Another one for the Google searchers.

I've gotten hundreds of page hits from Paula Abdul searches over the past week, and the result they come to is a silly essay I wrote about going to the dentist, in which I happened to mention that Paula was on the Regis and Kelly show. So that they aren't further wasting their time, I feel obligated to chime in on the latest flap of my least favorite television show, American Idol, beating a dead horse, as it were.

I'm assuming the searches are over her so-called flub last week when she critiqued a second song by a singer who hadn't sung it yet. That is leading to all sorts of questions and issues over the comment. There is only one explanation that makes any sense:
The show is scripted and the results are pre-determined.

That should come as no surprise to regular readers who have seen me lambaste the program over the years because I never believed that it was a credible talent show, and often question its motives.

The show is fixed. How else could one explain whittling down thousands of contestants to a select few? Only if the winner is known beforehand could the judges accurately make a choice from the original entrants.

Paula's gaffe represents what happens when a scam is carried out for too long. Sooner or later somebody goofs. She has since tried to explain her reasons for what she said, but mostly she talks in circles and contradicts herself.

This is fascinating to me because millions of viewers (supposedly) have been duped into watching this nonsense for years, believing that their votes matter and that the show is indeed a legitimate talent competition.

Face it folks, it's a TV show. Just as phony as a sitcom and as contrived as a daytime drama. Of course, there will be no long-term repercussions from this, because you don't tell kids that Santa Claus doesn't exist and you don't tell foolish TV viewers that they have been wasting their time.

So, the show will go on, seemingly forever, and Paula (the weak link in the corporate scam chain) will continue to make goofy comments and American Idol will continue to address our celebrity shortage and provide fodder for the newspapers and entertainment shows who still think that we haven't figured it out.

If I were a fan of the show, I'd hate them for making me think it's real.