crowdog66

EDITED: To fix the broken link to the video.

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Yesterday on the Today Show, Kathy Lee Gifford (that font of wisdom and sweet reason) called Pagans "nasty" and "bad".

Heh. Just imagine if she'd called Jews or Muslims the same thing.

You can find the offensive remarks in question here at about 4:25 in the video.



With that in mind, some folks are writing to NBC at today@nbc.com with the following email:

Dear Sirs/Mesdames:

I understand Kathy Lee Gifford made disparaging remarks about Pagans recently on the Today Show. This is unacceptable, and certainly leaves a black mark in my mind when I think of the Today Show.

Paganism is a religion like any other, and it deserves the same respect given to other religions in this country. Ms. Gifford should apologize for her remarks, just as she would be expected to apologize for remarks against any other group in our society.

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.

Or another variant:

To Whom it may concern,

Kathy Lee Gifford made disparaging remarks about Pagans recently on the Today Show during a "wedding quiz", calling pagans filthy, nasty and bad.

Paganism is an umbrella of many ancient and indigenous religions, and it deserves the same respect given to faiths such as Christiany, the religion to which Ms. Gifford so vocally adheres.

This kind of behavior is a black mark on an otherwise wonderful news magazine show and to a network for which I have the utmost respect.

As a loyal viewer of NBC and the Today show, I expect Ms. Gifford to publicly apologize for her remarks, just as she would be expected to apologize for remarks against any other group in our society.

Thank you for your kind and prompt attention to this matter.

My own suggested addendum to either of those letters is:

If no apology is forthcoming within one week, I will boycott products advertised on the Today show, and will advise everyone I know to do the same.

That's not an action that everyone would feel comfortable taking, but it's certainly an option.

Those who want to make their opinion known in person can call and complain to the producer of the Today Show. Dial (212) 664-4249, press 1, then request to speak with Jim Bell from the person who answers. (With thanks to the "Cats, Jax, and the Plastic Princess" blog.)

Please spread the word, if you're so inclined.

I woke up this morning with a neck that's sore in both of the levatore scapulae muscles (long muscles that run up the back of the neck to the right and left of the spine). I don't know if I slept on it wrong or what, but since neck stiffness is a bad sign while taking Trisulpha I'm definitely keepng an eye on it.

I woke up with a lower back ache as well. Checking my calendar, I discovered that it's been 21 days since my last period. Yay, PMS! That might also explain why I was slightly nauseous last night.

So today I took my first dose of evening primrose oil, after checking with my pharmacist that it wouldn't interact in funky ways with the Trisulpha.

After breakfast I went right back to bed and slept for three and a half more hours. I've been up for about an hour and a half now and am feeling fairly chipper, but at the slightest sign of deeper fatigue I'm going right back between the sheets.

Oh, and the Freewebs site builder appears to be broken -- it won't allow me to embed links to pages already on the site, or rather, it brings up a "Loading" window while trying to access all the links and nothing ever loads. *sigh* I have a trouble ticket in with them so hopefully they'll sort things out in the next day or so.

There's a dustup over on solitarywiccans that's the result of a comment over here. Someone said:

I was at a drummin last march for the spring equinox and was really annoyed when a girl approached a couple with the drumstick and they refused to participate, tellin her not to ask them to go ask someone else. To me that is disrespect to the gods/goddesses. Any kind of act to the gods/goddesses is to me greatly looked at their eyes. It tells them that u are not one who just passes it by without a thought.

Someone else replied:

I call bullshit.

It is a worse offense before the gods to act before Them without sincerity, without truly wishing to serve Them and to do Their Work.

You cannot compel sincerity.

You have NO idea as to why this couple chose not to participate. You are interpreting it as being disrespectful to the Gods, but in truth you know nothing. If you are going to get that offended by things about which you know absolutely nothing, then perhaps this isn't the religion for you. Or perhaps you need to go back an take a serious look at just exactly what it is you believe and why you believe it.

And things went from there, with various people whacking the first poster with a cluebat while the first poster tries to whack back. Fun times, fun times.

In other news, I am so damned sick of feeling... well, sick. But you'd probably already figured that out. Bah, humbug.