DAYS: Deidre Hall at DNC in Denver

[jacks]

I go to school in Boulder and am from Denver so I've been following the Democratic National Convention nearby this week. On 9News Entertainment reporter Kirk Montgomery had a report on all the celebrities at the DNC and even had Deidre Hall. She said basically that she wants all DAYS fans to make sure they are registered to vote and to "vote for change," without directly saying Obama's name. It was nice to see her since they usually forget about the daytime people at these events.

[Pest Spray]

She's always been very politically active, I think as far back as Clinton she was campaigning in the presidential campaign.

[jcar03]

Someone posted a clip on another site of Deidre at the DNC. I know she is a big Dennis Kucinich (sorry if I spelled that last name wrong) fan.

[Quent]

Hey, Dee, I've got a message for you, too. I'm perfectly capable of making up my own mind and don't need airhead celebrities to show me the way.

[brimike]

No kidding. I'm a Marlena fan, and I like Dee Hall - but celebrity endorsements for political candidates on either side of the fence drive me up a wall. The two do not mix, and never should. Do you know I actually met someone a few months ago who hadn't decided who she was going to vote for until Oprah made her decision?!

For a brief second, I thought about plunging a fork into my skull. LOL!

[marceline]

I don't need celebrities telling me what to think either but here's the thing: celebrities are people first and they have every right to stump for candidates and causes that are important to them just like anyone else. I understand the urge to disagree but I don't think one should disagree because they are "celebrities." One should disagree based on the merit of subject matter.

[brimike]

Oh, I didn't mean to criticize Dee Hall. I'm criticizing the people out there who will actually pick their president based on what their favorite celebrity says. I didn't mind Dee speaking but it did bother me that she called on "the fans of Days". Up until I met this super Oprah-fan in late spring, I didn't think people actually made their choices based on this... but apparently, they do exist.

[Gray Bunny]

I wonder if the same naysayers would be complaining if she was supporting a Republican. Instead, a different batch of naysayers would be whining. Just a thought.

[Graciecat]

I does bother me when celebrities (if one considers DH a celebrity, which I don't) make statements like that, because it sort of implies that she thinks we should be swayed by her opinion. It feels very self-aggrandizing.

I felt the same way about the "Daytime for Obama" ads. Um, seriously? Seeing Obama's name stamped across Blake Berris's naughty bits is going to decide my vote?

I probably sound harsher than I mean to, but it always bothers me around when people with no more political experience than I think they have the right to tell me how to vote.

[brimike]

Hell yeah I would.

I'm not complaining. Really, I'm not. Up until this conversation with this girl a few months ago, I wouldn't have cared. It really never occurred to me that people might base who they vote for on what their celebrities say. But after having this incredibly frustrating conversation with this girl where I couldn't get through to her that she shouldn't base her decision on what Oprah says, it occurred to me that other people like her out there exist. And some of them are Days fans.

I love Dee, I love that she believes in a political cause so much and champions it, no matter which side it is. I love Oprah for endorsing Obama, I love Patricia Heaton for endorsing McCain, I love this country where you can express your opinion freely. What scares the bejeezus out of me are people who can't think for themselves and want others to form opinions for them. That's all I was trying to say. Sorry -- should have been clearer.

[jcar03]

Celebrities are allowed to have thoughts and feelings and allowed to opinions on whatever cause they choose.

[Graciecat]

Very true indeed. And believe me, I think it's a lovely thing that they can. But just as they have the right to say whatever they want, I have the right to disagree with it.

I don't want to make my complaint bigger than it is- I hardly lie asleep at night, fuming about activist actors.

All I'm saying is that I get a bit peeved when daytime stars want to make sure that I "vote for change", as I don't really consider it their place to say. I'm not advocating a constitutional amendment wherein free speech is guaranteed to all citizens- except pseudo-celebrities on the subject of politics.

[UCLAN]

I believe that Diedre Hall was with the California delegation. I guess she wanted to witness a convention first hand. It's possible that she may have been an actual delegate. So what's wrong with stumping for your candidate?

[All My Shadows]

I see this as nothing different than a friend or family member trying to influence my vote. It's not a celebrity thing, it's just a people thing.

[Pest Spray]

Except, not once in there did she say "Vote for Obama because I do". She was on the Gore campaign, she was on the Kerry campaign and she's involved now, and each time she was asking people to vote period. She's been actively involved in politics since ... well, at least 1982.

Like it or not, a lot of Americans don't care about the election and they don't use their vote (but continue to complain). I don't care if it's a celebrity pro-Cain or pro-Obama, they do have a voice and they can get the word out there to vote. If people just vote for someone based on who their favourite likes then it's their problem.

Celebrities are people too, they have as much right as we do. It just happens that CNN wants to interview them about their choice. And I for one, if CNN asked me, I wouldn't say no.