Gullixson: Kim Kardashian does the Commonwealth Club? Really?

Enough.

Enough with the magazine covers and the bikini selfies. Enough with the tweets and ubiquitous media scooplets about every trinket, celebrity and social slight the members of this family encounter.

I never thought I would say this, but America needs a new reality TV show: It's called 'Losing track of the Kardashians.'

As if this family hadn't already overstayed its welcome in the limelight, two things put me over the edge. First was Kim Kardashian's appearance on the National Public Radio program 'Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me' – a game show that's funny and interesting and often features witty celebrity guests. That Kardashian cameo caused enough of a stir. But for me that paled in comparison to her invitation to speak to the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco on Tuesday.

Really?

Yes, this is the same Commonwealth Club, founded in 1903, that has hosted presidents from Teddy Roosevelt to Dwight Eisenhower to Bill Clinton and notables from Martin Luther King, Jr. to Walter Cronkite to Soviet Premier Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. I've covered several speeches there over the years, but never one that included the revelation that the principal orator was wearing Spanx.

OK. I know the discussion offered more than that, and some say she came across as smart and self-assured. But any discussion that included promotions of hair care and makeup lines and a plug for a new app called 'Kim Kardashian: Hollywood' crosses some kind of line. Doesn't it? And for all the cost of the event – tickets ran from $40 to $300 – attendees still left without really knowing what Mrs. Kanye West does to deserve such notoriety.

And while we are on it, here's one more. On Wednesday, the world learned that one member of the extended Kardashian family now ranks seventh on the list Britain's Women's Hour 2015 Power List of the most influential females. And it's not Kim. It's Caitlyn Jenner, previously known as Bruce.

Hey, this is no judgment about Jenner's transition. I applaud her for the courage it to make this decision and to do so in such a public fashion. But let's be honest. It has been only a month since she made her gender switch public on the cover of Vanity Fair. Surely there are more than six other powerful women who have made a 'significantly large impact' on the world in the past month or more who deserve a higher ranking by this BBC Radio program.

But what do I know. I'll leave it women to weigh in on that one.

In general, for me, I'm just fatigued by the omni-media-presence of the Jenner-Kardashian clan. And before the nation is treated to scenes of Kim and hubby Kanye seated in the balcony, Spanx and all, at the next State of the Union address — a media stunt that no doubt will provide a needed ratings boost for this fading American ritual — I have just one request: Unplug me. Unplug me now.

Paul Gullixson is editorial director for The Press Democrat. Email him at paul.gullixson@pressdemocrat.com.