Will Tomorrow Come for Britney?


A few hours after crying my eyes out over Obama's Iowa victory last night, I found myself watching "Gone With the Wind".

I know, it makes no sense but I can only blame it on late night channel surfing. Before I knew it, I was watching Vivien Leigh acting as Scarlett O'Hara and Clark Gable getting it on as Rhett Butler.

Watching GWTW is like watching a train wreck. Put aside the fact that it's never been a movie I've liked with it's racist depictions of slaves like Mammy and Prissy, who are just sooo happy go-lucky and content with their lot.

Who doesn't cringe at Prissy's classic line, "I don't know nuthin' 'bout birthin' no babies, Miz Scarlett!" Ugh, no wonder the actress that played her, Butterfly McQueen, ended up quitting acting for a long time. Talk about typecasting!

The thing that makes GWTW so train wrecky is that Scarlett is the girl with no morals, an attention whore, the mid 19th century equivalent of Tila Tequila or, gosh...Britney Spears.

Yes, I woke up this morning still buzzing about Barack Obama. But the local LA news was buzzing even more about Britney Spears.

It got me thinking. Maybe what's really been wrong with Britney all this time is that when she was a little girl her mama sat her in front of the TV to watch Gone With the Wind. Britney probably grew up thinking Scarlett O'Hara was just the essence of southern womanhood, the essence of beauty and decorum.

But in reality, Scarlett is a lying, scheming tramp. I mean, two seconds after Ashley Wilkes' wife dies, Scarlett's asking Ashley if he wants to get with her. Britney probably translated that behavior to the 21st century seeing as how she got with Kevin Federline while he had fiancee Shar Jackson pregnant with their second child.

Rhett Butler takes his daughter, Bonnie Blue Butler, away from Scarlett because it's clear Scarlett doesn't give a damn about the child. And of course, K-Fed's lawyers are busy taking away Britney's kids because, well, it's clear she doesn't give a damn about those babies either.

Not that Rhett or K-Fed are ideal, responsible upstanding men, because they're clearly not. So it's weird that I watch GWTW and I'm relieved when Rhett takes Bonnie. And I'm relieved that K-Fed has custody now.

Another thing: Scarlett has always struck me as suffering from some sort of mental illness or personality disorder, and I'm not just saying that because Vivien Leigh was bi-polar in real life .

As for Britney, is she bi-polar? Manic depressive? Does she have multiple personalities? Is it drugs? Is it all of the above?

I don't know but I do know that in "Gone With the Wind" we watch Scarlett act crazy for about four hours. It's truly exhausting to watch her antics during that relatively short amount of time. Even at the end of the movie, Scarlett's still oblivious to the fact that it's her behavior that's the problem. She never once thinks that stepping back and changing her behavior is the answer. Nope, Scarlett thinks that her plantation and getting Rhett back is the answer to everything.

She starts her scheming and then declares, "Tomorrow is another day!"

I always feel like yelling at the TV, "You don't get it! Tomorrow is another day but that day might not come for you!"

We've all been watching Britney act the way she does for a whole lot longer than four hours. I'm mentally exhausted by it, but she seems to feed on the insanity of it all.

She's a lead story on legit news sites. Her face is staring back at me from the magazines lining every checkout stand. She's talked about on the radio. And here I am writing about her on my blog.

It must make her feel like it'll always be that way, like it'll last forever. Like tomorrow will always come.

And the truth is, sometimes it doesn't. I just hope Britney realizes that before it's too late.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Train wreck is precisely the term. The woman has set in motion events that she is not able to stop and it is propelling her rapidly in a negative direction. Friends and family have tried to intervene but only she can stop the train. It seems logical that she is not necessarily trying to self destruct it seems more like her intention is try and cope w/ the pain or other feelings she is experiencing - however the the coping mechanisms are only temporary fixes. Sometimes coping mechanisms work they give a person a chance to breathe and take break to calm themselves and regroup. The problem is these fixes are not fixes they are bandaids and if the person does not use the respite to get focused it only prolongs the pain. Sometimes the person is in so much pain or turmoil that the mini break is not nearly enough and they can't grab hold and continue to free fall. Regardless as to how she came to be in this state unfortunately it appears she is in free fall mode and grasping at straws - one can only pray that she does not totally self destruct and pray to learn from her situation so as to not make the same choices and/or help someone closer to our own reality who maybe in the same place albeit on a smaller scale. There but for grace could go we all or someone we know and love - here's hoping this latest episode is what causes her to pause and actually deal with the cause and stop seeking "quick cures" and regain her life.

