Oprah

When you say or hear, "Oprah" isn't it funny what sort of a reaction is stirred up? Some people hate her, some people think she is fabulous, but everyone has to chime in when someone says, "Hey - did you see that Oprah yesterday?" Generally, I enjoy the show but I do think she has become a little narcissistic this late in her career. She tends to compete with the guest counselors that appear on the program to put in her two cents, and is suddenly an expert about sexual abuse and predators because she was a victim. Now don't get me wrong, I think she has probably invested a lot of money with a therapist to become an expert, but it does kind of get on my nerves. Either way she is a household name and at this point can really say whatever she wants. You can watch or not watch - it's your choice.

Monday there was a show on (the third in a series) about sexual offenders. Now, I already have a strong opinion about this and the people who offend, but I am not going to get into that here. What I was angered by was how Oprah made it so clear how much she hated anyone that has ever abused a child. It was completely skewed towards her experiences and really didn't give anyone the option of disagreeing with her. Now, I am not disagreeing, and I hope this blog doesn't become controversial, but her feelings were intense. It was no longer an afternoon talk show that is in the background while you make dinner. She was calling them monsters as she described to us the island off Washington state that is available for the "Most Violent Sex Offenders." Essentially, it is a place where sex offenders are sent AFTER they have served their criminal sentence, but a judge determines they are not fit to be re-introduced to society. More or less, this is punishing a person before they have committed a crime.

This institution is funded by tax payer dollars ($165,000 per person/year) and is basically a college atmosphere where these people may stay until they decide they want to go through the treatment system, when they may then be let out. If you never decide to attend therapy, no biggie. You can stay there until you die. Oprah LOVES this place. She LOVES that these people are locked away on an island away from society. Without going into detail, this really hit a nerve with me so I decided to join the Oprah fan club. And write her some fan mail that was not very "Fannish." I am hoping that my negative reaction among the hundreds of emails praising her strength and perseverance she will notice mine. Not so sweet. Not so loving. And she will invite me on her show.

She will say, "Today ladies and gentlemen, is a voice that has spoken out against me. Come on out, JEEEEENNNNNY!!!!" Then we will discuss the matter at hand, she will pay off my student loans and set me up with a sweet job in a Family Law Firm. Is that too much to ask?

One of my friends asked me tonight, "Do you ever feel like someone is just pushing you to see how much you can take of life sucking?" I started laughing, but not too hard because she had just gotten mugged. That's right. Here in my awesome town. In broad day light. This blog is too long, but that is your story for tomorrow.

If you DID see that Oprah, I would be interested to hear what your thoughts are on the building in Washington.