Mr Rogers to Mitt Romney: Don't cut PBS!

"Mom, do you know why I like Mr Rogers? Because he likes me just the way I am." -Bobby Aagard, circa 1985

I grew up on a healthy dose of PBS programming. Mr Rogers was a friend, and taught me that being different is OK, and that we should love others not for the clothes they wear, nor their toys, but for being themselves. I also learned valuable lessons in topics such as anger management.

But Mr Rogers was not my only early influence. I gained a love of books from Reading Rainbow, and was reading at nearly a 1st grade level entering Kindergarten thanks in part to Sesame Street.

Because of a series of life circumstances, I get to spend some time with my 5-year old nephew, who is about the same age as I was when I said the quote that leads this post. We sit down to watch TV together, and I look at the programs he watches and the lessons we learn from them. Dinosaur Train takes his love of dinosaurs and trains and turns it into a love of science. On a recent trip to the Utah Museum of Natural History, he referenced Dinosaur train, mostly in the parts of the museum that DON'T have dinosaurs. On Sid the Science Kid, he sees that he, like the characters, can channel their natural curiosity to learn new things. On The Cat in The Hat Knows a Lot About That, he learns lessons in observation. And, n our new favorite show, Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, we learn some of those same life lessons that I learned from Mr Rogers.

I can't think of anything we learn from shows such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Phineas and Pherb other than what the latest toys and junk food are out there (seen during commercial breaks)).

Unfortunately, the only way to produce commercial programming is from the private sector getting some help from the Government via PBS. So, when Mitt Romney said in tonight's debate that he wanted to cut funding for PBS (which amounts to a very small portion of the federal budget), I took it personally.

But, this is not the first time funding for PBS has been threatened. In 1969, Congress was wanting to cut funding for PBS, and Mr Rogers went to Washington to testify. Instead of reading his prepared remarks, which he said the Congressmen had promised to read, he spoke briefly about his show, and the good it was doing in the world.

In the next Appropriation, PBS funding went from $9 Million to $22 Million.

So, Mr Romney, please find something else to cut, because this funding is doing a lot of good in the world.

-Bob

SNL Does The VP Debate

I Agree With Mitt Romney About Sarah Palin

Normally, when you are going into a debate with your opponent, you want to lower the expectations for yourself.

That way, if you suck, people go "well, that's OK." However, if you raise them, then you have to live up to them.

Mitt Romney didn't get the message:



Actually, I have seen a couple of debates from when she was running for Governor, and she was good.

It will be interesting to watch tonight.

-Bob

Debate Funnys

If you haven't seen this quote, you're missing out:

"It's the longest Hail Mary pass in the history of either football or Marys." - Barney Frank on McCain's proposal to postpone the debate.

From Facebook:

"Christian Burridge is in the middle of getting a haircut. Just a minute, I need to suspend my getting a haircut so I can unilaterally fix the economy."

David Letterman, who was supposed to have McCain on last night:

Obama: “Presidents are going to have to deal with more than one thing at a time."

From Time.com:

[Obama] Reacts to McCain’s proposal [to postpone the debate] in Clearwater, Florida: “This is exactly the time the American people need to hear from the person who in approximately 40 days will be responsible for dealing with this mess.”

Adds he intends to continue campaigning and preparing for the debate.

“What I’ve told the leadership in Congress is that if I can be helpful then I am prepared to be anywhere, anytime. What I think is important is that we don’t suddenly infuse Capitol Hill with presidential politics…”

Also takes a swipe at McCain, adding: “Presidents are going to have to deal with more than one thing at a time. It’s not necessary for us to think that we can only do one thing and suspend everything else.”

McCain aide Holtz-Eakin: “Sen. McCain will continue to work with both Sen. Obama and the commission on the scheduling of the debate.”

MSNBC: Debate commission says they’re going ahead full speed with Friday’s face-off.

Personally, I think they need to change the subject of the debate to the economy, and debate for twice as long.

KCPW Announces Election 2008 Debate Series

KCPW is pleased to announce our Election 2008 Debate Series taking place in October. To date, candidates in six different races have agreed to participate. The series includes a gubernatorial debate between Governor Jon Huntsman and Democratic candidate Bob Springmeyer the evening of October 16 at the Salt Lake City Main Library.