V/r

Clarice
Jameil said…
SIGH!! i imagine i'd be a train wreck, too, if my mom had been selling me and my sister for as long as she could.
Anonymous said…
Very interesting comparison of Scarlett and Britney. As you say, they both seem to be serial attention-seekers and they'll do anything to get the attention, even if it means destroying themselves in the process. Must admit I never managed to watch the whole of Gone With the Wind, I just couldn't get into it. Maybe I've got Attention Deficit Disorder? Or maybe it's just way too long.
Paul Mooney had a classic "review" on GWTW when he was on the Chappelle show. It was hilarious.

I agree with you. I think Britney is suffering from some kind of mental breakdown and abusing drugs. She doesn't have the coping skills that many people have, due to her family and lack of smarts (which I blame her parents for, clearly education was not a priority...only pimping out their kids and making money).

I watched the news and some people are spinning the situation as any mom would freak out about having her kids taken away. Please, the cops were concerned she would hurt herself or her kids. She can't keep any lawyers because she isn't taking any of these custody issues seriuosly. She needs help and to get out of Los Angeles now. Take her millions get out of the public eye and go heal. Unfortunately she is addicted to the spotlight.

Even her mom has tried to get her to seek help. Remember she was the own who told Britney to go to rehab. Britney stopped speaking to her mom after that. Britney had to hear from the press that her little sister was pregnant. Damn that is messed up. Talk about dysfunction.

That said the press really needs to focus on other things. I had to turn of the news because they kept going on and on about her. She is not "America's pop princess", who makes up these stupid titles?
Anonymous said…
Britney is just an illusion, she is a device that allows us all to feel better about ourselves, she is a distraction to what is really happening in our world today!
The regimes that exist need people like Britney to keep us from watching the real baddies!
She is a real life soap opera performing for us all, should we not be ashamed of ourselves and of a system that allows this to happen. Where are the social services and welfare, where are her family and friends? Is society going mad?
Toni Campbell said…
What a perfect analogy! I remember being dragged to see GWTW as a child and not liking it, mainly because of Mammy & Prissy. When I saw it again as an adult I realized that I hated Scarlett! I always wondered how a character who is so blindingly selfish is held up as a paragon of southern womanhood. And living in Atlanta it is sometimes hard to escape her!
Jen said…
I hate to sound overly callous here, but I don't even care if Britney gets it. There are thousands of train wreck Britney girls and boys in our country and they aren't getting the help they need, and they don't have the chances or financial backing that she does.

And our media definitely needs to focus on more important events and people.

It's just so sad.
Tafari said…
You have drawn a hell of a parallel again!!!

I was at the gym today watching CNNN & the news bit about Brit flashed & all I could do was shack me head.

I feel sorry for her. She literally had the world handed to her in terms of fame & money & now it seems as if she has hit rock bottom with no way out.

She no doubt did some major fucking up, but the media also played a role. I mean at any point of the day, you could turn on the tv & hear what she was doing, who she was doing & what she was wearing if anything.

I hope she can get her shit together.

Bygbaby
Miriam said…
what an interesting comparison!

I really don't know too much about Britany Spears -really nothing. But I hope that somehow someone will reach her and talk to her or that she'll realize she must live for herself and not her audience and fame or whatever that is driving her mad like that.
Liz Dwyer said…
Clarice,
Hi and welcome to my blog! I found myself thinking today about how there are so many people who have a vested interest in Britney continuing on in the same way. If all these young stars cleaned up their acts, would that diminish the revenues of the salacious gossip mongers? It's sad to think that if she is indeed bipolar, there is no way to force her to take the medication that can actually help her.

Jameil,
True. But it seems like she cut her mom out of her life for trying to intervene and put a stop to crazy town. Plus, at what point is it no longer her mom's fault? I also wonder how much of who she is can she change? So much of her character is already "set". Not that I think she can't change, but it will be VERY hard for her and she doesn't seem like she wants to put in the work to make it happen.

Nick
Hey! How was your trip to see your mum? For some reason I've only seen the beginning of GWTW a few times but tend to catch the last hour and a half a whole lot. The other thing I thought about is how Rhett is really abusive to Scarlett, even asserting his right to sex even though she's unwilling. And of course the next shot is of her singing the next morning. But yes, the movie is sooo long -- and the book is too.

NYC/CR,
I totally agree that she needs to get her rear out of LA but how would she survive without paparazzi pumping her gas? She can't see it and this city is terrible if you've got problems because there's always some sycophant to pour some more honey-tipped poison into your ears.

Anonymous,
You speak the truth. Has the war in Iraq gotten half as much coverage as Britney Spears in the past year?

I don't think she has any true friends she can trust. She's like a lot of people in that regard. And who knows if her family has the ability to influence her positively when they also seem to be dysfunctional. The sad thing is that all of us have family problems, etc., but it doesn't get played out in the media. Most of us wouldn't want it played out in the media. Britney and her people seem to know no other way.

