Ed the Editor's personal blog corner

I once met a couple of representatives from the World Vision charity. It was sad how detached they were from the real world and I coined an alternative motto: One world, no vision. Moving on.

Ocean's 11, 12 13 (thru 24?) star, George Clooney, is quite a guy. The talented and horribly handsome, amusing and genuinely nice actor was recently honored at a Hollywood we-love-George convention. It was a parade of pretty people, for sure, but it took an unexpected turn with footage of his time on the Chad-Sudan border. That is a less-than-glamorous place where the only masculine model normally considered worthy of adulation is George the Kalashnikov.

Camera in hand, George Clooney was with his old man, acquainting himself with the genocidal humanitarian disaster that most people only ever get a glimpse of via the press. He made a report, learnt lots, told the world what he saw.

Maybe Clooney will be criticised for using the African stint as a publicity stunt, a feel good for Hollywood factor? I hope not, because in my book, he is a fricking star of the real world stage.

Unlike the hundreds of millions of folks in the West who could easily put their lives on hold and go get a feel for the horror in Sudan, Clooney stood up and took a major risk. Yeah, right, I hear the cynics say, he was wrapped up in cotton wool.

Sure, I suspect George Clooney had a few advantages over the average traveler, but it is a perilous place even if you are well prepared. Armed guards aren't necessarily enough protection from determined bandits; hats don't protect your tender ass from the sun when you are having a dump in the desert; water purification pills aren't going to protect you when you eat watermelons; you can only drink so much coke and no water can be 100% safe, even if bottled; camel spiders don't differentiate between the blood of Hollywood stars and starving or shot up Sudanese. It is a harsh environment, folks, even when wrapped up in cotton wool.

No, I really hope nobody gets too cynical about Clooney, especially with so many losers in a position of power doing nothing about the genocide, or the likes of World Vision, missing the point. His eloquent words should be taken very seriously

If you ever miss a day without Pisstakers, you can find a daily snapshot of The Pisstakers Satire Blog Posts (ie the homepage) in the archives

Right, now that is off my chest, it's time to relax. Enjoy the content.