Fred Berry 1951-2003
I just mentioned on this blog a few days ago that I'd once seen Fred Berry in person. That doesn't mean I knew him, of course. In fact, I didn't even speak to him -- just saw him on the other side of the room. But it still makes you sad he's gone because you feel like you know him.
He hasn't really done anything in the public eye since he played Rerun on What's Happening!! except ... play Rerun. And that was just fine with us. We loved Rerun, so rerun him forever, we said.
Who else from that old '70s TV show do you ever see anymore? We don't even know the actors' names. And yet, Rerun, who wasn't even the main character just kept popping up. Most recently, I saw Fred Berry on Scrubs, as Rerun of course, all decked out in his red beret and suspenders. The whole Scrubs cast donned the attire and did the Rerun dance with him.
I guess it would be hard for the guy who played Raj to make a side income being Raj for the rest of his life. What would he do -- walk up and sit in a chair backwards? DeWayne could say "Hey, hey, hey!" but he's got no visual to go with it. A chubby guy with a big smile and red beret, though, that's the stuff.
He was the Kramer of What's Happening!! The Maynard G. Krebs. The Goober Pyle. I saw George Lindsey on Oprah a couple of years ago, and he was wearing his Goober outfit. That's what I'd hoped for Rerun -- seeing him on TV in his 70s still doing his thang. Michael Richards won't do that; too good to be Kramer for us when we want to get all nostalgic in the '10s.
Alas, poor Rerun. I knew him.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
DisHarmony.com
"My name is Steve, and I met my mistress, Sharon, on DisHarmony.com. I love my wife, but sometimes you need that little extra spice that you don't get from a wife who works all day, cooks dinner, helps the kids with the homework and finishes up doing the laundry. She's always exhausted and unable to meet my needs, which I get from looking at the Internet during my 'alone time' in the evening. Sharon and I are having a great time, and there's no commitment. And any time I want to dump her, DisHarmony is there for me to start anew."
"My name is Susan, and I met my married lover on DisHarmony.com. He's going to divorce his wife and marry me eventually, because he doesn't really love her; he's just having to stay with her because she makes most of the money right now. As soon as he gets the new job he's been interviewing for he'll leave. I'm tired of them jerking him around. It's been nearly two years now. It's the economy. They're waiting for a better quarterly financial statement before taking him on. But as soon as they hire him he's divorcing that dried-up old hag he's stuck with. Thanks, DisHarmony."
After years of having to meet at the office and carry on affairs under the glare of co-workers knowing eyes, DisHarmony unites people with common interests through its patented personality profile. We've matched hundreds of unhappily marrieds and needy people willing to "settle." And if you sign up now, we'll give you the personality test -- a $40 value -- for free. We tabulate the results then throw them away, because the best part of being in a bad relationship is the surprise.
"I'm Larry, and I met my girlfriend on DisHarmony. Her kids love me, and she thinks I'm going to marry her. But I'm not. I'm just in it for the sex. I've told her, but she doesn't care; she just keeps clinging to me, convinced one day I'll change my mind. Meanwhile, it's fun, fun, fun -- with no commitment. Thanks, DisHarmony!"
"My name is Susan, and I met my married lover on DisHarmony.com. He's going to divorce his wife and marry me eventually, because he doesn't really love her; he's just having to stay with her because she makes most of the money right now. As soon as he gets the new job he's been interviewing for he'll leave. I'm tired of them jerking him around. It's been nearly two years now. It's the economy. They're waiting for a better quarterly financial statement before taking him on. But as soon as they hire him he's divorcing that dried-up old hag he's stuck with. Thanks, DisHarmony."
After years of having to meet at the office and carry on affairs under the glare of co-workers knowing eyes, DisHarmony unites people with common interests through its patented personality profile. We've matched hundreds of unhappily marrieds and needy people willing to "settle." And if you sign up now, we'll give you the personality test -- a $40 value -- for free. We tabulate the results then throw them away, because the best part of being in a bad relationship is the surprise.
