Tuesday, September 8, 2009

There are certain stories that are always guaranteed to make the news because of the general public's compulsion with the low brow. The abduction of pretty, young (white) girls, psychopaths living normal lives in suburbia, unconventional sex practices, teen pregnancy and bungled police work are good examples. Each of these alone is enough to make a headline, but the story of Jaycee Lee Dugard is an American classic, because it incorporates all of the above. What makes this so signaturely American though, above all the perverse details that have become Fox News fodder, is the moral lesson of good defeating evil, and the will to never give up hope. You can almost smell the inevitable telemovie and Oprah exclusive.