Wee David Banda

I love Madonna. I love her sass, her morbo, her trailblazing. As the mother of all Material girls, she objectified herself to no end, at her own expense and gain, into the self-promotion powerhouse the likes of which 20th century pop culture has never seen.

However, even I draw the line at the current trend of African baby-as-fashion accessory. Much has been bandied about in the press about how Madge and Guy went about all the normal procedures for international adoption, (funny how the Malawian government waived its residency requirement for the Ritchies, just like entre nous). The cynic in me wonders if this is a simply a bid for more of the rat race competition for face time with the press. No worries though, Queen Esther will prevail as she has a live on-air blessing from Mother Oprah lined up for Wednesday night. Madonna in her own words:

'After learning that there were over one million orphans in Malawi, it was my wish to open up our home and help one child escape an extreme life of hardship, poverty and in many cases death, as well as expand our family. We have gone about the adoption procedure according to the law like anyone else who adopts a child. Reports to the contrary are totally inaccurate. The procedure includes an l8-month evaluation period, after which time we hope to make this adoption permanent. This was not a decision or commitment that my family or I take lightly. My heartfelt thanks for all the good wishes I have received and I hope the press will allow my family some room for us to experience the joy we feel to have David home.'

Hmmmm. Makes you wonder how many agencies would be chomping at the bit to release a 14-month old into the arms of an 'anyone else who adopts a child ' who was:
a) almost arrested for grabbing her crotch on stage in the 'facist state of Toronto'
b) has had run-ins of blasphemy with every major religion on the planet
and
c) had 10 years previously published a sexually-charged-coffee-table-smut-bible.

My guess is they would show her Versace-clad booty to the door.

I am currently engrossed in A Race Against Time, by Stephen Lewis. In his 2005 Massey lectures Lewis rails against the western world (including the World Bank, the IMF, Bob Geldof and his singsongs) and the shame with which we have turned our backs on Africa, its AIDS-infected millions , and the scores of orphans, mothers, sisters, and grannies ravished by the wretchedness of the pandemic. Will the philanthropy of the Jolie-Pitts and Ciccone-Ritchies get the world (read the United States) to shed more light onto the plight of Africa's dying and undoubtedly spawn copycat trends from Paris Hilton to Lindsay Lohan?