by Elizabeth M Young

Created on: September 25, 2009   Last Updated: April 15, 2012

Celebrities are who they are, whether lifetime philanthropists, political activists, or just average citizens enjoying life, raising their children and having happy marriages.

Some have bizarre private lives, mental dysfunctions, or drug and alcohol problems. Some become warped, twisted, and spoiled for a period of time. Those either grow out of it or succumb to it, even to the point of death, crime, and imprisonment.

Those celebrities do society a service by showing millions and millions what happens when the wrong choices are made in life. They bring up the topic. They cause people to reflect on their own lives and how they can be improved so that there is no "being just like that actor...".

Celebrities are human beings, with all of the frailties that human beings have. But there is something special about them. Anyone who has thought that they could just stand around and speak lines has no clue about the spark in the eye, the way that the lines are delivered, and the indefinable quality that causes one person to be chosen from thousands to be in that position. There is something about that person that causes millions to be enthralled by their acting, playing, singing, dancing, art or athleticism.

They do society a great service in demonstrating that it is character, not cash, that counts when a person is judged after they are gone. Money is not everything. A great artist is a great artist, and greatness does not last forever. We learn to remember them for their works as well as their failures in life. And we reflect on our own lives, maybe planning to do more with ourselves.

Why this question is not being asked about fringe, extremist politicians who humiliate the handicapped at town hall meetings, engage in bizarre and adulterous behavior, then lie about it, or who commit outright crimes, is hard to understand. Why politicians are not classified as celebrities is hard to understand.

Celebrities who present a bad image, make fools of themselves, or express repugnant opinions are going to suffer loss of their status, income and standing, and the wise ones know this. Celebrities who gain audiences and attention from outrageous behavior, comment, and conduct do not tend to get away with that forever, unless they are brilliant at it. The brilliant ones know how to carefully use that style of art without making people sick and tired of them. That nasty little dog puppet comes to mind. He will be around now and again for a while.

Celebrities have a positive effect on society in the sense that they serve as examples for the rest of us, either good or bad. They demonstrate what not to do, what to do, and then it's up to society to scale the good acts down to something that is affordable and do able, while learning lessons from the rest of the doings.

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