AS MENTIONED OVER RECENT DAYS IN TAKING NOTE OF THE RECENT RAID OF THE FLDS COMPOUND NEAR ELDORADO, TEXAS, with its ensuing removal of over 400 women and young girls thus resident and referral to child-welfare agencies, certain specimens of the Religiopolitical Right are probably spreading their rather lame-sounding and reechy meme of "Christian Persecution! Christian Persecution!" as their take on developments.

But it turns out that this new episode of perceived "Christian Persecution!" (as the Elmer Gantry Institute of Religiopolitical Studies would likely handle this) carries a darker side, as the Southern Poverty Law Centre notes in their Hatewatch blog:

Three days after the raid of a polygamist compound in Eldorado, Texas, the media is still atwitter about the arrest and search warrants served at the YFZ (Yearning For Zion) ranch, which was occupied by 400 followers of Warren Jeffs, the incarcerated "prophet" of the Fundamentalist Church of the Latter Day Saints.

But so far none of the dozens of stories and broadcast segments about Texas authorities taking 219 children and women from the YFZ compound into protective custody have even mentioned the fact that along with advocating child brides and plural marriage, FLDS doctrine is venomous with anti-black racism.

As described in a major feature on the FLDS published in the Spring 2005 issue of the Intelligence Report, Jeffs preaches to his estimated 10,000 followers that all blacks are the descendants of Cain, "cursed with a black skin," and selected by God to be the "servants of servants." It was on the basis of that unvarnished racism, preached as official FLDS doctrine, that the Southern Poverty Law Center began listing FLDS as a hate group in 2005.

Jeffs describes as a victory for the devil the day in 1978 that leaders of the legitimate Church of Latter Day Saints—known to much of the world as the Mormon Church—decided to allow blacks to become priests. FLDS had first split from the main church in 1890 after Mormon officials renounced polygamy under pressure from the government.

"The black race is the people through which the devil has always been able to bring evil unto the earth," Jeffs preached in one recorded sermon obtained by Hatewatch.

"And why did [the Negro race] pass through the flood?" the FLDS prophet asked. "Because it was necessary that the devil should have a representation upon the earth as well as God."

To download an MP3 file of Jeffs sermonizing on "Negroes" and the biblical story of the flood, click here.

To read more of his comments on blacks, as well as on homosexuality, violence, the role of women and the end of the world, click here.

Now what does the "Christian Persecution!" element have to say with these new developments?

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AS YOUR CORRESPONDENT WRITES THESE OBSERVATIONS ON THE STATE OF THE WORLD AND HIMSELF HERE IN THE MINNWISSIPPI, it appears as if a "calm before the storm" sort of scenario is setting up.

Meaning some hazy sun could be likely over the afterlunch, followed by some rather intense rain and wind from tonight heading into the weekend--in short, a rough run up into the weekend.

As in weather getting worse before things get better. (Already, the Chippewa River @ Durand, Wisconsin, some 40 mile from Winona, is seeing some flooding; advice hath it that the Black and Kickapoo River basins in Wisconsin could see serious flooding within measurable distance thanks to the imminence of rain.)

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SOMETHING WHICH THE "CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION!" CROWD OUGHT TO THINK ABOUT when it comes to invoking the charge against the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the wake of their Texas compound being raided and some 425 girls and women removed therefrom, all now in State custody:

An indictment announced against the FLDS hath it that young girls were forced into marriage once they reached the menarche (as in the onset of puberty) and expected to wear pioneer-stylee homespun over long step-in underwear @ all times--even in the hot summer months.

Not to mention boys being essentially preened into "doing their duty" of unprotected procreation as their duty to G-d and--so the Southern Poverty Law Centre hath it--the White Master Race.

And yet these same pathetic Dregs of Society are screaming "Christian Persecution! Christian Persecution!" @ this latest suspected example....

Queer world, this.

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FIRST, IT WAS THE AIRBUS A380 AS WAS EXPERIENCING SERIOUS DELAYS OF DELIVERY to airlines who ordered same, forcing Airbus Industrie to pay compensation.

Now, it's Boeing's turn to deal with such a scenario--this time, with their (presumably) "fuel-efficent" 787 Dreamliner experiencing prolonged delivery delays.

