Reply #1: Interesting story. I'm not a fan, but frankly, Justin Bieber probably

[beachmom]

has a better argument to put out a book than these others. He does actually have musical talent and became famous from first putting out You Tube videos. The others aren't as skilled in their professions, actually.

I think the pols mentioned in that article are more akin to Rebecca Black and the "Friday" phenomenon. Lefsetz (a music industry blogger) had an insightful post about fame and I think going with the metaphor of the Politico article is relevant to our discussion here:

http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2011/03/25/rebecca-black-lessons/

Don’t equate fame with being rich or longevity. Fame is oftentimes brief and oftentimes the famous make almost no cash. I.e. reality TV. But there’s an endless parade of wannabes willing to prostitute themselves for a bit of fame. Is it the human condition or a reflection of America, where the poor can no longer be rich and fame is a substitute?

This one really nails it on how rocketing to the top and being famous may backfire in the end:

If you’re twentysomething and have been slugging it out for years trying to make it don’t complain about Rebecca Black. She lives in a different world. To make it and last in music takes longer than it has since the seventies. The MTV era made stars overnight, which faded almost instantly. Now you gain traction slowly, only your fans know you, they spread the word online and you pray that you never gain a Rebecca Black moment, because that means you’ll be ridiculed and be toast.

I know it doesn't feel like it now, but I predict that as the GOP primary comes to the moment of nominating someone, the more serious candidates will end up winning. The joke candidates are all the talk now, but that is just for fame and notoriety. Sarah Palin is basically Rebecca Black -- the only reason why she got as far as she did was because McCain had such bad judgment.

Still, I think it is the trashy reality TV culture that seems to be fueling the GOP right now and leading to members of Congress being elected who have no business being there. When you get to the Presidential level, however, people although dumb aren't THAT dumb.