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Kim has some additional insights and observations on heroes and celebrities. Kim’s comments are below in Purple Text – As always, Italicized Text of any color is quoted material from previous posts.

I can’t stop thinking about this. I agree completely, as I’ve said, that our society is wrong for creating the fact that celebrities are in such demand in people’s minds. However, I think it stems from the fact that people don’t teach what real values and character traits should be for those “heroes” in your life. It’s situations like this, when celebrities do (or are accused of doing wrong) that should be what parents use to teach their children what’s important about other people. It’s not what someone can do well that makes the person, but who the person really is that’s important. I try at all costs to tell my girls that it’s what’s on the inside of a person that’s important, not what they look like, what talents they have, or what they’ll do for you that counts. People make celebrities what they are.

You, as everyone else, knows that I have an enormous fondness for Toby Keith. All I know of him is what he chooses to let me know. I only watch shows he’s a guest on and listen to comments he makes himself. I’m no stalker of his by any means. My kids know I love ’em. But… if he were accused of something like this, I probably would want to know. I don’t think I’d watch all the details about it, but should it turn out to be true, I would sure want to know that I should have the right to feel differently about him.

Heroes should be good people that you KNOW. I don’t feel I know any celebrity. I may have a great respect for them, but that’s different than knowing them. In fact, one of my other favorite celebrities said it best when Larry Bird (Celtics) had a father come up to him and ask for his autograph for his kid because Larry was the kids hero. Larry’s reply was “that’s too bad… you should be his hero”. If more kids had good role models to teach them, maybe all these celebrities wouldn’t be so important.