Come to think of it, the timing of the news couldn't have been more interesting, considering where:

• American Airlines has announced wholesale flight cancellations due to FAA-mandated safety inspections on their MD-80 fleet, forcing them to:
  • advise intending passengers to consider other options;
  • refer affected passengers to other flights; and
  • provide compensation for food and lodging in the interim; and
• Hong Kong-based discount carrier Oasis Air suddenly shutting down operations, stranding many thousands of passengers.

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ANOTHER REASON WHY JOHN McCAIN DESERVES SERIOUS SWIFT-BOATING DURING INDECISION 2008:

RawStory.com is noting where The Terrible-Tempered Mr. Bang of Indecision 2008 has been caught in unprovoked outbursts of Billingsgate galore, including one particularly livid display against his wife.

And is this the sort of behaviour to be expected of someone seeking to be not so much President of the United States as a superdivine "Prophet, Seer and Revelator"--the same one who has acknolwedged to being a "war criminal" calling for, in effect, an American Colonial Presence in Iraq for 100 years and more (yet claims that such remarks were really "misquoted" when challenged)?

And how would Machiavelli on steroids and amphetamines react to this news of his newest client using the Seven Dirty Words (and variants thereof) from time to time?

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NEWS THAT THE KULTURKRIEG CROWD WILL CERTAINLY LOVE TO HEAR, by way of the BBC:

The Simpsons has been dropped from morning TV in Venezuela after being deemed unsuitable for children - and has been replaced by Baywatch.

The popular US cartoon about the yellow dysfunctional family was branded "inappropriate" and pulled by the country's television authorities.

Caracas TV station Televen has started showing episodes of the beachside show in the same mid-morning slot.

It became famous for its bikini-clad stars, including Pamela Anderson.

Glamorous locations

The country's TV regulator said the saga of Homer Simpson, wife Marge and their three children flouted regulations that prohibit "messages that go against the whole education of boys, girls and adolescents".

It said that some unspecified complaints had been received from viewers.

Televen's manager may decide to show The Simpsons, which has been dubbed into Spanish, at another time of day.

The station is showing episodes of Baywatch Hawaii, a later incarnation of the lifeguard rescue show which started in 1989.

The serial, about a group of beach lifeguards, gained notoriety for its attractive male and female cast members coupled with glamorous locations and slow-motion running sequences.

Venezuelan TV is known for filling its schedules with re-runs of old US series and Latin American soap operas.

But it also includes a talk show hosted by the country's president, Hugo Chavez.

In an episode of the weekly programme last year, the Venezuelan leader gave a speech which reportedly lasted eight hours.

An abridged version of the show has been broadcast every day since February 2007.

So: What class of shows would our Kulturkrieg crowd want American children watching instead, considering their objections to PBS as being "elitist" and "promoting liberal tendencies"? 

THE COUNTRY-WESTERN VOCAL GROUP KNOWN AS THE STATLER BROTHERS BROKE ONTO THE TOP 40 CHARTS in 1959-60 with their sentimentalist ballad "Flowers on the Wall," about a man with mental illness trying to escape his unfortunate lot by drifting into fantasy @ times, as witness the chorus thereof:

Countin' flowers on the wall, that don't bother me at all,
Playin' solitare till dawn with a deck of fifty-one,
Smokin' cigarettes and watchin' Captain Kangaroo;
Now don't tell me I've nothin' to do....

In any case, the third line thereof does sound a bit anachronistic to the 21st-century ear, what with smoking now seen as unhealthy and dangerous and Captain Kangaroo having been off the air for some 25 years now.

Your Correspondent, for his part, suggests as a modern replacement line "Eatin' Doritos and watchin' 'toons all afternoon," which would fit rather nicely with the rhyme structure and reflects the fact of several cable/satellite networks offering nothing but cartoon programming (as in Nickelodeon/Nicktoons, Cartoon Network/Boomerang and Toon Disney).

And my suggesting that "eatin' Doritos" would be a better replacement for the original "smokin' cigarettes" just came to me as I prepared this essay--even if "junk food" is obviously seen in certain circles as unhealthy, yet not as worse as cigarettes are acknowledged as being.

What would you think? 

