I can think of a list of descriptions for this motley crew, and none of them would be "stars".
Fortunately, I am not one of the 23 million people tuning in to watch Dancing With The Stars. Never have, never will. As far as I am concerned, it is the place where sad hags go to pasture. It is The Biggest Loser set to music. There’s nothing stars about DWTS. A star to me will always be something greater than who the media touts as being a star. Angelina Jolie is a star. Brandy is not. Robert Downey Jr. is a star, The Situation is not. Another non-star is Bristol Palin. Excuse me, but having a child out of wedlock and being the daughter of a defunct, megalomaniac governor does not constitute star power. There is a great series currently running on Turner Classic Movies called Moguls and Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood. You want to know what a star is…watch this seven-part documentary. The movie business, perhaps one of the most complex, dynamic industries, created the star system to fuel the machine called celebrity. What we have now is a bunch of watered-down wanna-bes who think they are stars that for some reason the media has an obsession with them. Stars? Dancing? Unless you are Fred Astair or Ginger Rogers, think again.
I couldn't agree with you more!! Thank you for expressing what I've been thinking about that crazy show ever since it appeared.