2007
75. That is outrageous!
A little girl does not need to be tanned. That mother should be ashamed for forcing her daughter to be tanned. She is sending bad messages to her daughter, the world, and she is making a - a pet of her daughter! A prima-donna girly-girl of her daughter. What if the girl wants to play sports, learn literature, or maybe the girl doesn't care about her looks as much as the concieted mother?
This is telling her that you need to have a tan adn endanger yourself to skin cancer to be beautifull. You so do not. I am from New Hampshire, and we all don't need to be tan to be cool. And also, all of a sudden being tan overnight shows other people that you care about your looks and that you need to be artificial to be cool.
Shame on the mother. You are a horrible, prissy, detestable person that should be shunned for life.
Go jump off a rock!
celery3133 at 7:44PM on May 31st 2007