On the day that Werner von Trapp, last surviving member of the Von Trapp Family Singers, passed away, it’s worth stepping back to see how popular culture has progressed over the past half-century. Helping us to put this in perspective is Spencer Pratt, a K-Fed wannabe who slimed his way onto MTV’s The Hills by hooking up with Heidi Montag and rapidly became one of the most hated human beings in North America. Spencer did an interview with Radar, which seems to be specializing in gawdawful interviews, and shared his thoughts on a range of topics. Here are a few samples, chosen more or less at random:

• On his new-found fame: I love the bad press. The bottom line is I’m making people react and ultimately not think about that we are in a war in Iraq and are trying to pick leaders. The Hills is a good breath for people.
• On his inner creativity: I’m a free thinker. There is no box. I’m thinking about ideas that people might think are crazy, and I’m like, this world is crazy, where do you think we are? You want to tell me there’s a planet and there’s a universe, and gravity holding us down? It’s like, okay, I’m crazy then.
• On his apocalyptic future ambitions: I definitely want to go into politics later in my life. I plan to be governor at least, and president if possible. But if people look back on the show, I’ll say, who were you when you were 23 years old? Don’t tell me you didn’t go to the nightclub and get in fights with your girlfriend and throw paint on the wall.

Honestly, read the whole thing. It’s like watching The Mclaughlin Group, if McLaughlin and everyone else were Miss Teen South Carolina with a pathological esteem surplus. This interview will lower your IQ so drastically that by the time you’re done, you’ll probably want to watch the damn show.