Something for everyone - from the deadly serious to the sublimely ridiculous.Find some time to read Jill Carroll's hostage account at Christian Science Monitor. CNN has been plugging it for the past few days, and for good reason. Gripping, scary stuff, especially in light of the outcome Tom Fox's kidnapping and death around the same time.
Moving from one group of religious reactionaries to another, CNN reports that a church in Watertown, NY, has dismissed a Sunday School teacher of 54 years because the church is now imposing the literal interpretation of the Bible that says women can't teach men (it's in 1 Timothy - look it up). Go ahead, guys. Get rid of all the female Sunday School teachers. Me thinks there won't be much Sunday School left. And while you're at it, better start abiding by all those other Paul-thinking-out-loud-on-paper-then-contradicting-himself-a-few-chapters-later rules. Yeah, I know, this isn't as bad as hostage-taking and murder, but in a way . . .
On a ligher note: got a headache? Reach for a good hot curry, so sez Rowett Research Institute. Curries are particularly rich in salicylic acid - got more than your run o' the mill aspirin, in fact. And the good news is, the hotter the better. Ummmm.
Remember the brouhaha last year over deleting the cigarette from Clement Hurd's jacket photo for Goodnight Moon ? Here's another stupid idea: Turner is being asked to edit out the smoking scenes from all Tom & Jerry cartoons because it sets a bad example for children. Guess all that cat-and-mouse violence is OK - just as long as they aren't smoking. Nobody gets more irritable with smokers than yours truly, but that is completely stupid. Stop. Stop. Stop!
And it seems The Goons were on to something all those years ago with their song "I'm Walking Backward for Christmas." The latest thing is "retro-sport" or - wait for it - running backwards. Yup. Running backwards. (And, yeah, I have The Goons album pictured above. How else would I know about walking backward for Christmas?)
Not much else to say except: "I'm walking backward for Christmas, across the Irish Sea. I'm walking backward for Christmas. It's the only thing for me. I've tried walking sideways, and walking to the front . . ."
3 comments:
As grandson, Thomas, remarked when he heard it on the BBC news(??!!), 'they'll have to cut out all of the torture, blowing people up, jumping off of tall buildings and stuff the, won't they?'
Come to think of it, do you think that if Tom & Jerry had been censored all those years ago terrorists wouldn't be blowing up things today??
And another thing.....Mel Smith has been playing Churchill in a performance at the Edinburgh Festival BUT has been banned from smoking a cigar on stage.
Apparently, since March, there are new laws in Scotland banning ALL smoking from ALL public enclosed or substantially enclosed spaces including cinemas, restaurants, bars, shops, offices, etc, etc. The ban includes any performers on stage.
So...Churchill without his cigar, Sherlock holmes without his pipe. Who's going to take over the world first? The Health & Safety Executive or the Politically Correct Party?
I think you've got something there, Chris. "Tom and Jerry cause cancer." "Bugs Bunny is the root cause of terrorism." (Not to mention 21st century decadence - Bugs was always dressing in drag, ya' know.)
Certainly your Thomas (and all the other kids in the world) can see through this silly stuff.
And I can't believe the Churchill smoking craziness. I think actors have smoked in every show I've seen so far in NY (hey, maybe it's their one chance!). I was on the front row at History Boys but the smoke didn't bother me - it was part of the show. Sigh.
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