It seems at least reasonable to suspect that Britney Spears is suffering from some sort of mental illness.
Now, if she had a physical illness - cancer, for example, or a spinal-cord injury, the would have likely been shown a great deal of sympathy and concern. News articles and discussion would focus on, "You are in our thoughts; we hope you get better soon."
However, since this is a mental illness, she is treated as a freak show in a glass box to gawk at and laugh. Though some people keep their laughter to a minimum, the news reports suggest that a lot of people can't wait to read about every detail of her breakdown. Not for reasons of concern, but for reasons of entertainment.
I do think that our attitudes towards mental illness could use some favorable modification.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Britney Spears and Mental Illness
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1 comment:
I'm strongly in favor of criminalizing the paparazzi. Having tasted blood after the suidice of Anna Nicole Smith, they won't be satisfied until they drive another celebrity to do the same. At which point they'll stop trashing the celebrity and giver her the Marilyn Monroe treatment like they did to Smith.
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