Cameron Diaz on the Beach

Around 3 o’clock this afternoon I found myself in a surreal situation. I looked over to my left and saw Cameron Diaz on the beach. She was headed for the ocean and completely oblivious to my presence. I started thinking about the movies I’d seen her in and wondering if she was anything like any of those characters.

Before I knew it I was at a full stare. I caught myself and turned back to my little girl. She wanted a snack and I routed through my bag to oblige. But, as soon as she was satisfied, I was gawking again.

Suddenly a strange voice said “Are you ready, maam?”

I was jolted from my spot at the beach back into my place in line at the grocery store. Both of my children were restless and my produce was being brutalized by a complacent teen. I shamefully scurried away from my post in front of the gossip magazines hoping the cashier hadn’t notice me looking. All the way home I wondered why I felt so guilty about looking at something placed in public view.

It came to me when I was unloading the groceries and I almost dropped the milk. You see, when I was twenty, I had a stalker. We had worked together and he seemed like an okay person. Then he got fired and suddenly I started seeing him everywhere I went. The final straw was when he published a clearly delusional manifesto about me, with pictures. I had not agreed to these pictures. I didn’t even know they had been taken. It turned out that he had purchased them from an old school-mate. That’s right, he had done his research and found out where I had gone to school and contacted former classmates.

Well, I disappeared. I didn’t go to any clubs. I didn’t go out to restaurants. I quit my job because he was waiting for me outside. I stopped talking to people I knew because he was paying people for information. It was really a test of my friendships, sad to say most didn’t pass. My life came to a grinding halt. Worst of all, there was nothing I could do about it because I didn’t have his social security number so I couldn’t file a police report or get a restraining order.

So, what does all this have to do with Cameron Diaz on the beach? She didn’t consent to that photo. Her privacy was just as much invaded by that person who took that picture. People dedicate their lives to invading her privacy. There are actually laws that protect the people who do this to her.

What is sick is that I qualify as a peeping tom for looking at it too, but so do millions of other people. So what if you don’t buy the magazine. If you stand there looking at and reading the headlines about Brad and Angelina, Britney Spears, Tom and Katy or anyone else; you are invading their privacy. Have you ever wanted someone to invade your privacy? Have you ever liked people saying bad things about you? Would you like it if all of your coworkers had an open opinion on your body or your relationships?

It’s crazy to think that these people don’t mind you looking their lives and judging them. Find some other way to make yourself feel better than by degrading another human being. Boycott the paparazzi! They killed Diana, their best story, who’s next?