MC Banhammer Posted:

When it comes to tabloids and non-tabloid articles about their likes and dislikes, I agree with you.

When it comes to mourning their deaths, though — while hundreds of thousands of people die daily, almost none of them have a direct impact on any given individual’s life. Celebrities, though, have an impact on thousands or even millions of people’s lives, because the celebrities brought something to those people, whether they knew them personally or not.

The pitchman dies, meaning I’ll never again be able to enjoy watching him advertise something. The musician dies, meaning I’ll never get to enjoy new music that he might have produced. The actress dies, meaning I’ll never be able to watch her act in another movie. These are things which impact me directly (to various degrees).

But 3000 people dying in a country I’m never going to visit? While that’s much more horrible from a humanitarian point of view, the direct impact on my life is nil.

Hence, mourning celebrities, but not unknowns, despite the numbers.

That’s something i was neglecting to mention because it counters my argument entirely.

However, the recordings of the musician and performer will last forever so they are as close to immortal as it gets. The stuff that made them worth recognizing doesn’t die like they do.