Idea Title:  An Antidote to the Star Culture

I propose an antidote to the "Star Culture" of Hollywood, the Pentagon, Madonna, and Mariah and all the rest. I propose that Journalists should report the activities of people like the rest of us as if they were important: they are.

Who makes the world go ‘round? Mothers. Women with no time to become “educated,” whose savvy and fortitude spin the hours of each day with a power stronger than a million nuclear bombs.

Who is more “sexy,” some 20-something year old with a million bucks propelling her breasts into the info-sphere, or a woman whose efforts have raised several children and created individuals whose work and integrity contribute to the everyday functioning of the world… the boys and girls who become nurses and mechanics, teachers and doctors, mathemeticians and taxi-drivers? Who defines “sexy?”

If journalists would stop echoing the dominant presupposition that “sexy” equals an escape from the responsibilities and achievements of common people, perhaps common people would have an elevated opinion of themselves and therefore expect more for themselves than to be relegated to the bottom of the heap. We should all expect more than to be considered eligible to become “collateral damage."<b>