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I am not a fan of Britney Spears, but I do have respect for her. No really. I do. I think it was pretty damned smart of her to totally whore herself out to the entertainment industry like there was no tomorrow, make loads of money, and then happily retire after a few short years of work. The Britney business model let her quit working while she was still young so she could have sex all day with Federline at her ranch, lounge around her pool with her sister, and strut through her local Wal-Mart without a care in the world. But, then I saw the 2007 MTV Video Music Award clip and, uh, well, I just don't know what else to say that hasn't been said elsewhere.
Her performance was so unprofessional that I have to assume it's was a joke. Britney Spears was playing a joke on MTV. She must have been. And more power to her! She must have gotten the idea from the people who go on the American Idol auditions and intentionally give a bad, (albeit hilarious) performance, just to mess with the pretentious and annoying judges. We all know that MTV is painful to watch -- the way that MTV brainwashes America's children into bad-taste wielding, pre-pubescent, consumer-monsters with pre-conceived notions of self-entitlement, is just asking to get...hmmm...how do they say it nowadays? Oh yes, that's right. MTV is just asking to get punked by somebody. Now that Spears has her own kids, she probably doesn't want MTV's crap infiltrating their impressionable little minds. So I guess she decided she was the just the woman for this anti-establishment job.
I have to give it to her, for being a down-with-the-establishment novice, Spears did a pretty good job. Just a few seconds into her act, you can clearly see that she is trying really hard not to crack up laughing at herself. I mean the glittery bikini + heavy-duty boots + pre-pot belly costume was a great comedic choice. Letting us all see the right angle where her real hair meets her extensions was a great touch. Not knowing the words to the song; not bothering to accurately lip-synch; and being obviously drunk was just hysterical to watch. The way all of the other dancers had to help her get around the stage was just classic physical comedy. The Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy, and John Ritter were clearly her inspiration for the performance.
And the best part is that MTV hasn't figured any of this out yet! This is all just too funny. Really it is. You can go to the MTV website and watch the whole thing where they claim that they have "hit the jackpot." MTV has yet to edit out a single stunned audience member not clapping. Bravo Britney!
