In a piece for Slate's XXfactor blog, Amanda Marcotte responds to reports that other parents welcoming new babies at New York City's Lenox Hill Hospital this weekend were frustrated and inconvenienced by the extra security that surrounded Beyoncé. (She and Jay-Z reportedly rented out an entire wing of the building for $1.3 million, sealing off the area and redecorating it for Blue Ivy's arrival.)
In a note to them, and to others who are bitter about the hoopla surrounding hip-hop's newest heir, she has a suggestion: Get a grip.
Here's how:
Think of the alternatives: For everyone who thinks that it's a pain to have to go through a couple extra steps to see your baby, imagine what it would be like if they had no security and you had to get around desperate photographers trying to get that million dollar picture of the baby. Sometimes it pays to step back and think of the alternatives before indulging yourself in a self-righteous huff.
Don't be a hypocrite: Plus, if anybody complaining has purchased an US Weekly, visited a gossip blog, or Googled for pictures of Kim Kardashian's butt x-rays, they're being giant hypocrites. If you don't like the results of the out-of-control paparazzi, don't feed the beast … I bet your friends have one or two baby pictures on Facebook you could be "liking" right now. Your friends will probably appreciate it more than Beyoncé or Jay-Z will if you approve of their baby's cuteness …
Be angry about something worthwhile: Americans are taking out their rage at the rich by attacking the people who got rich in the most harmless way possible — by making products people like in industries that tend to do better on average with labor practices — while we by and large ignore the people who got rich by destroying our economy and kicking people out of their homes. Not to be a relentless curmudgeon, but I can't help but think of how much better it would be if the people raging at Beyoncé for paying for extra privacy at the hospital turned that rage on the bankers who wrecked this economy and continue to rake in mind-boggling profits without paying any price for what they did.
Convinced? Still annoyed? Over the whole thing already? Let us know in the comments.
Read more at Slate.