. . . but it’s still mighty satisfying to savor the possibility that Paris Hilton might be spending forty-five days in the LA county jail. The joy of seeing the poster child of tacky excess and privilege finally in a situation that money can’t remedy is a dark pleasure, and one shared equally by people across usual class divides. The mood at Subway today, where I took lunch, was almost jovial when this story came on the news.
It’s not “cruel,” Paris, that the rich are sometimes treated just like everyone else. In fact, most non-heiresses would have gotten the same treatment, rather than a warning, back in January. You get a warning for driving ten over in good conditions, not for driving while your license has been yanked due to a DWI.
Even more satisfying, for me, is Paris’ admission, in an effort to defend herself, that she “just signs what people tell [her] to sign” (source). Indeed. This is also, I’m quite sure, how much of a role she has in the various products that she “designs.” What sickens me about Paris Hilton, at the end of the day, isn’t that she lives a life of careless excess (who wouldn’t, if they could?). It’s that she tries to portray herself as a hard worker, rather than a brand. That’s why she’s such an insult to hard workers everywhere. And that’s why they take such glee in seeing her suffer.