IDOLIZING AMERICAN IDOL 7

This is American Idol.

I bet, you always look forward to hearing Ryan Seacrest say this popular line at the beginning of the show, don’t you? Yes, ladies and gentlemen for those of you who still are not into American Idol fever, you can catch the show every Tuesdays and Wednesdays on tv but for those living outside the US ( which I believe does not include American Idol in your regular tv program) you can have a peek at youtube.com to catch up the latest American Idol performances.

In the beginning, I always watched youtube for outrageous bad American Idol auditions to give me a good chuckle every now and then after a hard day at work. And I tell you what, it’s one of the best relief to cure suppressed depression, insomia, indigestion but not much of a cure for a throbbing headache ( as this might add up more than relieve the pain) after hearing funny off key auditions; ear splitting voices, phonetic inventions of lyrics and out of this world costumes who are considered idol wannabees. To prove my point, click on this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQt-h753jHI&NR=1

Hillarious isn’t it? Yes, this is from “Music Idol ( Bulgarian version of American Idol). A non-English speaker mustered all the confidence in which she subsituted “Ken Lee” for the refrain “can’t live” from the original title “Without You”. But hey, this you tube site has 3,334,382 hits as of this writing. I am quite sure that this popularized Ken Lee made her an instant superstar for youtube fans.

American Idol 7 has finally reached the top 10 this week thus, going through the moment of truth elimination round during Wednesdays. The top ten remaining contenders for this week are David Cook, Michael Johns, David Archuleta, Brooke White, Ramiel Malubay, Syesha Mercado, Carly Smthson, Kristy Lee Cook and Chkezie Ezie.

As a general rule of the show, American viewers vote to oust one of these contestants to cut down the size of American Idol singers until they crown the winner for this year. You may have your personal favorites after each one of them renders their professional level perfomances on stage. Among them, I would personally vote for David, Brooke, Michael and Chekezie. As for the rest of them, they could go back home and do whatever they used to do before their American Idol stint.

I am sure most of the readers of this blog will agree or disagree with my choice. On a hindsight, I have always been puzzled about what influences the vote of the American viewers? Is it really their perfomance per se? Or did they base it on the opinions of the judges ( Randy, Paula and Simon)?

Judges play a crucial role in analyzing and rating their weekly performances. Their opinions can make or break an aspiring finalist. What they say can make them the most popular or most hated judge for the evening depending on how they coin the words to put their judgement across.

A balanced diplomatic and receptive insight that start with “hey yo! What’s going down dog?, check it out baby” that’s Randy Jackson. If you want to hear sugar ( or sometimes very sugary ) coated words, indecisive of what’s about to be said, bad performance evaluation wrapped up in a very patronizing tone said with droppy eyes and awkward half drunk demeanor then listen to Paula.

However, if you are ready for a straight brutal honest to goodness sharper than two edged sword blunt criticism, my advise is either you listen to Simon Cowell or don't listen to him at all. Because there is no other way for him to tell things except in a honest and straight forward manner.

Simon could be the most hated judge among the three because of his natural consistent cruel remarks. When I say cruel, I mean his input is not for the faint –of- heart. So if you are a budding singer and you want to know how he thinks about your performance, well, my advise is, be careful with what you’re wishing for.

But on the other hand, what’s wrong with Simon? Watching him express himself candidly fortifies my interest to anticipate to what he will have to say in the forthcoming show. Simon with his brusque self, reminds me of what we should always have to be with regard to our dealing with other people. Sincere and honest. Plain and simple.

Maybe not as brutal as he is but to be able to call black if it’s black and white if it’s white not kinda black or a little bit whitish. Not being able to mince words to say what you really mean is definitely Simon’s expertise. With regard to his position as an American Idol judge, this is what he has to say:

“The object of this competition is not to be mean to the losers but to find a winner. The process makes you mean because you get frustrated. Kids turn up unrehearsed, wearing the wrong clothes, singing out of tune and you can either say, 'Good job,' and patronize them or tell them the truth, and sometimes the truth is perceived as mean." – Simon Cowell

As for my real American Idol Mr. Simon Cowell, here is what I have to say about you “Your performance is fantastic by a mile. The best performance for the night so far.”

SPITTING SPITZER

The name Spitzer may sound like a name of a petdog to some but to the American people, Spitzer is now a popular household name . Senator Eliot Laurence Spitzer, now a former New York Governor is currently the most controversial figure on the internet lately due to his recent scandal with a hired prostitute named Ashley Alexandra Dupre also known for her stage name, Kirsten.

As you may have seen on the papers that the former Governor Spitzer has been crucified, judged and trampled by media, politicians and self proclaimed moralists and ordinary American tax payers due to his sexcapades with a voluptuous and sultry prostitute who looks more like a hollywood celebrity than a call girl.

