Off the deep end

As the lead singer of Fuel would say at an inaugural ball for teens, are you f'in kiddin' me?

"Does anybody here know SpongeBob?" Dr. James C. Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family, asked the guests Tuesday night at a black-tie dinner for members of Congress and political allies to celebrate the election results.

SpongeBob needed no introduction. In addition to his popularity among children, who watch his cartoon show, he has become a well-known camp figure among adult gay men, perhaps because he holds hands with his animated sidekick Patrick and likes to watch the imaginary television show "The Adventures of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy."

Now, Dr. Dobson said, SpongeBob's creators had enlisted him in a "pro-homosexual video," in which he appeared alongside children's television colleagues like Barney and Jimmy Neutron, among many others. The makers of the video, he said, planned to mail it to thousands of elementary schools to promote a "tolerance pledge" that includes tolerance for differences of "sexual identity."

(snip)

"We see the video as an insidious means by which the organization is manipulating and potentially brainwashing kids," he said. "It is a classic bait and switch."

Manipulating and brainwashing like this?

Just the thought of this is amazing. Heaven forbid the idea that we should tolerate one another, even if we don't happen to agree with them (or in this case, view them as people). What kind of religious leader would call for the boycott of cartoons that teach people to love each other and themselves as if they were people?

Heaven help us. Please.