Toni,
Words cannot even express how much I completely hate the roles of Mammy and Prissy. I wonder if my grandchildren will see some of the roles played by Queen Latifah and Mo'Nique in the same way because I know I sure do.

I'm sure Scarlett is dear to the hearts of many folks in Atlanta but man oh man, she's awful!

Jen,
I know what you mean. It's been hell getting any help for my relatives that have mental illnesses. And Dr. Phil isn't paying the average person with issues a visit to see how they're doing. I think her situation highlights how impossible it is to make someone who's not a minor get mental health assistance and that's the case rich or poor -- but being rich, at least she'll be able to pay for it.

Bygbaby,
These parallels are the sort of things that make my sister question whether I really don't drink. :) And I don't at all but I suppose sometimes my mind just puts random things together.

It's been crazy to see how much media hype her situation has gotten. I haven't watched the news at all today but clicked on a few local news sites to see what was happening with the rain and my goodness, why are so-called "real" news sites linking to TMZ??? It's just this really sick feeding frenzy.

Miriam,
I've come to the conclusion that she needs to get on some medication and find some sort of spiritual practice, something that is beyond herself or something that will give her some sort of purpose. Go off to the jungle like Left Eye did. And Left Eye burned down Andre Rison's house! Do you remember that! That was just totally crazy. But she went and found peace, found her true self. Maybe Britney can do the same.
the last noel said…
No! No, not you, too. Stop talking about Britney, everyone stop talking about her! AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHA!
Liz Dwyer said…
Noel,
I know! It's like a disease and we're all infected! If I eat garlic and take some echinacea will I be cured?
You've made an interesting comparison. Both Scarlett and Britney are utterly self-absorbed attention whores whose eyes turn inward.

I never could stand the way Black people were portrayed in that movie either, as well as in so many others until quite recently.

It's a bizarre commentary on our society that the tasteless antics of a messed up young woman should upstage the victory in Iowa of an intelligent, decent man. Obama's win gives me hope that we haven't all gone completely brain dead, but the fact that you watched GWTW after his victory is marvelously funny.
Marleaux said…
Great analogy. I've never seen the movie though, and after reading this, I'm not interested. And I may be the only person on Earth that doesn't pay much attention to the Brit situation. But also, I still know everything that's going on with the situation. It's unavoidalbe. People are talking about it in elevators and coffee shops.
Anonymous said…
Liz, my mum was just fine as always. All her friends are going down like ninepins with nasty medical problems but she takes 101 diet supplements which keep her very healthy. Politically she's very conservative so we don't see eye to eye on very much. It's just good that she's still enjoying life and isn't a bedridden old crock!
Liz Dwyer said…
Heart,
The irony of me watching GWTW after watching that amazing speech still has me chuckling a bit. I suppose it's appropriate though because that film represents a way black folks have historically been viewed, and sadly, there's some folks out there who still think Mammy and Prissy are ideal.

Marleaux,
Welcome to my blog! I'm glad you shared your thoughts. Yes, spare yourself the agony of GWTW. It has some classic film moments in it, but I find myself wanting to throw something at the TV when it's on. News about Britney is everywhere. I suppose if I didn't live in the US, I could avoid it. Then again, these news stories are carried around the world these days.

Nick,
My mom is more conservative than I am as well so I know what you mean. It's so good that your mom's keeping herself healthy like that. People always say you have to die sometime, but the truth is that most often, folks don't die, they're just sick for a really long time. Glad you got to spend some time with her.
It's called Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
I read this post, then didn't have time to comment. I thought a lot about it. As a child, I admire Scarlett and in some very dark moments of my life, she inspired me. I also learned to never let pride get in the way of loving.

Yes, she's manipulative and selfish. There just aren't a lot of good role models of people overcoming things.

In the meantime, Dr. Phil has whored himself and therapeutic standards out on the Britney thing. (Erased swear word) I feel bad for her. I hope she can find a way to sort the wheat from the chaff.

OH, you spoke of K-fed and Shay. What about Mark Anthony? He's left 2 women when they were 8 months pregnant with his children. And J.Lo's all psyched that she pregnant. How stupid can you be??
Liz Dwyer said…
Elizabeth,
I had no idea there's an actual name for it. It seems like our culture really creates this condition, doesn't it?

Claudia,
Scarlett and Rhett are both sooo prideful. It really keeps them from being able to come together, which is such a shame.

I tend to dislike Dr. Phil and this just cemented that dislike. I'm glad he canceled the show he was plotting, but still, just ridiculous that he was even trying to use Britney in such a manner. He should really be ashamed.

Marc Anthony and J. Lo are just awful. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he turns around and cheats on her one day too. They try to act like it's true love! Whatever!

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