Ah, Oprah has given her morbidly obese ego yet another booster shot. How much did this one cost her? $40 million. Applause. Applause dies down, then stops cold as someone does the math on just how small a portion of her fortune that is: only 4% of the ever-growing wealth of the woman who brags about her relationship with God even though that isn't close to the traditional 10% most churches believe is the minimum for "tithing." Maybe you know who should have started his own magazine called "J."

The school will eventually serve over 400 students. Hip hip hooray—except that just one of Oprah's houses cost the same amount—$40 million—and, apparently only houses two: her and Steadman, though she would probably count her dogs, too. Anyone wanna bet that she DOESN'T spend more on any one of them in a year than she's spending on one of these students? The same ones she joked with Dianne Sawyer about never imagining that the huge earrings she was wearing, unlike theirs, were REAL diamonds. We sure she did her own homework and determined that they weren't "blood diamonds" before she shelled out for them. Y'all think the store closed for her while she shopped?

Of course, such deserved criticism would not faze Her Majesty in the least, who has previously said, "I have a closet full of shoes and it's a good thing. ... I do not know how me being destitute is going to help them. ...I'm going home to sleep on my Pratesi sheets right now and I'll feel good about it. "

She may be an ass, and she IS, but she's no dumb ass, so such absurd reductionism to "People want me to be destitute" is the simplest form of shameless, self-serving rationalization.

But I concede I'm in the minority, and that her sainthood stock with her slobbering fans just shot waaaaaaay up. Perhaps I'm being too hard on her. After all, Reichen has legions of similarly blind followers who go nuclear if one dare question him, and all he does is TALK of doing good—he never picks up the tab. And who would want to see O take HER shirt off?

Why is it that nobody seems to mention that Oprah and Steadman are more of a threat to traditional marriage than any same-sex marriage might be? On the other hand, legalize gay marriage and Oprah and Gail and Steadman and one of his boy toys might be at the front of the line.

Okay, can anyone name another celebrity who has invested $40 million of her/his money into a charity like this? Also, Oprah has given over $250 million to charities.

Trying to cut her down seems pretty petty in the scheme of things when no one else is doing the kind of work she is. How many people has she helped with her Angel Network? How many homes did she pay to have built for Katrina survivors?

What has Barry Diller or David Geffen or other gay/lesbian ultra-wealthy business or entertainer moguls done to alleviate world hunger or suffering. Frankly, Oprah is right about there being starving, desperate children in Africa, Asia, and the Americas who need good homes. Do you know what the percentage of children in America who are in poverty is?

Yeah, Oprah is over the top sometimes, but she sure as hell is doing something to make the world a better place.

(And I think Nate Berkus would add that she spared no expense to help search for his lover when he disappeared in the Asian Tsunami.)

for Leland ...

what have you done? what portion of your salary did you give to the poor?

my house only cause 270K, but i would not give 270k to the poor. so i applaud people who do.

so before we criticize other people, get a mirror and reflect on the things we've done.

thanks

Second only to the Reichen Trolls in their predictable appearance and mindless defense, the Oprah Trolls have spoken. Amen and Amen.

Oprah is by far the most generous celeb in Hollywood. No one else even comes close. She's given $250 million of her own money to charity. Other celebs raise money, but only Oprah gives it away in massive amounts.

Also Oprah allowed gays to become mainstream. According to Yale sociologist Joshua Gamson's book FREAKS TALK BACK, it was the trashy tabloid talk shows that dominated the 1980s and early 1990s that produced much needed high impact media visibility for gays and transsexuals. Oprah popularized the genre and transformed into a giant industry. Time magazine is right. She really is the most influential woman on the planet, and she's constantly doing new and bold things to change the world, and couldn't care less what her petty critics say.