Open Discussion:
You know them, the celebrities who try to be more than just a pretty face by campaigning for a cause or a politician. Sometimes it seems very noble, like George Clooney and his dad getting themselves arrested in Sudan to draw national attention to the genocide and human rights violations happening in that country.
Other times, the connections can seem sort of forced. Clint Eastwood is now notorious for speaking to an empty chair at the RNC. Scarlett Johansson spoke at the DNC about why young women should vote (video above). How about Kal Penn being written off the hit TV show House in order to work in a pretty important job in the Obama campaign?
The big names bring publicity, but to many, this feels sort of odd.
What do you think? Are celebrities enriching the electoral process for you, or detracting from the important political voices?
I personally am not a fan of celebs blatantly standing their ground. Too many young minds don’t know how to think for themselves and vote based on what Beyonce believes. I don’t believe celebs need to be involved (in this way) in politics. Also, what really qualifies them to have their political view blared all over the media… do they have degrees in Poli Sci (or high school educations for that matter)? Have they ran or held positions in office? Do they watch and follow politics? And in all reality, shouldn’t most of these democratic, very wealthy, celebs technically be… Read more »
I find them to be mostly neutral in effect, if annoying in action. I’ve read that Eastwood’s speech was favorably received by independents. If so, then it worked. I personally enjoyed the fact that it was unscripted and I loved that he clearly spelled out that we own the country and the politicians are our employees. Both parties tend to treat us as subjects.
Don’t forget Eastwood was once mayor of Carmel.
All too soon the partisan warfare will resume, but in terms of soaring allusion, rhetorical pyrotechnics,
and inspired oratory, the President gave a great speech tonight. Biden, for all his recent gaffes, impressed me with the emotional content of his speech.
Always a great joy to see Gabby Giffords.
Dems dodged a bullet when an effort to write God and Jerusalem out of the script was thwarted by fast- acting Mayor Villaraigosa. Such a contretemps would have handed the Pubs a cudgel.
I think that celebrities are people too, with values, opinions & families… & they show their support how they can. I don’t think there is anything wring with that.
I thought Eastwood had some good lines (“you need to let him go”) , but could have done without the empty chair. The empty chair trope is supposed to be used when someone who was supposed to show up canceled at the last minute for no good reason. President Obama was not expected at the RNC. As far as Desperate Housewife Longoria, she was as vacuous and tedious as the show that made her “famous,” which has been cancelled. Caroline Kennedy (sort of a celeb) blew O Reilly’s mind when she channeled her Catholicism as a means to argue for… Read more »