Just finished watching a huge chunk of the Live 8 highlights on ABC. As a sensitive and passionate celebrity and/or citizen, I felt it was my [American] duty to make a difference in the world by watching/attending a free concert. ABC, however, had other plans: let’s sell lots of ad space to sensitive and caring corporations.

What was with the all-star finale in which [Sir] Paul McCartney tacked on the ending of “Hey Jude” to “The Long and Winding Road”? And what was with [crazy] Mariah Carey out there wrangling the little [hungry] African kids like the exploited props they were. But at least even the crazy and/or poor can sing along with “Na na na na-na-na na, Hey Jude.” [Nowhere was the [exploited] prop aspect more evident than the scenes of the [survivor] African woman who not only was the [poor] poster child of world hunger back in Live Aid but was paraded and prodded across the stage tonight by both [Sir] Bob Geldof and [Queen (of Pop)] Madonna.]

What really united the world tonight, however, was Trimspa in their perfectly insensitive ads about losing weight. Whether you’re part of the sub-Saharan population ravaged by AIDS or the [near] anorexic celebrity/diva, let’s use Trimspa, whose slogan of “Be envied” smacks of everything that’s wrong with the world. Or at least with the people that buy-in to that sentiment.