The American Spectator

Stacey Lippman br> West Palm Beach, Florida /p>

Ben Stein is half right — societies that much out of whack do not survive. But think of it this way. What is the easiest thing to do if you have the intelligence and attention span of a fourteen-year-old (which makes you an average citizen)? Do you focus on something simple and easy, like a silly, social cripple celebrity like Britney Spears, or do you think about the things Ben listed in his article? Britney wins every time. It isn’t insane, but it sure is sad, pathetic and in the long run, highly self-destructive. This is why leadership is so important, to encourage people to move away from moral dead ends like Britney Spears and instead value the things that really matter. The real problem that Ben should have mentioned is that this level of leadership simply does not exist anymore, at any level or in any sector or institution. Britney Spears is the symptom, not the problem itself.

p>When a society dynamites every institution and belief that has real social value — faith in God, belief in your country and what it stands for, the importance of marriage and family, the rule of law, the right to be born and to live, the importance of individual self discipline and responsibility — then the only thing left is cheap, meaningless trash like Britney Spears. Don’t expect a liberal to ever tell you that that this is the price you pay for buying their ideas. br> — Christopher Holland br> Canberra, Australia /p> p> Whoa, Ben, chill, dude! That’s not the news you’re watching there. It’s Nancy Grace. This is a woman whose lead story for months on end was Anna Nicole Smith, and when Lindsey Lohan skips a news cycle, she’s got to go somewhere. (Disclaimer: I know this only because they go straight into that drek right on the heels of Glenn Beck, though sometimes he’s not any better.) You might as well expect battlefield coverage from Oprah. br> — Stephen Foulard br> Houston, Texas