When Barbra Streisand loses a nose competition.
I saw this in another thread and thought about responding something along the lines of:
"When Charlie Sheen is sober and respectful for more than 6 months."
But it got me thinking about whether saying something like that would be right or wrong for me to do. On the one hand, I am STRONGLY against gossiping, which I define as: talking badly about someone when they are aren't there, or for any purpose other than to directly help that person. And using Charlie Sheen's personal problems to make myself look funny, seems to fall into that category and therefore would be wrong.
However, it also seems that when people become famous (actors, sports stars, politicians, singers, etc.) that they cease to be "real people" in my mind. Instead they almost become impersonal examples that I use to teach and inspire other people to either follow or avoid. And using Charlie Sheen's hubris and alcoholism to encourage others to make better choices with their lives seems like a good thing. And unlike a person who I actually know, there is little to no chance that Charlie will every know that I said anything or be hurt by it.
So what does everyone think. Is it wrong to speak poorly about an actor's life choices, or a president's policy choices, or a singer's wardrobe when they can't defend themselves? Or does it become OK because they're famous and have put themselves out there for that kind of thing?
