My World...and Welcome to it.

Last week, Keith Olbermann began a series of features called "Fridays with Thurber."  James Thurber, the iconclastic humorist/artist, was the favorite author of Keith's dad.  And it was a story of Thurber's that Keith read as his father began that final journey.

On the first episode, Keith read a short take called "A Box to Hide In."  I posted that story on Twitter, only it was read by the great raconteur Jean Shepard.  The story held great meaning for me, because for the longest time I wanted a box to hide in.

Here is Mr. Olbermann's reading, with background on Thurber.




So when I heard that, it made me interested in Thurber's work.  And then, popped a memory from my sordid past.

At a time when NBC's prime time offerings were run by people who had a bit more imagination....and courage (please renew Heroes)...the network put on something on Monday nights called My World and Welcome To It.  Somebody must of thought that people may have been smart enough to understand Thurber...and it could be easier to swallow if it were placed in the form of a standard one-camera sitcom.

That person was Sheldon Leonard.  The orginal embodiement of all things Damon Runyon, whose brilliance  went so far as thing such as Make Room For Daddy, The Andy Griffith Show, and The Dick Van Dyke Show. In short..the man was a genius.

And the cast he assembled was prime: William Windom, a character actor of considerable range who, up until then, was know as the Mr. Morley to Inger Stevens' Farmer's Daughter. Joan Hotchkiss went on to play Oscar's GF on The Odd Couple, and Lisa Gerritsen went on to play the precocious daughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
It lasted one glorious season.

So now, via YouTube.....complete with peacock, the eternal curmudgeons Henry Morgan and Ray Walston, and 1969 commercials...is a bit of brilliance.

It's My World.......and Welcome To It.

Escalation

The second Civil War is escalating:

Man charged with threatening to kill senator
David M. Herszenhorn, New York Times

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Federal agents on Tuesday arrested and charged a man with threatening to kill Washington Sen. Patty Murray because he was angry about her vote in favor of the major health care legislation.

According to a criminal complaint, Charles A. Wilson, 64, of Selah, Wash., made threatening phone calls to Murray's office in Seattle from March 22, the day after Congress approved the health care law, to April 4. One recorded message said, "I want to kill you."

Wilson was charged with one count of threatening a federal official, which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Murray is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the Senate and the highest-ranking woman in the majority leadership. Several lawmakers reported threats and vandalism after the bill passed.

"I hope you realize there's a target on your back now," Wilson said in a voice mail message on March 22, according to the complaint. "There are many people out there that want you dead." Another message said: "Kill the bill. Kill the senator, too."

The calls were made from a blocked telephone number, but officials said they obtained records showing the calls came from Wilson's home in Selah, about 110 miles southeast of Seattle.

In the complaint, Carolyn W. Woodbury, a special agent of the FBI, said harassing phone calls had been made to Murray's office over several months, but staff members had said the messages, often laced with expletives, had turned threatening.

Special Agent Frederick Gutt, a spokesman for the FBI in Seattle, said Wilson did not appear to have a criminal record and seemed to have acted on his own.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/07/MN1G1CQHD0.DTL

And there is more, as Rachel Maddow reports:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

As this continues, one has to realize that this is more than a bunch of yahoos reacting to right-wing bloviators on Fox News.  These people had declared war on what this country has become long before Rupert Murdoch ever set foot in this country.

This is why the day that Timothy McVeigh drove a fertilizer-filled truck into a goverment building and destroyed it is so significant.  It was the opening shot in the war which mostly white, education and finacially challenged "patriots" hope will "return the country to them."  A country where anyone who skin is darker than theirs would be a third-class citizen.  Lesbians would only be good for driving UPS trucks, gay men would only do interior decorationg, blacks and Latinos would do our heavy work...all without complaint...and at the end of the day, say "yessim," and quietly dissapear into the woodwork.  Where sex does not exist, and the pnly faith would be that based on a bizarre interpretation of the Holy Bible that seemed less like the Sermon on the Mount, and more like "Clash Of The Titans." In 3-D.

Until we realize that these people are not the creations of Fox News or large corporations, that the reason they are massing is that their worst fear has been realized....a non-submissive Black President....until we realize that, we will not be able to stop them.

And for the sake of our union, they must be stopped.

Ohhhhhh...Donny Dear......

Sometime ago, I mentioned......with some regret....the decision of the American Family ASSociation, headed by our good friend, Rev. Donald "NoNeck" Wildmon, had decided to end its boycott of PepsiCo, Inc because, based on the  "Action Alert" the sent out, Pepsi was the latest to capitulate to the insane demands of this homophobic group.

American Family Association (AFA) has suspended its boycott of PepsiCo. After monitoring the company for several months, AFA is satisfied the company has withdrawn its major financial contributions to gay activist groups.






AFA launched a boycott of PepsiCo after the company made $500,000 donations to Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) in 2008. Records from PepsiCo, HRC and PFLAG indicate repeat donations did not occur in 2009.






