Is Oprah evil?

[JVS]

This must be answered

[terrya]

1. No, she's not.

Fred Phelps, for instance, is evil.

Oprah Winfrey is not.

That's all you need to know.

[EstimatedProphet]

2. Other - Oprah is self-absorbed

She's now in her own little bubble of megamillions and personality cultmembers, and she has no idea anymore what the world is actually like. So, simply by the law of averages, probably 50% of the things she supports are good in the long run, and 50% are bad (Dr. Phil, and the guy that wrote that book come to mind).

[terrya]

5. That's a good analysis.

I agree with this. No, she's not evil, not by any stretch of the imagination.

She's OPRAH now and that influences her take on the world. She has certain things that she champions that is good (like her book club, which while some of the choices are questionable, at least it motivates more people to read) and things she champions that are crap (I'd say one of those things is her promotion of "The Secret", but that's only me)

[Karenina]

11. If you're a white woman of ANY description

She's Mother Superior; your BEST FRIEND.

If your're a down and out black woman, she'll highlight your plight.

If you're an already recognized black woman, she'll promote you.

If you're an extremely accomplished black woman who has been ignored, SHE'LL IGNORE YOU TOO.

[begin_within]

3. She's too materialisic and promotes excessive consumerism

However, she does know how to get at the dirt. People tell her things that they normally wouldn't say.

[Rabrrrrrr]

4. No, not evil, just an ignorant self-worshiping bloviating shitmonger

[JVS]

6. So one can be an "ignorant self-worshiping bloviating shitmonger" and not be evil?

C'mon Rabrrrrrr, drop the other shoe and just declare her evil already!

[Rabrrrrrr]

8. She's not smart enough to be evil.

And evil implies a malicious intent, which I don't think that she has - I think she's just fucking out of touch with anyone that's not her; kind of like being psychotic, but not as bad.

[Shine]

9. You make me laugh with your verbally dextrous put-downs, Rabrrrrrr

I must admit. :D

I bet deep down, inside, you're a big mush-ball of weepy sentimentality.

[Rabrrrrrr]

23. Thanks!

And yes, I really am a sweet and friendly kind of guy.

I still think that Oprah is the intellectual and moral equivalent of a gang rape of a trio of nuns with a donkey, a bed frame, and a six pack of Jolt; but yes, I am a kind and gentle person in real life.

:7

I like DU because I can let out all the stuff that I otherwise have to hold in...

[supernova]

7. I worry that she could be approaching a tipping point

I think she's done some wonderful things: her girls academy in SA, the book club, the thank yous to legends that have made her career possible, I think all that's fine, good and appropriate.

I honestly don't mind the "my favorite things" shows. They're fun and a nice break from heavy news topics which she still does do on occasion. And they are infiinitely better to watch than the jerry springer style topics which she said she didn't want to do any more. I gotta agree with that. Those shows have to be a nice break for her staff too, they don't have to research topics in depth the same way you would for a news story. You gotta think of the people behind the scenes too.

She does come across now as a bit self-absorbed, in her own little world. Time will tell now if she stays there or tips over into full blown taking herself way too seriously and thinking that other people should too.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

10. No, if only for the fact that she made Faulkner popular again

[JVS]

12. Is that like Bush making Camus popular? Wait until she makes Ezra Pound popular.

[Nevernose]

18. NOTHING could make Ezra Pound popular.

I taste bile in my mouth every time I read the name. Mere words cannot express how much I hate Ezra-Freaking-Pound.

Here's a picture of his gravesite: if I could get to Venice to piss and/or dance on it, I would.


(Yeah, I've got issues. So what?)

I kind of like Camus, though.

And on a serious note: I don't get the "Bush making Camus popular" thing, unless it's a reference to his philosophy that I'm just too dense at the moment to get. I do know that when Oprah recommended "East of Eden," Steinbeck sales jumped sharply, and if Oprah can get a few hundred thousand people to read "As I Lay Dying," then more power to her. I thought I was the last person on Earth who actually LIKED William Faulkner...

Strange But True:
http://www2.oprah.com/obc_classic/featbook/asof/obc_featbook_asof_main.jhtml

[EstimatedProphet]

20. The Camus bit

Bush had a big interview following Katrina where he was quoted as currently reading Camus' The Stranger, and supposedly all the freepers were quoting it as proof of his intelligence. It's along the lines of his "I read three Shakespeares" bit. He probably read a comic book by Monty Camus.

[Nevernose]

21. Dear god. He even pronounce it correctly?

Ca-moo vs. Cay-mus?

And, while I hate to be fair to Bush, Texas does have some wonderful Shakespeare festivals. The one down in Kilgore is actually world-class, and the Dallas one is pretty good, too, though it's been a long time since I've seen either.

I'm not familiar with the "three Shakespeares" remark, either; please enlighten me. I need the laugh.

I suspect that, on the slight chance he actually attended one of those festivals, he was snorting coke and remarking about how nice Desdemona's titties were, and wondering why Shakespeare named that Portia chick after a car.

[EstimatedProphet]

22. He was trying to answer critics claims that he's not very intellectual

I think it was Stone Phillips inverviewing. Bush said that he gets that a lot because of his demeanor, but that he's really well read, and claimed to have read 3 Shakespeares as proof.

I figure it's Joe, Erma, and Billy Bob Shakespeare...

[greatauntoftriplets]

13. Not evil.

I frankly find her overly full of herself and annoying.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

14. Oprah is human.

I think she has, in general, handled her success with a great deal of class. She makes an effort to help people, which she certainly doesn't have to do. She could have retired long ago, and lived off her wealth. Instead, she chooses to do something decent with it.

The fact that much of her wealth has been earned as a result of public exposure makes her an easy target for those who are critical by nature. I doubt I could handle a fortune as well as she has; so I see no reason to criticize her.

[HEyHEY]

15. She was in BC last week, and the press won't SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT IT

IT's absurd... wow, Oprah made a visit to a small community on the coast... fuck, it's embarrassing. I don't recall Chicago making such a big deal when I visited THEM.

[JVS]

16. WE HAD A HUGE FUCKING PARADE YOU UNGRATEFUL SHIT!

[HEyHEY]

19. Bah! The floats were clearly leftovers from thanksgiving!

[Taverner]

17. Oprah is Oprah

Someone I don't take too much interest in, but unlike other celebs, she gives back.

Self absorbed? Isn't that part and parcel with being in show business? I mean the in-front-of-a-camera part.

But hey, every profession has it's weaknesses.

[UrbScotty]

24. You can't be evil and endorse Obama at the same time (nt)

[BlueJazz]

25. She reminds me of a Researched, Taught, smoothed, creamered...

...beautified pack of TV protoplasm....and just as Real...