The Balloon Boy Story

I've been fairly busy/sick over the course of the last week so I didn't really have much time to follow this story until it had all gone down and they supposedly found the kid safe and sound hiding in his own attic. So now it appears that his parents have aspirations toward careers as reality television stars and that it's likely that the entire incident was a publicity stunt for which they'll probably be charged with conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, attempting to influence a public servant and filing a false police report.

I'm of course glad that the kid was OK but I hope that the parents are made examples of for callously attempting to exploit the caring and goodwill of their fellow Americans. I'm getting pretty tired of this collective fascination we have with appearing on television for any reason and at all costs, even if it means sacrificing one's own integrity and dignity in the process. The actions of selfish idiots like this are one of many reasons other countries have lost respect for us in recent years, and frankly it's becoming rather embarrassing.