Nothing is more spiritually edifying for my readers than for me to pontificate about American Idol. And so, here is my weekly devotional.

As predicted, Ace said adieu to American Idol tonight. They're at the point now where a really good performer must be cut every week. Ace was good, but you got the impression that not only Simon, but the "show" in general, had it in for Ace. The way the show is produced definitely spotlights certain people in more favorable ways. So while the results are not technically "fixed," they are definitely influenced by the big bad omnipotent string-pulling producers, whoever they are. I hate lowering myself to grasp proofless conspiracy theories, but I just can't help myself here.

The counterpart to my conspiratorialism is that I felt the producers were jacking up interest in Chris...and yet he had the second-lowest number of votes this week. So I really don't know what I'm talking about.

Next week Chris, the rocker, has to do something from Andrea Bocelli. Right. That'll be a hoot. He and Kelly are in trouble. Everyone else should do okay. Yes, Freddie Mercury sang the remarkable "Barcelona" album with Spanish opera diva Montserrat Caballe, but Chris ain't no Freddie Mercury.

To show how much this show has be-fevered me: I downloaded clips of performances from previous seasons. The best ones were from Bo Bice, last year's runner-up. As much as I like this year's rocker, Chris, Bo Bice was far superior. That guy was good!