So if you have a pulse, a TV, or an internet connection (I’m guessing you have three) you probably know about the latest Britney Spears drama, at least peripherally. Many of you will have clicked a link or visited a celebrity gossip site and read the account of her standoff with the police, or perhaps even seen pictures of her being loaded into an ambulance.

I know I did. Though I’ve never been into People magazine or OK! or In Touch or any of the other celeb gossip rags, a few months ago I started visiting a celebrity gossip site with some regularity. It was snarky, mean, and often downright hilarious, and I got in the habit of checking in every morning while having my cup of tea to laugh at the antics of Paris and Lindsay and Britney.

Somewhere along the line, though, the Britney story went from “oh-no-she-didn’t!” hilarious to just plain sad. The fact is, something is wrong there. Whether it’s substance addition, a postpartum mood disorder, mental illness or she’s just self-destructing before our very eyes, we are witnessing somebody’s very public demise. And those of us who are clicking the links, reading the blogs and looking at the pictures? We’re participating by creating a demand and a market, turning that downward spiral into mass entertainment.

I’m not willing to be a part of it anymore. It won’t be easy…reading the latest Brit story has become as habitual as my daily caffeine fix. But think what you will of Britney, there are children involved here. If we don’t stop looking, we are just as guilty as the paparazzi. After all, in a roundabout way we’re the ones who pay their fees. And once the Britney story reaches its conclusion, who’s next?

So? I’m out. No more celeb blogs. No more pictures. They’re off my favorites list as of today.

Anybody with me?

–Cross-posted at Chicago Moms Blog