The Greatest American...race-baiting ratings whore

Oprah Winfry is everywhere. Televisions, newsstands, even one of the top 25 finishers in the Discovery Channel's nationwide "Greatest American" balloting. Apparently she was also at a Parisian Hermes boutique late last week.

After closing time.

While they were allegedly preparing some type of in-store PR event.

And was turned away resulting in "one of the most humiliating moments of her life."

Obviously aware of the substantial influence Ms. Winfry possesses, Hermes and their CEO dutifully apologized publicly for the situation. CNN carried the official reaction from the Oprah camp:

Harpo Productions spokeswoman Michelle McIntyre said Winfrey "will discuss her 'crash moment' when her show returns from hiatus in September."

"Crash" is a film dealing with race relations. The phrase "crash moment" refers to situations where a party feels discriminated against on the basis of skin color.

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First off, I'm really not sure why this would necessarily make the cover of Us Weekly, let alone one of the top stories on the front page of CNN.com. But "her 'crash moment?'" This isn't about race, it's about a celebrity getting her panties in a twist over not receiving the 'celebrity treatment' she so obviously feels entitled to. (Note to Ms. Winfry: when normal people show up at a store after close, 95% of the time the employees won't acknowledge your presence at the door, let alone let you inside to shop).

It's pathetic that this self-important douchebag wields enough power that the company and its higher-ups feel the need to kow-tow to her for fear of the public relations damage she can cause, at will. What's worse is that she wastes her considerable juice pushing bullshit like this and manufacturing careers for the likes of Dr. Phil.

The only apologies should be the ones from Oprah to every individual whose legitimate suffering due to racism is cheapened by this odious publicity stunt of an "incident." And this is the type of person Americans are ranking among individuals such as Edison, Jefferson, and King. Very interesting that, despite the myriad of woes racism causes, Oprah's story can wait until she returns from hiatus in September. She might be humiliated, but she can certainly hold off on addressing things until she can use it to boost her ratings. Maybe she could bring on James Cameron, 91, the only known survivor of a lynching. Perhaps they could compare "crash moments."