Well, so much for Chanukkah blogging.

Yeah, sorry about that. Rabbi Michael Lerner has an interesting take on that, too. Chanukkah is still going on, right? Only the first night was on xmas? Well, maybe I'll get to it later this week. NPR's Hanukah Lights special was very good last year--I don't know if it's the same every year.

In other news, there is a War on Muppets going on, and we have to fight any way we can. Please, click the link to "Savethemuppets.com" and sign the petition.

And if you feel up to it, you might want to write to Disney, who owns the Muppets but clearly has no clue how to use, value or nurture this valuable cultural asset. A 50th Anniversary tour was planned for Kermit this year, but after only 2 of the 50 planned stops, it has been cancelled, and Disney execs "didn't think the public would notice." (this info I read originally on tvguide.com but cannot currently find there...current link is to muppetnewsflash blog)

There are somethings being done well on the Muppet front. Case in point, the reissuing of original Muppet shows on DVD (first season, complete with pilot and test real is out now). Previously there was an issuing of "Best Of" Muppet show episodes from each season (these are currently out of print, but if anyone comes across a cheap used one, please do contact me! The Season 5 DVD has the episodes for Steve Martin, Gilda Radner, and the Emmy-winning Carol Burnett episode which is just great! Like a Muppet Concept Album.) Fraggle Rock DVDs are coming out now, too.

On the other hand, let us count some of the crimes against Muppetkind: "Muppet Wizard of Oz," the last Muppet Xmas special, and to a much lesser extent, "Muppets from Space."

Not all recent Muppet ventures have been regrettable (shining examples are "Muppet Christmas Carol" and "Muppet Treasure Island") but maybe the lesson is that at some point we have to accept that the future cannot be like the past and at some point we can only be stewards of our cultural heritage rather than active participants. For example, I think that's the problem with religious fundamentalism: it just doesn't make sense to literally interpret those texts! It's time to move on and look for other ways to find meaning and value in our lives--ways that are not fundamentally superstitious or knowledge-fearing. And simultaneously we can value and cherish the stories and the lessons that *are* applicable, and the historical roots.

That's one of the things I do like about Rabbi Lerner's co-opting of religion (ok, that's not the best description, but bear with me for now): he's looking for--and finding?--ways to honor and value traditions and culture, while adapting them to an understanding of the world that takes into account the things we as a species have learned since the Abrahamic texts were written. Or take the Dalai Lama as another example: his latest book concerns reconciling the Buddhist
understanding of the world with the modern scientific one. Not throwing either one out, but seeing how they can co-exist.

- posted by k @ 12:30 AM