Rose Bowl 2005

January 4th, 2005, Ashley Simpson was severely boo'd at the end of her halftime performance during the Orange Bowl. This created a lot of controversy between Simpson's fans and those who completely dislike Simpson. There were arguments about whether or not it was linked to the SNL incident from the October prior, and that perhaps all of the 72,000 Rose Bowl fans had seen her milli vanilli and disapproved.

The more likely story is that the IQ of the screaming crowd dropped as soon as the first "boo" was picked up. I've heard this stated in various ways, but the main theme is that, when a crowd begins to work together for a common purpose (be it beating the shit out of someone, or boo'ing an untalented star), the IQ of the crowd is determined by taking the individual in the crowd with the lowest IQ and subtracting ten points from it.

I *do* feel bad for the girl. But, I mean, the media is making her out to be a martyr now, as if she's "fighting the good fight" and "such a strong woman". Y'know what would take more strength? Admitting that she doesn't have the talent required to make it in a business that requires talent, and stepping down.

In any case, it wasn't about Ashley Simpson. She can go on as many talkshows and cry about it to try and regain composure in time for the release of her third album, but it's about recognition. My faith in the culture was renewed when they began to shout things at her because, as much as they buy into the pop-flawed sexamusicality, they will still stand up and degrade that which tries to pay for something intangible like "talent" or "ability".

Heh. Or "tact". I'm just saying.



I'd also like to mention that nowhere in this post did I say Jessica's name. Damnit.