Spitzer recently resigned after the media celebrated this juicy controversy about his liaison with Ashley. His public apology on Monday, March 10, 2008 did not seem to assuage the angry New Yorkers. From that day forth, he has been a subject of ridicule, insults, lambasting remarks from the media for betrayal of trust and confidence as a supposedly public servant.

According to reports, the FBI discovered that he has used his govt. issued credit card to sponsor his sex shopping at May Flower Hotel in Washington which utterly irated the public as he must have used the taxpayers’ money for his personal fun ( wonder if he bought sex toys from the same money too..tax free maybe? )

On the other hand, the woman of the hour, Ashley whom may have considered Mr. Ex Gov. as a regular customer who paid real big bucks for an hour of pleasure
( heard it was to the tune of $5000. Damn! he could have asked me instead, I could have given him 10% discount) is just doing her usual job ( yeah stretch your imagination the other job that I am referring to) just to make sure that costumers go home with a happy smile on their faces.

After this controversial news hit the headlines , Ashley now enjoys her 15 minute of fame: sexy pictures on the net, her myspace website reaching to 10,000 hits plus a tempting offer of $1 million hollywood break to appear in “Girls Gone Wild Video” and an offer to write a book! Why I am not surprised? ( Tracy Quan wrote excellent books similar to Ashley’s experience, “Diary of a Manhattan Callgirl” ; Diary of a Married Manhattan Callgirl.” I have read both. They are amazing. Given all these, I am sure she ‘s now every politicians wives’ nightmare.

I understand why people have reproached the reprehensible act of the ex- politician who not only betrayed the trust of his voters but the love and respect of his wife and two teenage daughters. This is definitely unacceptable and categorically a hypocrisy to have projected a staunch fighter of the flesh trade. But let’s not be hard on the Spitzer, my friends. Doesn’t he remind us of Bill Clinton’s cunning sexual mischief over Monica Lewinsky? The only difference is that Bill was smarter enough to use his resources inside the White House while he had to use an escort service agency.


Again, I can comprehend the harsh reactions of people against Spitzer. But what is mind boggling for me is why people ( especially internet addicts like me) and people from the entertainment industry are glorifying and patronizing Ashley. Based from the positive responses and the popularity she now gains, it seems to be that people regard her as a the next hollywood celebrity not that she doesn’t belong to the level of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. But I can’t comprehend why we are making her a some sort of a hero in Spitzer case.

Though we can’t cast a stone on her for what she does for a living but I don’t think we could consider her an ideal figure for our youths of today either. It’s best that people would stop sensationalizing Ashley and how she could entertain the viewing public with her sexual services. Instead we should focus on how vigilant we should be with our leaders whom we voted for.

As of Mr. Ex gov.Spitzer, whereever he is right now, I am sure he could be somewhere in a log cabin near a fishing lake relaxing and recuperating from a politcal career suicide. Or for all you know, he may be enjoying the tropical sun in Acapulco drinking martinis. But whatever he’s doing, I hope that he experiences a certain kind of epiphany whacking his head with guilt uttering: : what in the world was I thinking!

A STANDSTILL FOR 12 ROUNDS

I am not a boxing aficionado but more of a hollywood enthusiast. I never enjoyed boxing because it involves violence through jabs and punches that could totally ruin the face of the defeated boxer after a match. . The idea of seeing their faces before then the bruised and bloody faces after a match is appalling. It is exactly the opposite of what you witness before and after a facial reconstruction surgery when a patient’s deformed face becomes a face that stepped out of a fashion magazine ofcourse with the help of sculpting skills of a gifted plastic surgeon. Thereby, boxing is not really a sport for me to enjoy over a bowl of popcorn.

( Oscars? Yes! )

Last night, The Philippines celebrated the victory of a reknowned light weight champion, Mr. Manny Pacquiao over the Mexican challenger Juan Manuel Marquez in Las Vegas, Nevada.

According to the news, famous Filipino celebrities, high ranking politicians and native Filipino residents in the US cheered for this significant match between Pacquiao and Marquez. Back in their homeland, Filipino people from all walks of life were glued on their tv sets holding their breaths anticipating for a knock out punch from this famous Filipino boxer.

Giant tv sets were set up along the town social centers ( especially in General Santos Pacquiao’s hometown), some put a halt on their daily Sunday family activities, malls had giant screens so mall addicts could not miss the match as well, vendors and buyers transacted businesses while small tv set was on ( I just hope that the buyers got their exact change and vendors got the exact amount of payment as well) while both multitasked. Some offices who worked on Sundays like 24 hour banks and call centers got their most awaited breaks from their Sunday workloads as the match went on.

What is so interesting and amazing is the fact that during this time while the Philippine boxing icon was busy exchanging punches with his defiant opponent, no political rallies or demonstrations were scheduled ( not because they did not schedule one.)

But because rallyists prefer to watch the fight rather than to stay under the heat of the sun holding their streamers expressing their general outcry “President Arroyo Resign!” ( come on, who would actually join them, I am sure Pres. Arroyo was watching the fight as well).

