In case there’s any doubt in your mind about the power of celebrity in our society, take a look at the people waiting out in the rain in front of the Dollop cupcake store. Now, I’m happy that Dollop is so successful, and I’m happy that they and Rochester got national attention. It’s never easy to build a successful business, and it’s especially difficult in this economy. But I drive up and down Rte. 441 almost every day, and I’ve never seen a line of people waiting for anything, and I bet the cupcakes tasted just as good last week as they do this week, but the lines only developed after the TV exposure.

Let’s agree to patronize all of our local small businesses, with or without celebrity.