Michael Jackson most foolish American

[brownie]

From a story published in the Australian (Australia's national newspaper) today from an AFP story.

Wacko Jacko 'foolish'

From correspondents in Los Angeles

31mar04

BELEAGUERED pop icon Michael Jackson and his little sister Janet have earned the dubious distinction of being named the most foolish Americans of 2004, organisers of the awards said Tuesday.

It marked the second time in a row that the "King of Pop," who is currently facing child molestation charges, has snatched the April Fools Day dishonour as the "Most Foolish American" in an annual US opinion poll.

In the telephone survey of 1016 Americans carried out by New York-based public relations consultant Jeff Barge, 77 percent of respondents voted Michael Jackson to the top of the fool's list, followed by 70 percent who voted for his sister.

Janet Jackson hit notoriety after what she described as a "wardrobe malfunction" exposed her breast to nearly 100 US million television viewers during a half-time show at the football Super Bowl in February.

"Obviously they are giving each other advice," said Barge of the notorious siblings. "And it's not good advice," he added.

Michael Jackson was in November arrested on charges of sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy at his Neverland Ranch a year ago, at around the same time that he was named the most foolish American of 2003 after dangling his baby son out of a Berlin hotel room window for press photographers.

In third place on Barge's list was US domestic diva Martha Stewart, who was earlier this month convicted of obstructing a Federal inquiry into a suspicious stock sale, leaving her facing a possible prison sentence.

She claimed 70 percent of votes for the foolish, losing second place to Janet Jackson by just one of the 1016 votes cast in the survey.

Stewart was followed by pop princess Britney Spears, whose 55-hour Las Vegas marriage in January earned her fourth place in the ranking with 69 percent of respondents saying she had "done something foolish" over the past year.

US President George W. Bush also made the list, receiving a foolishness rating of 50 percent this year, making him the 10th most foolish American of the year, according to the survey's respondents.

Bush became embroiled last year in the controversy over whether or not ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein actually possessed the weapons of mass destruction that Bush said justified the US attack on Iraq.

In 2003, 36 percent of respondents to Barge's poll said they felt Bush had "done something foolish," while his rating stood at 47 percent in 2002.

By contrast, only 32 percent of Americans thought presidential candidate John Kerry has "done something foolish" in the past year, while 48 percent said that former US president Bill Clinton did something foolish in the past year.

Among others surveyed this year, basketball star Kobe Bryant, accused of rape, scored a 63 percent foolishness rating, while hotel heiress Paris Hilton scored 56 percent after a home-made sex video of her appeared on the Internet.

The telephone survey, conducted between March 19 and 22, has a margin of error of plus or minus three percent and was conducted with the assistance of Opinion Research Corp. Inc. of Princeton, New Jersey.

[Jazzmoose]

I demand a recount!

[Chuck Nessa]

I demand a recount!

Can we expect James Baker soon?

[GregK]

I demand a recount!

Can we expect James Baker soon?

he'll be right behind Jesse Jackson I'm sure

[chris olivarez]

Did Jessica Simpson show up on this list?

[Tjazz]

What about some of those voters in the California recall election?

[robviti]

Did Jessica Simpson show up on this list?

they said foolish, not clueless!