Wednesday, August 22, 2007

You da man!


Brad Pitt has been using his celebrity to redirect attention to the unacceptable pace of recovery in New Orleans. He's also bought a house in the French Quarter and invested his money in an effort to develop a significant amount of green housing in the Ninth Ward.

Brad Pitt, I think I love you.

This country has been slammed with a whole bunch of 'stuff' (she says euphemistically) and I think, as a result, as a nation we've collectively checked out and vegged on celebrity twits who drive drunk, wear no panties, and bring the collective IQ down about ten points. I enjoy a little foolishness and gossip as much as the next person. But enough. If you are famous, use it for something worthwhile. You have everyone's attention? Well, say something!

While the media would rather focus on all things Brangelina, Brad Pitt has flipped the script and unwittingly tricked them into having to cover one of the most important, ONGOING social problems in our country right now. The slow, almost indifferent pace of recovery from Hurricane Katrina. It's sad commentary, but if not for Brad Pitt and a handful of other celebrities (I see you Don Cheadle and George Clooney!) the word DARFUR might never get mentioned in some media outlets or be on the radar screens of many of my disconnected, uninformed brethren.

Since they following him around anyway, Brad Pitt figures out a way to use the cameras for something important! He's forcing real news to resume their job descriptions and cover pertinent issues instead of pandering for the entertainment audience. And he's trapped entertainment programs into using clips of him saying things like 'social responsibility,' 'government accountability,' and 'social justice.' It's like someone turned on light and opened a window! Obviously, he is not just a pretty face. Brad got game!

So from this Ninth Ward Girl, thank you Brad Pitt. Next Mardi Gras we gon' Second Line just for you!

4 comments:

Helga said...

Ya! I am so happy to be able to leave a positive comment about Brad Pitt (I am not saying anything about my DVD collection....).

After his comments about taking care of his daughter's hair, his decision to use his celebrity to bring attention to the ongoing crisis in New Orleans is wonderful.

Unknown said...

Helga--
I think what he said about Z's hair was all out of context. First of all he was endorsing a black-owned company...when was the last time a white man did that? He is raising a little black girl and all he was saying was that he didn't know what to do with her hair and was grateful he found Carol's Daughter.

Now there's plenty of black people who don't know what to do with their OWN hair, so I was not offended by a white father admitting he needed help with his black daughter's hair. Plenty of parents, black AND white, would have just jacked the poor baby's hair up.

So...I ain't mad at him. Brad Pitt is alright with me.

Unknown said...

If you don't believe me... ask Robin Givens! I couldn't resist. lol.

Helga said...

Ya, Robin Givens has her own thing going with her sons....

I was once craaaazzzzyyyy about Brad Pitt, don't get me wrong, but I find it hard to believe that he (or Angelina) is taking care of anybody's hair...