"I'm Larry, and I met my girlfriend on DisHarmony. Her kids love me, and she thinks I'm going to marry her. But I'm not. I'm just in it for the sex. I've told her, but she doesn't care; she just keeps clinging to me, convinced one day I'll change my mind. Meanwhile, it's fun, fun, fun -- with no commitment. Thanks, DisHarmony!"
On the Eucharist
Some of his body becomes part of my body. Some of his blood my blood.
Some of it goes through my system and back out again in smelly and vile form.
In this fashion I treat his holy body. Some I allow to mesh with me, some I turn into refuse and excrete.
For this reason I must feast upon him week after week lest I lose him entirely.
It is not what enters the body that is unclean, but that which proceeds from it: Envyings, lies, malicious talk.
Blessings and cursings from the same mouth. This ought not to be.
I am a dog, who leaves his messes for all to see. And when the unbeleiving think of his name, it is my fault that they think of it with contempt, because I have made his body into dungheap. Selah
But you, O Lord, cover over my sins with your blood. You fill me with your Spirit. You pull me from the pit. Praise the Lord of Hosts!
Some of it goes through my system and back out again in smelly and vile form.
In this fashion I treat his holy body. Some I allow to mesh with me, some I turn into refuse and excrete.
For this reason I must feast upon him week after week lest I lose him entirely.
It is not what enters the body that is unclean, but that which proceeds from it: Envyings, lies, malicious talk.
Blessings and cursings from the same mouth. This ought not to be.
I am a dog, who leaves his messes for all to see. And when the unbeleiving think of his name, it is my fault that they think of it with contempt, because I have made his body into dungheap. Selah
But you, O Lord, cover over my sins with your blood. You fill me with your Spirit. You pull me from the pit. Praise the Lord of Hosts!
Then They Came for Me
The local news anchor just called a racial slur a hate crime.
Here's what happened: Some moron wrote the slur on a piece of paper and taped it to the door of the NAACP chapter at the University of Alabama. This has been reported for days, but no threat has ever been mentioned. Obviously, the perpetrator hates black people, but calling them a name is not a crime. Unless the note contained some sort of threat, and this has yet to be reported, this is not a "hate crime."
So?
Well, it is a big deal if a news anchor, not quoting anybody, but speaking on her own behalf, refers to a racial slur as a crime. I am free to hate anyone and anything I like, and it is not a crime. I can even call you a name if I want to, and regardless of the indignity you suffer, I have in no way violated your rights.
Do I think it is good that a person used a racial slur? Absolutely not. It is immoral and boorish. It is a sin. It is not, however, illegal, and therefore not a crime.
People who act this way toward their fellow humans should be ostracized from society. But they should not be jailed. Free speech is still a protected right.
I could look the other way. After all, who wants to face the arrows surely to be incurred from defending a redneck reprobate? But the words of the German minister Martin Niemoller cry out against me:
“First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.”
If some uneducated college student wants to call black people horrible names, and that's all he does, but we want to get it into our minds that it is a "hate crime," what further words might we decide are crimes?
Suppose I fail to bow at the altar of tolerance? Shall I be cast into the lion's den? While I certainly respect the right of others to hold contrary opinions to my own, my personal religious convictions are exclusionist, and so some would call them "intolerant." If I say, "It is my way or the highway (to hell)," am I committing a hate crime because I've offended all other religions?
If I offend you, I am sorry, but to hold to my religion's precepts, I must claim it is exclusionary. I make every effort to be at peace with all people, but there is inevitably the debater who will paint me with the broad brush of Falwellianism simply if I say that I am a Christian.
This is my cross to bear, and I do it without complaint. But I shall not sit down and shut up just because Pat Robertson says things in the name of Christ that are stupid.
You can jail me if you will, or you can shoot me in the head. It is the only thing that will still my tongue.
Perhaps I have forgotten to take my Lithium. This is America, after all. Such things would never happen here. We are the apex of civilization.
