I get lots of questions about the blog, so I thought I would answer them here.
1. What happened to all the famous people?
What do you mean? You've got Cenk Ugyar, Hooman Majd and Dal LaMagna. Not good enough for you?
2. where did John Cusack go? We were promised Gynneth Paltrow. So?
These people are real celebrities! And therefore busy. The good news: the Huffpo is just about ready to restock it's roster with prime celeb bloggers. In the next few weeks we hope to be welcoming:
-actress Daphne Zuniga
-a well-informed caddy for an LPGA golfer
-one of the Baha Men
-Michael J. Fochs (Arianna met this man on a cruise and thought he was the actor. Mr. Fochs, who is an accountant, didn't want to hurt her feelings.)
-a survivor from the 280,000-acre Cedar fire in San Diego County mountains (it's a Cyamaca cypress tree).
-someone who has been to Africa recently and has promised to write about it!
-a Sri Lanken prop comedian
-the sassy black woman from Becker (Ted Danson is busy)
-A pantomime artist who is steadfastly against Bush ("Bush's foreign policy is just like...walking...against...the...wind..")
-Stig Ulnarsson, otherwise known as "Scandinavia's Eric Alterman"
-Taylor, from the Power Rangers
-a pro-choice aborted fetus
-Nicole Kidman's fake nose from the film, The Hours
-someone from "the OC" (the Onion Council)
-a one pound lump of congealed lamb's blood stuffed into a pair of nylon pantyhose
3. Why should I read the Huffington Post?
The Huffington Post is an amazing therapeutic and philanthropic tool. But don't take my word for it. Check out this glowing recommendation from the American Mental Health in Media Association:
"The annual American Mental Health Media Awards recognize the Huffington Post for it’s work in preventing the damaging consequences of mental illness. By allowing patients to sit quietly and express themselves on the post, the Huffington Post has removed potentially dangerous individuals off the street, where they would likely be a harm to themselves and to others," says AMHM president and founder Greg Gutfeld.
4. My friends laugh out loud when they read Deepak Chopra's posts. But I find the posts deeply spiritual. Is that normal?
It is normal if you're a rich, well-educated but confused individual who finds organized religion too difficult to fit into her schedule and far too demeaning to her ego-driven intellect. While real faith requires sacrifice and a willingness to look outside yourself, "spirituality" alone is internal, ego-based and easy to do. Spirituality without religion is like pretending you won the game without playing. Instead of contemplating God, you contemplate your navel. "And it's an endless, ever-expanding navel," Deepak might say.
[FLASH HUFFPO CORRECTION! In his recent post, Deepak wrote, "Death can be viewed as a total illusion because you are dead already." The Huffpo would like to point out that we are not dead already, even if Bill Maher appears to be.]
5. What does HP offer people that other blogs don't?
Wisdom. Read any post, take the opposing point of view, and you arrive at common sense. An example:
On the blog, gossip journalist Richard Bradley displays his usual humility by criticizing London cops. He wrote that the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes was due to "a collection of small [but significant] police mistakes, lack of training, and heightened anxiety. In other words, unjustifiable."
Here is the opposite: "if you're in THE UK illegally with an expired visa and forged documents, and you're in the subway a week or so after a terrorist attack that happened to also occur in the subway, don't ignore police orders and run. If you do, police will think you're involved in something far more serious than an immigration violation. We all feel terrible, but people who are living among terrorists are willing to risk one small tragedy (a shooting) over a mass tragedy (a bombing)."
Just by reversing the logic, you suddenly understand the huge dilemma all people are dealing with everyday, on the subway. And you also scare people like Richard Bradley into minding their own business.
(Note: this also works amazingly with Trey Ellis's posts. When he says divorce is great because he can bang his girlfriend whenever he wants, what he's really saying is "weak, self-centered people should not get married or reproduce")
7.How can i learn more about the people who blog here?
Check out their bio. A rule of thumb: the longer the bio, the less interesting that person really is. All of the Huffpo bios are really applications for a cocktail party. I don't have a bio, but i do offer work-out tips.
8.What's Harry Shearer like?
A teen's dream. But hairy.
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COMMENTS
I can’t help but think my dandruff is the result of Bush's War on Iraq.
posted by jann wenner at July 26, 2005 2:14 pm
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Hey, who is this ass? Well, whoever you are - i was at the Playboy mansion last night and bagged a playmate. Can you say the same thing?
posted by bill maher at aug 1 , 2005, 2:15pm
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Hi. my name is amber. i was at the playboy mansion last night and some short guy named bill told me he was a valet - and when i gave him the keys to my car, he climbed into my trunk and hid there. I had to have the whole car fumigated (AND I DONT EVEN KNOW WHAT WORD MEANS!)
posted by Miss October 2001, at Aug 1, 2005, 2:25 pm.
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Uh Hello, i'm waiting outside like you asked me. around the corner so no one sees the Bentley.
posted by Arianna's driver, at Aug 1, 2005, 2:26 pm