With the exception of the debate between Speaker Greg Curtis and Mr. Jay Seegmiller, all of the debates will take place at the Tessman Auditorium of the Salt Lake City Main Library at 210 E. 400 South. They will air live on KCPW 88.3 FM and 105.3 FM and online at www.kcpw.org. We will be adding additional debates shortly.


Tuesday, October 14th, 7 to 8 p.m.
House District 49
Sandy Public Library, 10100 South Petunia Way
Greg Curtis, Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives (R)
Jay Seegmiller (D)


Thursday, October 16th, 11 a.m. to noon
Senate District One
Carlton Christensen (R)
Luz Robles (D)


Thursday, October 16th, 7 to 8 p.m.
Governor
Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. (R)
Bob Springmeyer (D)


Wednesday, October 22nd, 11 a.m. to noon
House District 24
Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck (D)
Dr. Joe Jarvis (R)


Wednesday, October 29th, 7 to 8 p.m.
Salt Lake County Mayor
Mayor Peter Corroon (D)
Michael Renckert (R)


Thursday, October 30th, 11 a.m. to noon
Salt Lake County Council At-Large Seat A
Councilman Randy Horiuchi (D)
Capt. Steve Debry (R)

Mormon Code Revealed!

THAT headline is going to generate some traffic....

But this is really a post to finish off the debate with The Third Avenue.

T3A: Dis-Honor Code
TWAtM: BYU's Honor Code and Gays
T3A: I am no theologian but...
TWAtM: Going the Rounds on BYU and Gays
one last post on this, I promise

I've decided that part of the problem is a little misunderstanding about a key term. That term is "The Gospel of Jesus Christ."

When Latter-Day Saints talk about "The Gospel," we aren't just referring to the teachings of Jesus. We are also talking about the teachings of the Prophets and Apostles from Adam through Gordon B Hinkley. While there have been no additions to LDS scripture since 1978, we are to take the words of our living Prophets and Apostles like scripture.

From Gordon B Hinkley, God's Prophet on the Earth today:

Question 2: What is your Church’s attitude toward homosexuality?

In the first place, we believe that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God. We believe that marriage may be eternal through exercise of the power of the everlasting priesthood in the house of the Lord.

People inquire about our position on those who consider themselves so-called gays and lesbians. My response is that we love them as sons and daughters of God. They may have certain inclinations which are powerful and which may be difficult to control. Most people have inclinations of one kind or another at various times. If they do not act upon these inclinations, then they can go forward as do all other members of the Church. If they violate the law of chastity and the moral standards of the Church, then they are subject to the discipline of the Church, just as others are.

We want to help these people, to strengthen them, to assist them with their problems and to help them with their difficulties. But we cannot stand idle if they indulge in immoral activity (October 1998 General Conference)

Yes, BYU is an educational institution. However, they are first and foremost a religious institution. Therefore, they have a right and duty to say what sin is, and to punish accordingly.

Now that I have that out of the way, some more Mormon Sayings and what they really mean:

(1st, 2nd, 3rd, 10th etc.) Generation Mormon: Usually said as a source of pride. It refers to the longest chain of ancestors who were members of the Church. 1st generation means that you are a member, but your parents and grandpartens aren't. 2nd generationers have LDS Parents, but non-LDS Grandparents, and were usually raised in the Church. You usually don't hear 4th- or 5th-generation Mormons talk about the subject much, because they don't usually know the person in their family who joined the Church and aren't of Pioneer stock.

Pioneer Stock: This means you are related to at least one person who arrived in Salt Lake City between 1847-1863.

YSA: Young Single Adult. Any non-married Mormon Male between the ages of 21 and 31, or Female from 19-31. TSAs can attend a Singles Ward, comprised mostly of other single people. The only married people in the Singles Ward are a few selected leadership positions. YSAs can also attend traditional wards, often referred to as "family wards" by YSAs. See also: Menace to Society.

Menace to Society: This refers to a quote from a Church leader many years ago about what age an unmarried LDS male becomes a Menace to society. However, nobody can find the source, and most people disagree on who said it. In fact, a man becaomes a menace to society if he's not married by the time he returns home from a mossion, is 25 years old, or hits that magically round age of 31.