Britney Goes Crazy, Goes To Hospital

In an incident that surprises exactly no one, a glassy-eyed Britney Spears was forcibly taken to a Los Angeles hospital last night after refusing to turn over her children to ex-husband Kevin Federline’s bodyguard. The pop star was photographed being loaded into an ambulance outside her home, strapped down to a gurney. Spears defied her court ordered visitation agreement and took her youngest son hostage in a room for half an hour resulting in the arrival of the police and a stand off that lasted nearly four hours. According to the police report, Spears appeared to be “under the influence of an unknown substance” and has "subsequently had her all her visitation rights suspended. Spears is currently ensconced in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center pending a mental evaluation, reports US Weekly. At her bedside are her family, including Federline and father Jamie. Access Hollywood received a nigh hysterical phone call from Mama Lynn Spears imploring that staff to “just say prayers” for her troubled daughter.

It goes without saying that I wish Britney all the best in 2008 and hope that she receives the help she so sorely needs. The Spears soap opera may be the most irresistibly high profile train wreck ever but at some point we need to turn our eyes away or become culpable voyeurs of a truly sick and sad spectacle. I’d say now is a good time to let Spears recuperate from this humiliatingly public breakdown in private. Good luck, Britney!