Shock waves caused by the wrong reasons

If the wedding between two celebs can cause “shock waves,” as Calendar’s front page states [“A Couple of Young Pop Stars in Love,” by Geoff Boucher, May 14], Americans are going to hell in a basket. Why are no shock waves caused by the mass murder of innocent people in Darfur? Why is no one marching to stop the madness in Iraq?

So long as we are preoccupied with the petty lives of petty people whose only claim to fame is plastic surgery and a decadent lifestyle -- this is the beginning of the end. Nero fiddles while Rome is burning.

Stephany Yablow

North Hollywood

*

Geoff Boucher would benefit from a dictionary and a lesson in gender equity.

“Starlet: a young actress publicized as a future star” does not describe any of the women featured in the article. In their combined careers, Renee Zellweger, Julia Roberts and Gwyneth Paltrow have received seven Academy Award nominations with three awards, 10 Golden Globe nominations and seven wins, and six SAG nominations with four wins. Cameron Diaz is without question a star in her own right.

These women are most likely more recognizable than the “musical heroes” with whom they are or were partnered. The diminutive description of accomplished women who “might get a song” from their crooner lovers is insulting and inaccurate.

Jean Liebhard

Orange