AFA President Tim Wildmon said more than 500,000 people signed the Boycott PepsiCo Pledge.






Wildmon said a few minor issues remain, and AFA will continue to bring these to the attention of PepsiCo. “We feel we have made our point," he said. "Boycotts have been a last resort for us at AFA, and the PepsiCo boycott was started to address issues of concern to us – especially the promotion of the homosexual agenda in the culture. AFA will continue to challenge major U.S. companies to remain neutral in the culture wars rather than to use their resources to promote controversial issues.”
http://www.afa.net/Detail.aspx?id=2147491835

That was Feb. 12. 

Imagine my utter delight to find, as I was perusing the phobic bagger "news" site WorldNetDaily, that Pepsi appearently "refreshed everything" and went back to its full-bodied, robust support of the GLBT Community.

Appearently, WND and it's bagger friends were not amused:

By Drew Zahn




PepsiCo reportedly donated over $75 million to various causes last year, but now one group is charging that the soft-drink giant has been funding the cause of undermining biblical faith.


Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays, known as PFOX, a national non-profit group that advocates for former homosexuals, is demanding the company reveal its standards for charitable giving after the group discovered a Pepsi-supported organization urging protests against religious gatherings that contend God can help people leave the homosexual lifestyle.


PFOX alleges that PepsiCo is the leading corporate sponsor of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Inc., whose recent publication, a Faith Field Guide, urges PFLAG members to protest against religious conferences that feature formerly homosexual speakers.


The guidebook labels the "ex-gay" conferences as "anti-gay," and prompts the protests "to remind people that there is more than one faith message."




PFOX questions, however, why a soft-drink company that has declared itself to be "committed to diversity and inclusion without imposition of personal judgment" would exclusively back one side of a theological debate.




"Why does PepsiCo fund organizations like PFLAG, which issue religious publications urging readers to undermine other religions with which PFLAG disagrees?" asked Regina Griggs, executive director of PFOX, in a statement. "Is this the best use of PepsiCo funding?"


As WND has reported, PepsiCo, – which produces Pepsi soft drinks, Gatorade, Frito-Lay snacks, Quaker oats and other foods – regularly donates to homosexual groups, sponsored a float in 35th annual Lesbian and Gay Pride Parade in New York and boasts 160,000 employees represented by its lesbian, "gay", bisexual and transgender resource group.

First off baggers, it's not "gay"...its gay. It's not so-called.

You'd probably call Black people Negroes if you had the shot...

The company's website even boasts its perfect rating on the 2009 Corporate Equality Index, a scale created by the homosexual advocacy giant Human Rights Campaign, measuring companies with policies beneficial toward homosexuals.




But when one of the world's largest food distributors, with 2009 retail revenues hitting $108 billion, starts using its financial muscle to undermine religion, PFOX contends, PepsiCo's homosexual advocacy has gone too far.

P-FLAG, if you ever bothered to check their website, promotes humanity among those who are not hetrosexual.  Providing health services and emotional support, WITHOUT BEING JUDGMENTAL.  Advocating action against hate crimes, which for some reason I think you would support.  Offering love..which works...instead of "repairative therapy"....which does not...




The PFLAG Faith Field Guide specifically states, "When something happens in your community that is anti-LGBT and has a faith angle, consider organizing a response. A perfect example of this is Love Won Out. Love Won Out (LWO) is a traveling conference run by the anti-gay group Focus on the Family.


"Often people in the community will feel intimidated or hurt by just the presence and negative press that conferences like LWO bring," the guide continues. "Reminding them that there are supportive people in the community who are willing to listen is important for counteracting the message of change promoted by LWO."
The guide then goes on to describe how to plan press releases and protests surrounding the appearance of a formerly homosexual speaker.


"Why does PepsiCo continue to fund organizations which hate the ex-gay community?" asked Griggs. "PepsiCo's actions adversely affect its public image, goodwill and stock value."

Pepsi's public image is spotless, as opposed to the right's public image, which has been taking many hits as of late.

As for its stock value, note: AFA started it's botycott of PepsiCo in January 2009. It did fall to a low of 46.6 on the NYSE in March. But since then, PEP (Pepsico's stock symbol) has been on a steady uptick, closing the day I am typing this at 66.68. You can check.

Also it helps that a lot of "Sodomites" drink Pepsi.



PFOX is working with MoxyVote.com to enable PepsiCo shareholders to voice their protest and demand accountability from the company.


"The PepsiCo Shareholder Proposal No. 4," Griggs explains, "asks PepsiCo to divulge its standards for funding and account for how the Company's charitable contributions are actually used, a reasonable request."


http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=134089

I can answer that question....because it is the right thing to do.

Do do us all a favor, WND, and go screw yourselves.  I'll even help ya.  Here's an empty bottle of Mountain Dew.  Knock yourselves out.

Please.