Celebrity is a distinctly American phenomenon. Sure, other countries have celebrities, but not like America and not nearly as many. Traditionally, fame and status were acquired by heads of state, royalty and successful businessmen.

These people were the owners of society's lone spotlight, at least until the printing press and subsequently the motion picture became heralds of a new breed of celebrity. Back in the day, heads of state were famous; today famous people become heads of state.

Naturally, the question is why are Americans so fixated on celebrity and the very prospect of becoming famous?

The sociological argument says the masses gravitate toward individuals who exemplify extreme talent and success as a means to discount one's own failures. People seek behavior to imitate so that they may duplicate the successes of these celebrities. Others simply become consumed by the work of these celebrities so that they may temporarily escape reality. Still others follow celebrities, fantasizing about a life of carefree grandeur among the social elites of this country.

Whatever the reasoning, there is a thin line between healthy intrigue and sick obsession.

Unfortunately, our country seems to be leaning toward the latter of these two stages.

Reality seems to be slowly unraveling as the lives of celebrities become more important than issues of national and international importance.

The past few months seem to have intensified the public's curiosity with celebrities. Ben and Jennifer, Kobe, Arnold and (again) Michael Jackson.

Who freaking cares?

Why is it that People magazine attracts so many readers? Is it the fashion advice gained from the pictures of dresses and suits that cost more than a Penn State education? Or maybe it's the casual shots snapped by stalking paparazzi?

Oh my god! It's Jennifer Anniston and she's ordering a Big Mac and she's dressed in sweats! This picture will now allow me to die with a fulfilled life!

Or not.

This madness has finally culminated with the allegations of child molestation against the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson.

I'm a bit of a news junkie. I sat and watched cable news on Thursday. It was no different than most other days, except every channel was showing the same image while reporting on the same story.

"Michael Jackson is reportedly turning himself in at any moment." The anchors seemed to be repeating this line on every network while showing a live shot of the front doors of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department. This went on for hours, and I watched thinking this surely could not be the only news of the day.

It wasn't.

The British Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey was bombed in the morning, killing 27 people and wounding nearly 400 more.

President Bush and Tony Blair gave one of the more important speeches of the year while protestors tore down a statue of Bush in Trafalgar Square in response to the despised American president's war in Iraq. More soldiers and people died in Iraq.

The Bush administration announced their intent to open nearly 9 million acres of Alaska's North Slope to drill for oil.

Instead of finding out about all this and more, I sat staring in disbelief at the front doors of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department.

"Michael Jackson should be here any moment, arriving from Las Vegas." The anchors were really earning their pay on Thursday. I'm pretty damn sure that Don Vito riding on a Jazzy Scooter could have made the trip from Las Vegas and back three times while I stared at these doors waiting for Jackson to appear "any minute."

I sat and struggled as to why anyone in this world would wait hours to see the man who resembles a ferret walk in doors endlessly being displayed live on the television screen. I never did see him walk in; I turned the TV off and went back to reading.

Has our society become so desperate for escape that we must all join in witnessing the destruction of a man's life in Southern California? Or have we become too short of attention and knowledge to care about events that might actually have an impact on our lives?

With either question we are enduring the darkest days of the American empire. We have become so programmed as a mass whole, to tune out important news because of its scope. We have been programmed to seek out simplicity in solutions and in stories. Americans are so tired of seeing our own die daily in a desert wasteland that we would rather watch the motionless doors that a really bad genetic experiment must past through in surrender.

Our sick obsession has become our reality.