Slow day at Snopes, mayhap?
Such worthies as “The View’s” fake republican Ana Navarro spread a story about how Trump paid liar Karoline Leavitt referred to ancient ex-pop star, ex-actress Cher as “irrelevant” only to be slapped down by Sonny Bono’s muse thusly:
Well, snap! Take that, fascist bitch!
The story went viral on social media, with other celebrities celebrating Cher’s comeback, at least of a verbal nature. But it didn’t happen. Snopes—not that the site is trustworthy either—determined the fake quotes from both Leavitt and Cher originated in an AI-authored article appearing on a website indicating that its owners resided in Vietnam.
So desperate are the Trump Deranged for moral victories that they must stoop to cheering on fake triumphs by antediluvian woke warriors nobody under the age of 45 is likely to remember. For Cher is irrelevant, and has been for more than two decadee. Leavitt wouldn’t bother to call her irrelevant because she is irrelevant, just as the fake exchange would be irrelevant even if it occurred. This means that Snopes declaring the tale false is also irrelevant.
As is this post, come to think of it…
Apparently a washed-up star can be considered relevant if she is believed to be sufficiently opposed to the President and his supporters. Once again, as with Nicki Minaj, I must ask, “Who cares what Cher thinks about Karoline Leavitt?”
I view this episode worthy of an Ethics Alarms Kaufmann. “A Kaufman” is applied to matters of controversy so inconsequential as to be unworthy of attention or indignation. George S. Kaufman, celebrated wit and playwright, was on a TV panel show when singer Eddie Fisher ( father of Carrie) asked advice from the panel because desirable women were refusing to date him because of his youth. Kaufman replied,
“Mr. Fisher, on Mount Wilson there is a telescope that can magnify the most distant stars to twenty-four times the magnification of any previous telescope. This remarkable instrument was unsurpassed in the world of astronomy until the development and construction of the Mount Palomar telescope. The Mount Palomar telescope is an even more remarkable instrument of magnification. Owing to advances and improvements in optical technology, it is capable of magnifying the stars to four times the magnification and resolution of the Mount Wilson telescope. Mr. Fisher, if you could somehow put the Mount Wilson telescope inside the Mount Palomar telescope, you still wouldn’t be able to see my interest in your problem.”
For Eddie Fishers problem, substitute what Cher might say after Karoline Leavitt called her irrelevant. Even in her prime, Cher’s political views should have carried no more weight than the average Starbuck’s barista. Now, they are not even worthy of a Snopes factcheck.
Ethics Alarms 
Bing Videos
I see “I Got You Babe” dates from 1965. Ninth grade for me. This is when Cher was just naturally pretty because she was … young! I had forgotten how Phil Spectered this recording is. An oboe? And even the lyrics are a little schmaltzy at times. In any event, this is when Cher became and was relevant. If my math’s right, that was sixty years ago. I think she became irrelevant as she split from Sonny Bono. From Sonny’s wiki page:
“Bono continued to work with Cher through the early and mid-1970s, starring in a popular television variety show, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, which ran on CBS from 1971 to 1974. Around the time that The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour was in development, Bono grew his now famous mustache, which he would continue to wear for the rest of his life. In 1974, his solo variety show, The Sonny Comedy Revue, ran on ABC for one season. From 1976 to 1977, the duo, since divorced, returned to perform together on The Sonny and Cher Show. Their last appearance together was on Late Night with David Letterman on November 13, 1987, on which they sang “I Got You Babe.”
I sometimes think of Mrs. OB’s and my early years together as our “I Got You Babe” era. We didn’t have a lot other than each other.
America’s oversized devotion to celebrities is one of the pitfalls of the pulling oneself up by one’s bootstraps aspect of our culture, especially with talented ones who worked hard and achieved a certain level of success. Somehow, we’ve convinced ourselves that largely uneducated performers who’ve made it big should have excessive weight given to their opinions.
Something’s gone haywire. Actors and musicians used to just shut up and act and shut up and sing. Or some of them would perform for U.S. troops overseas. To the extent that was a political statement, that was the extent of it. Celebs being doted upon and blathering lefty stuff is a post-’60s phenomenon. I guess movie magazines existed in the ’40s and ’50s, but they were just for teenaged girls to moon over.