George Clooney: Potential Assassin?

I recently finished reading Manhunt: The 12 Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson and loved it. The book was put together so that it read like a story while drawing on original source documents to provide actual details and quotes. As far as historical non-fiction goes, it was very compelling and I would recommend it to anybody who is interested in learning more about the assassination of President Lincoln.

Prior to reading Manhunt, my knowledge of the subject was quite limited. I knew that John Wilkes Booth was the assassin and that the assassination occurred at the Ford's Theater. And that was it. I had no idea that the story and characters involved were so compelling. The most interesting part in my opinion was the cultural prominence of John Wilkes Booth prior to the assassination.

Booth was the premier actor of his era. All his shows would sell out and his services were always in high demand. Additionally, he was widely considered to be one of the most attractive men in the country. The best way to summarize his persona and popularity is to say that women wanted him and men wanted to be like him. He was an icon.

The modern day equivalent of the assassination of Lincoln would be George Clooney assassinating President Bush. That idea literally boggles my mind. Imagine if one of the world's most attractive men according to People Magazine, who is also considered to be one of the premiere actors in Hollywood, AND has a taste for politics assassinated the President. Think of the media circus that would ensue. I think the entire interweb would collapse due to the volume of traffic on message boards, blogs, and gossip sites such as TMZ.com and Perez Hilton. The world would cease to exist as we know it. I don't think even Jack Bauer the vampire could save the day.

So my one request for Mr. Clooney is to please not assassinate the President. I like the interweb and I like our country. Keep making movies and enjoying life at Lake Como. I want to be like you.

PS I loved you on The Facts of Life. Thanks for keeping it real.