Good post. There are some who have transcended beyond their persona of "actor" to become something more. Reagan was one. I'm ok with that.

>I agree to a point. I believe this can be selectively applied to pop culture personalities as all-knowing Oracles. But not as a blanket statement. I would suspect that some people have the wearwithall (financially and time) to understand an issue as a result of their pop-icon status that would not be possible without this status. Bono comes to mind as an example. He's treated like royalty by african countries (for a variety of reasons) and he has access to people like bush and oneill. If he voices opinions, political or otherwise, i would not discount them because he's a rock star. Conversely, it would not occur to me to seek federal emergency management advice from an Arabian horse expert.
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>>Quoting actors on anything but acting has issues.
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>>>My reply to Jay was intended to show that his implied "why not quote Mel instead" comment had some issues. I believe i agree with you regarding the use of labels as a means of distracting from substantive discussion... if thats what you're saying.