We’ll always have Paris

I beg your pardon. Fans of Paris Hilton are petitioning California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to spare the reality TV star and handbag designer from 45 days in jail, noting that she provides “beauty and excitement to (most of) our otherwise mundane lives” (http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/05/09/100wir_a2paris001.cfm?refresh=yes).

Actually, since Hilton’s sentencing for violating her probation for drunken driving, The Buzz has noticed that the days seem a little sunnier, food tastes better and there’s a spring in our step.

Tuning out. If most Americans are looking for beauty and excitement in their mundane lives, they aren’t turning to their TVs. Recent ratings seem to show that fewer people are watching network TV this spring as compared to last spring (http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/05/09/100wir_a2tvratings001.cfm?refresh=yes).

We’d like to think that means they’re out walking the dog or playing ball with the kids. But maybe they’re organizing online petitions to spare hotel heiresses from having to rattle tin cups across the cell bars in order to get a decent latte.

Save our (alder-smoked) salmon. Chefs from the Northwest urged Congress to do more to protect wild salmon, so we all can continue to enjoy the tasty fish (http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/05/09/100wir_b6salmon001.cfm?refresh=yes).

That’s a petition we’ll sign, especially if the only alternative is fish sticks.

— Jon Bauer, Herald staff