There She Is And There She Goes.

I watched Miss America tonight with the girls. The scary part was listening to my thirteen year old proclaim, “It's much more fun watching the 2 year-old pageants.  If your still doing it at this age, your not very bright.”. I wish I could say that I didn't agree. When I was younger, the Miss America Pageant actually meant something, now it just stands for years of child abuse and mothers vicariously living through their daughters.

I'm not saying the Miss America Foundation doesn't do a lot of really good work, just that the pageant itself has become, well, boring and too political. Asking a pageant contestant the merits of universal health care is like staring at a balloon and expecting it to explain Einstein's theories. It may look pretty, but if your expecting to hear more than the escape of air from inside, you'll be disappointed.

I may just be bitter, because I picked Miss Kentucky to win and felt she was the prettiest from the semi-final round on up. Her Evening gown and talent portions were average, but should you really judge these women on talent? I joked with the girls that there would be a ventriloquist, isn't there always? Strangely the contestant who did ventriloquism this year was actually the best in show, hands down (pardon the pun.).

When I was younger, every year, we would look to Atlantic City to find out who the prettiest young woman in America was going be and to hear Burt Parks sing, “Here She is Miss America.”. Now, thanks, in part to reality TV, the magic is gone. I wish it was just me who saw the wizard's feet under the curtain, but even at eight, Lizzy was not impressed.

I think the only thing the pageant has going for it, is the whole 'train wreck'-like quality. It keeps you tuned in, hoping that something goes right in a sea of everything going wrong. Tonight, what happened in Vegas probably should have stayed in Atlantic City.