And away we go!
RUN, MOLLY, RUN!!
Last May we had a nasty little affair called Everybody Draw Muhammad Day in which a bunch of morons created a bunch of LOLMUHAMMAD pictures in an ill conceived and completely counter productive strike for free speech. Now the originator of the idea, Molly Cooper, has been listed on a Fatwa of people a nutjob Imama says should be killed. The FBI has told Norris that she needs to disappear.Here's the rundown. The assholes at Revolution Muslim threatened the creators of South Park for an episode that examined the ban on depictions of the Prophet Muhammad. The episode technically did not break the ban at all. There was a lot of public outcry against Revolution Muslim and they've pretty much been buried by public opinion. However, Cooper who justifiably upset about the threat against fellow cartoonist published a cartoon lampooning the ban which was a bit of counting coup on her part. She also called for Everybody Draw Muhammad Day.
At this point all hell broke loose.
Idiots rallied behind it. Facebook groups were created. It turned into a big thing, and Cooper tried to apply the breaks, but it was too late. We all say things in the height of passion that aren't the brightest things to say, but if you say them on Facebook, expect insanity. In fact I have a video on this blog in which Atheist Barbie calls Cooper a coward for trying to stop this thing.
The fallout was pretty epic. Countries banned social networking sites. There were rallies against "western blasphemy". Now we've got death threats and a woman whose career and probably identity is pretty much gone. She picked a fight that she could not win. She realized it was a bad idea. Unfortunately those behind her were stupid and off they went.
Yes, we do have a lot of freedoms in this country. Freedom comes with responsibility. EDMD was an abuse of freedom without regard to consequences. People didn't think things through. When Cooper did think things through it was too late. Credit to her for realizing it was a really bad and stupid idea. She obviously does not deserve a death threat.
Moral of the story: there are consequences to things you say, even on the internet.
SUBLIME PUNCTURING!!
A 14 year old girl caused a stir with the administration of her school over a nose ring. Nose rings are against the school's dress code. Sounds open and shut, right? Wrong. The family is going against the school claiming they are infringing on the girl's freedom of religion. You see they belong to the Church of Body Modification, and piercings and tattoos are their path to spirituality.Of course these people are complete idiots and not to be taken seriously.
Now, there are religions out there in which tattoos and piercings hold a significance. However, this church is non-theistic, meaning they don't worship any particular deity. Their whole shtick revolves around gaining spiritual strength through doing things to their body which are really just ornamental.
I swear I can hear Warren Ellis laughing about this as I type.
Let's pull this apart. You have a bunch of people who want to use their bodies as canvasses. OK, fine. I appreciate a well done tattoo as much as the next fellow. But then we get into the excessive piercing, tattoos covering enough of their body to the point that they can't be concealed, and lets not forget those absolute morons who stretch their earlobes out to a disgusting degree. They do this without considering the future ramifications or just think that society will adapt and the weird shit that they'redoing to themselves will be acceptable.
Then the morons discover that they need a job.
Surprise, companies are not going to hire you for any position in which you have to interact with any sort of client if you look like a circus freak. Had a piece a while back about one guy who was lucky enough to get his ears reconstructed once he discovered he was unhirable after stretching his earlobes. Now, at this point I'm sure there's people out there who are wailing and gnashing there teeth saying this is all crap and its what's on the inside that counts. Tough tacos, kids. You can have all the training and skills in the world, but you are still judged to a degree by your appearance.
So schools and businesses have certain standards of appearance. Now we have people who either didn't consider this or want to buck the standards. They hit the brick wall and instead of realizing that they've been complete dunderheads about their choices they form a "church" and use Freedom of Religion as a shield to try to force their way past the standards. The school in the case of the 14 year old has already made their stand and pretty much called out the church as being a bunch of waterheads. Good for them.
Cute stunt, really. But let's face it. They brought their difficulties upon themselves and they're going to have to just deal with it.
TV: HELLCATS
I've spent the last few months being bombarded by ads for this show. It did not look like something interesting to me. The star of the show looks kinda weird, like a Michael Turner picture come to life. However, there really was absolutely nothing on the other night so I watched the whole thing.This episode was an absolutely scathing in its depiction of motherhood. The episode in question dealt with both of the female leads, Marti and Savannah, having to deal with their mothers. Marti's mother is an incompetent embarrassment who does nothing but make Marti's life more difficult. Savannah's mother is a cold bitch who uses religion as a club to beat down her daughter and try to control her. Always heartwarming to see Christianity in such a light. Nice to know there is still a group we can heap scorn upon. Fortunately we have Savannah to contrast her mother who maintains her faith and still lives her life. Unfortunately in the previews for the next episode we see her being a drunken cliché. The episode made me think that the writers really need some couch time to suss out their mommy issues. It gave the distinct impression that both of the girls would be much better off without their mothers around.
This show does succeed in showing cheerleading as a sport, which it is despite what certain federal judges have ruled. It combines gymnastics, tumbling and dance choreography into something competitive. I like cheerleading. Yes, the over-abounding "spirit" can be a bit much for my tastes, but I fully appreciate the hard work that goes into creating and executing the routines. Not to mention the serious danger involved should something go wrong. They show how much work is put into this sport. They also show the work it takes to balance being a cheerleader with having to keep up with classwork.
What I don't dig is the ridiculous drama. There's the obligatory catty cheerleader who sabotages Marti. There's the horrendously bad subplot with the cheer coach and football coach. Frankly, there's more to be gained by cutting elements from the show than adding useless baggage. Its not a bad show, but its not a very good one. That has nothing to do with the people on the screen either. So, its off to an OK start, but I see it going down the tubes really fast.
MUSIC!!
Want to know the real reason why it's taken so long for BATMAN: THE RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE to hit the stands? Its because Grant Morrison has been busy battling My Chemical Romance!!
That's it for this time around. Thanks to Paul Was for turning me on to our music for today. If there's no post on Wednesday, its because Chip Mosier has reached through the internet and choked the smarming life out of me.
Peace out, hippies!