INTERESTING RECENT ADJUDICATION FROM OFCOM, THE BRITANNIC EQUIVALENT OF THE FCC, involving a British commercial radio station's overnight radio programme seeking listener requests via text messaging--only it's not quite what it appears to be, as it turns out:

Saturday Early Breakfast
Dream 100 FM, 3 November 2007, 06:30

Introduction

During the Saturday Early Breakfast output, the presenter said:

 "…I've just had a text here from Matt. Matt say's can you please play me a classic, classic tune to keep him awake, as he's working in Harwich at the moment. Yep, Matt, I'll play your song next at Dream 100."

Around ten minutes later, the presenter gave the following direct 'call to action':

"It's an early Saturday morning and If you are up at work then I will do my best to get you a mention – six, double four, double seven – start your message with the word, 'dream', if you want to text me this morning."

The number provided was a premium rate SMS text service and, in this case, charged at 25p [about 50¢] per message.

A listener looked at the studio webcam, provided on Dream 100's website and saw that there was nobody in the studio. He said that he then phoned the broadcaster but nobody answered his call. It appeared that listeners had been invited to text in when there was no chance of having requests played or being mentioned on air.

Given that this output was pre-recorded ('automated') material, we asked the broadcaster for its comments on the matter.

Response

The broadcaster stated that the number promoted in this case was often used by Dream 100 and would be known by many regular listeners, whether or not it was announced during 'automated' programming. However, it said that the presenter's reference to having just received a text, and the dedication that followed, was recycled material from his live drivetime show on the previous afternoon. Nevertheless, Dream 100 conceded that such output could lead listeners to believe that they could have interacted with the programme, when in fact it was actually pre-recorded.

The broadcaster apologised and said its presenters had been told that they were not to give dedications or promote the station's text number during 'automated' programming. It was disappointed that the presenter in this case - who had recorded his voice-tracks the previous afternoon - had been "in auto-pilot mode and did not go back and correct the error…". Dream 100 added that, while it sought to make its 'automated' output "sound as live as possible", it would never want to mislead or harm its audience.

The broadcaster had therefore conducted a disciplinary investigation with the presenter in question, who had also been the station's Programme Manager and had since left Tindle Radio Ltd, the radio group that owns Dream 100. The importance of avoiding calls to action in 'automated' programming, including the promotion of premium rate services, had also recently been discussed at a group meeting.

Dream 100 provided a log of text messages it had registered between 1 and 5 November 2007 , none of which were received during the programme concerned. However, the broadcaster added that, if texts had been received, dedications would have been broadcast when the output went live at 08:00 .

Decision

We accept that it is possible that some listeners may know how to contact Dream 100 by using its regular premium rate text service.

However, by promoting the number during the programme and giving the clear impression that someone had just 'texted' in, the broadcaster led the audience to believe that it could interact with the programme. This was not possible, since the programme was pre-recorded. The broadcaster assured Ofcom that it was not station policy to broadcast calls to action during automated programmes and this occurrence appeared to be unintentional. While there is the potential to cause listeners harm – in this case, financial loss - we note that no calls were received and any dedications received would have been aired after the output went live at 08:00.

Ofcom acknowledges that radio broadcasters may wish to ensure their 'automated' programming is of a similar standard to 'live' output. However, this should not be at the expense of ensuring adequate consumer protection. If a broadcaster invites its audience to interact with an 'automated' programme, listeners will believe they can do so, especially if the output appears to be 'live'.

Nevertheless, in this case, although the impression was given that listeners could interact with the presenter, the degree of potential harm was limited. Not only were no texts received but if any messages had been received from listeners they would have ultimately been considered for broadcast, albeit in the following programme. Ofcom acknowledges Dream 100's assurance that this was an isolated incident and the action it has taken to avoid recurrence. We also welcome the broadcaster's apology and the measures it appears to have in place with an aim to ensuring compliance. Taking into account all of the above, Ofcom believes the broadcaster has satisfactorily resolved the matter in this instance.

Resolved

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YOUR CORRESPONDENT WAS ON THE AMECHE WITH MOTHERDEAR THE OTHER NIGHT, and she was mentioning where the current socioeconomic situation may be a bad time for the springtime fundraising appeals of a number of charities.

Particularly so considering where many don't have the money to donate as previously, or as they would otherwise like to.

Especially so charities as constantly seem to harrass you and me for donations on the ameche, yet may really be lacking in serious effort to use donated funds to good purpose.