This astonishing fact that no crimes was reported during this day is like a good entry for the guiness book of world records, isn't it? No rallies, no crimes on this beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon because the whole Philippines watched the boxing match.
(http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20080316-125070/No-crimes-reported-during-Pacquiao-Marquez-bout)

This is so astounding! A country with a big number of violence daily has momentarily put a stop to all the crimes and violence for twelve rounds. Does this mean that robbers, kidnappers and hoodlums were united with their prospective victims during this time? Well, it looks like it. Both parties may have shouted hurray together ( not while robbery was taking place I hope) for the Filipino boxer.


If you come to a point of analyzing this rare moment of peaceful bliss in this beautiful country that only goes to show that Filipinos can survive their daily grind of life without violence and crime that is if they only want to. If they choose not to.

Philippines is a very dear country for me as I consider it as the most beautiful country in Asia. The people are hospitable, genuinely friendly and light hearted. And during this time when everything was held on a standstill by choice, I am not only proud of Mr. Manny Pacquiao who fortunately holding on to his crown as a light weight boxing champion but I am utterly proud of the Filipino people who chose to bond together and unite for the success of the Philippines in boxing.

Unfortunately, moments after the fight, it was reported by the Philippine newspaper that , eight armed men robbed passengers of a bus along Edsa in Manila.

I am pretty sure that these robbers must have proudly applauded, hurray for Manny but couldn’t help to say: let’s get back to business!

(http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20080316-125070/No-crimes-reported-during-Pacquiao-Marquez-bout

Women of Substance

During my lay over at Frankfurt International Airport last December 2007, I chanced upon two interesting books which caught my attention: “Mukhtar Mai, In the Name of Honour “ and “Desert Flower” by Waris Dirie.

Both books had my eyes glued on each page as Muktar Mai courageously fought for her dignity against a gang rape punishment sentenced for her for a crime allegedly committed by her brother in Pakistan. In the same breath, Waris Dirie explicitly narrated her ordeal as a child in Somalia against the despicable female mutilation.

Successfully, Mukhtar Mai has fulfilled her long time dream of establishing a school in a far flung village in Pakistan that provides not only education to young girls but serves as a crisis center as well to abused women in that local area. With her persistence and determination, she sought justice and vindication against her rich perpetrators and was able to put them to jail for good. ( www.mukhtarmaiwwo.org)

Waris a familiar face to most of women as a commericial model of Chanel and currently, a UN Ambassador for the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation is a well respected speaker raises awareness all over the world about the horrible cultural practice of female genital mutilation on young girls in Africa.

Muktar Mai’s and Waris Dirie’s stories are not make believe fantasies. Their stories are based on their real life traumatic experiences may be happening as you read this article. Both of them risked their lives, lost their honours and tainted their reputation at some time to fight for their dignities and rights as women. As they have depicted, it involved a painstaking process of reaching the end result of their physical and emotional struggles.

Now a days, there are women all around us who are in the same predicament as Mukhtar Mai and Waris Dirie . Some may be undergoing physical or emotional abuse, subjected to marriage against their will, forced labor, lured into prostitution out of poverty or simply victims of unfair labor treatment or sex slavery.

I am sure that no woman would like to experience any of the above mentioned objectionable treatment ever in her life. However, we always have a choice in life whether to encourage men to trample on us, endure the pain of abuse or be resillient and fight back and win the crime against women. It’s your choice.

Respectable icons like Muktar Mai and Waris Dirie’s long roller coaster struggles are far from over. They will continue to fight for their respect and dignity not only for themselves but for women around the globe. Every inch of an effort of their hard task to empower women is well worth the fight.Remember that everything depends on us. Let us all join them in making our voices be heard aloud.

As Eleanor Roosevelt puts it: No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.

Happy International Women’s Day! A toast to all the women in the world!

HOW FAR CAN YOU GO?

Many people have lots of things to blurt out about current issues, a hard day at work, personal woes and blues but don’t have the galls to vent it out on public forum like blogs.
Often times, we get caught in the middle of a tight lipped situation where we become hesitant to express ourselves to tell the real score because we are afraid to be identified by people who may recognize us or simply we become too timid and inhibited with what our captured audience would say about what we blog about.

In this day and age, when freedom of blogging expression is more of a boon than a bane, we should take advantage of this God’s “blogging “ blessing to cyber folks out there who would prefer to read a short but amusing blogs that would entertain them after a long, tiring and humdrum day wherever we may be … at work or at home.

Emotionally , doesn’t it make you feel better in letting go of your feelings without any reservations and yet maintaining your mysterious anonymity? That’s just perfect isn’t it?
No real pictures..no names but you can speak your minds out without censorship. Say what you want to say…go as far as you can go. Start blogging and speak out! After all, nobody would care whoever you are and whatever you say.

And that’s what I would exactly do. Welcome to my blogsite!