WHEN MICHAEL JACKSON'S PIMP ATTACKS:

Rabbi calls Madonna 'slut' (Miami Herald, Jun. 03, 2004)

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the former friend and advisor to Michael Jackson, has attacked the Material Mom, calling her a ''slut'' and a ``vulgarian.'' [...]

``Was the Kabbalah Centre really so desperate that it is prepared to promote itself through a vulgarian whose main contribution to the culture is porn rock?''

Not surprisingly, Madonna's rep reacted strongly.

''I find Rabbi Boteach's comments regarding Madonna frightening,'' said Liz Rosenberg. ``His vile attacks on her character and as an artist are staggering for someone who professes to be a religious person. . . . I suggest this man take a look at his own character and what problems he may have that would make him feel that he should make statements about a truly beautiful human being that he does not know in the slightest.''

Can you really complain when having based your career on being slutty someone calls you a slut? More to the point, if you've slept with Warren Beatty aren't you a slut by definition?

MORE:
Tales at the intersection of war and popular culture (James Lileks, 6/03/04, Jewish World Review)

Disney just released "On the Front Lines," a DVD set of World War II era propaganda cartoons, training films and educational materials. Donald Duck appeared to be best suited to the lighter offering of the wartime years; no one wanted to see Mickey get shot at, Goofy was too dim to trust with an important job, and Daisy was apparently busy at the munitions plant. [...]

It takes a confident culture to take the average gripes of the enlisted man and put them front and center. But that confidence came from unity. Watching the cartoons, you sense how the war affected nearly every facet of public life, from the color of cigarette packs to ads in the magazines to the draft status of cantankerous ducks. Did it construct consensus or reflect a united people? A little of the former, you suspect, and a good deal more of the latter.

Now art is pressed into service of a higher kind: reminding us that war is horrid. Never mind what you're fighting for; fighting is bad, period. It's better to live on your knees, and who better to remind us than Madonna?

About the time the Disney DVD hit the stores, Madonna launched a new tour. Exciting highlights: She's wearing a blue burqa — and when she whips it off she's wearing an Army uniform! Oh, the irony. Meanwhile, the portentously titled "American Life" grinds on; the audience sees a video in which stuff explodes, children cry, and look-alikes of George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein cuddle together. Because, see, they're really the same. They're both, you know, in charge of guns and stuff. Brave stuff! Brilliant and unexpected. Next perhaps she'll tackle religious hypocrisy! No one's done that since Voltaire retired.

Posted by Orrin Judd at June 3, 2004 9:07 AM