About two weeks ago, Vanity Fair published an article called, “Is Obama the Most Famous Living Person Ever?” Figuring that this was a joke or some type of play on words, I had to read the article to see what the author was going for…and it was disappointing. The writer is so delusional that she actually wrote this:

I’m not trying to induce an acid flashback to John Lennon’s infamous 1966 comment, “The Beatles are more popular than Jesus.” But whether you measure fame in terms of saturation or sheer numbers, it seems indisputable to me that more people know at least something about the new American president than anyone alive, at this point—or any—in the planet’s existence.

Who else could it be? One friend suggest Muhammad Ali, another Princess Diana, and a third said Bill Clinton. Surely all are global brands with enormous reach and broad appeal. But all fall short of the man-meets-the-moment frenzy unleashed by Obama.

Typical mass media liberal ideology. Over the last two decades, the most famous person on earth was obviously Pope John Paul II; a man who wasn’t even suggested in this article. I’m sure that the former Pope wasn’t brought up because he’s one of those Roman Catholics (GASP!). And as a proud Roman Catholic myself, I think it’s hilarious that the morons at Vanity Fair could publish an article wondering who the most famous living person ever was and not mention Pope John Paul II – who it is estimated was seen by more than half of the world’s population during his time in the Papacy alone.

And if we’re talking about the most famous living people ever, then how are Jesus Christ and the prophet Muhammad not on that list? What about Abraham or King David or King Solomon? Oh wait – the liberals don’t really believe that these people existed (or at least not in the form that more than 4 billion people believe in which they existed).

Obama could be a great man and worthy of such remembrance one day, but a month into his term as President I’m unsure how anyone who is of sane mind and body could make such a ridiculous statement. Yet another example of how the media has gone to shit in this country.

For my part, I usually go shopping the day after Thanksgiving in part because of the hysteria of the day and in part because there are great deals to be found if you look for them. One of the places that I go to look for these deals is Black Friday Ads. This is a site that posts the much sought after Black Friday specials and sales for all of the major retailers. A few years ago a consortium of retailers tried to have this site shut down arguing that they were sharing private information. However, the popularity of the site proved that consumers want to know about Black Friday deals well in advance of the wee hours of that Friday morning.

Being led by the shrewd business people that some of them are, a few companies used this critical market research to begin publicizing their Black Friday specials on their websites in advance of the actual holiday. This Christmas season has seen yet another shift in strategy as major companies like Wal-Mart are now offering “Pre-Black Friday” sales. For example, Wal-Mart offered a $298 Compaq laptop computer (only 10 per location) on the morning of November 8th. I think Wal-Mart has the right idea here because they are rewarding those early shoppers with great deals and keeping some of the hysteria in place associated with the Black Friday aura.

At the end of last year’s Christmas season I was sure to pick up a good supply of the “other” things that celebrators need for this time of the year: bows, holiday scented candles, Christmas cards, tags, tape, tissue paper, Christmas boxes, etc. That stuff can actually add up if bought in one pre-Christmas Day purchase! All I need to get this year are the presents to fill the wrapping paper and for which to place the tags. I don’t anticipate going crazy this year for Christmas, but I do have an idea of what I am going to buy for everyone on my list.

Haven’t checked that list twice yet, though…