American Idol hopeful mocked by Simon Cowell commits suicide

I normally hate to talk about celebrity gossip, but this was just too juicy a story to not comment:

The woman whose body was found near Paula Abdul's home was a one-time "American Idol" contestant who, despite being ridiculed during her audition, maintained her infatuation with judge Paula Abdul.

Paula Goodspeed, 30, was found dead, an apparent suicide, Tuesday evening in her car, which was parked a few doors down from Abdul's Los Angeles home. Reuters reported that prescription pills, along with CDs and pictures of Abdul, were found in the car.

Our celebrity culture is a travesty. Celebrities are worshipped like gods, and its rarely for any valuable contribution they've made to mankind but rather the clothes the wear or the houses they own. And for the most vulnerable of us, this culture sucks us in and suddenly everything is a comparison to a person we've never met i.e. the Brad and Angelina's of the world. And when that fantasy is destroyed, like it was for this woman, a world can come crashing down.

I realize I'm being a tad moralistic and conservative, but seriously, a culture that values glamour and vanity over humility and living mindfully, is a culture that is spiritually dead. It is, in my view, a natural outgrowth of capitalism, where everything is competition and survival of the fittest, the haves vs. the have-nots. Capitalism is the best system to create the most wealth to help a country thrive. But nothing quite kills the spirit than always wanting more and always being unssatisfied with what you have. (Not sure of any of this makes sense, but thanks for sticking through till the end.)

Anyway, this is a horrible story and a tragedy...