Tell that to Dr. Bonhoeffer and 6 million Jews, Neville.
Here's what happened: Some moron wrote the slur on a piece of paper and taped it to the door of the NAACP chapter at the University of Alabama. This has been reported for days, but no threat has ever been mentioned. Obviously, the perpetrator hates black people, but calling them a name is not a crime. Unless the note contained some sort of threat, and this has yet to be reported, this is not a "hate crime."
So?
Well, it is a big deal if a news anchor, not quoting anybody, but speaking on her own behalf, refers to a racial slur as a crime. I am free to hate anyone and anything I like, and it is not a crime. I can even call you a name if I want to, and regardless of the indignity you suffer, I have in no way violated your rights.
Do I think it is good that a person used a racial slur? Absolutely not. It is immoral and boorish. It is a sin. It is not, however, illegal, and therefore not a crime.
People who act this way toward their fellow humans should be ostracized from society. But they should not be jailed. Free speech is still a protected right.
I could look the other way. After all, who wants to face the arrows surely to be incurred from defending a redneck reprobate? But the words of the German minister Martin Niemoller cry out against me:
“First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.”
If some uneducated college student wants to call black people horrible names, and that's all he does, but we want to get it into our minds that it is a "hate crime," what further words might we decide are crimes?
Suppose I fail to bow at the altar of tolerance? Shall I be cast into the lion's den? While I certainly respect the right of others to hold contrary opinions to my own, my personal religious convictions are exclusionist, and so some would call them "intolerant." If I say, "It is my way or the highway (to hell)," am I committing a hate crime because I've offended all other religions?
If I offend you, I am sorry, but to hold to my religion's precepts, I must claim it is exclusionary. I make every effort to be at peace with all people, but there is inevitably the debater who will paint me with the broad brush of Falwellianism simply if I say that I am a Christian.
This is my cross to bear, and I do it without complaint. But I shall not sit down and shut up just because Pat Robertson says things in the name of Christ that are stupid.
You can jail me if you will, or you can shoot me in the head. It is the only thing that will still my tongue.
Perhaps I have forgotten to take my Lithium. This is America, after all. Such things would never happen here. We are the apex of civilization.
Tell that to Dr. Bonhoeffer and 6 million Jews, Neville.
The Idiot Factor
Justin Timberlake, Janet Jackson and former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore must have gone to the same school. They all use the same ineffective methods of persuasion.
While liberals and conservatives have been trying to win their respective sides of the culture war through incrementalism, Justin, Janet and Roy end up throwing wrenches into the very causes they hope to further.
It's the old story of successful frog boiling: If you toss the live frog into boiling water he'll hop out, but if you put him into tepid water then slowly bring it to a boil he'll be cooked before he realizes it.
The cognoscente on both sides, though the liberals do it more effectively, seek to boil the frog slowly, and so the public accedes to their viewpoint without ever knowing they've been manipulated. But then a Roy Moore does his Ten Commandments dance and prostitutes something God meant to be holy or Janet and Justin bow at the altar of shock -- and their causes are set back, not advanced as they'd hoped.
Though at the opposite ends of the morality spectrum, Roy and Justin-Janet are really the enemies of their own goals. Roy wants more people to be Christians, but his methods smack most of shove-it-down-my-throatism, and so even fewer are likely to be brought into the kingdom of God. Justin-Janet hope, on the other hand, to bring more free expression, but their Super Bowl halftime display instead was so offensive to most people that NBC ended up editing out a planned breast shot from its Thursday night ER episode.
Without the Super Bowl fiasco, the ER shot would have gone little noticed, and incrementalism would have won a small battle toward its eventual goal. Now, we'll have to wait a few years longer before public nudity becomes a constitutional right.
By the same token, Roy Moore flashing his breastplate of righteousness has made it more difficult for me to convince people of their need to know Jesus Christ as savior. If only there were a way for the church to fine Roy's inappropriate behavior -- but, alas, most of its members agree with him.
While liberals and conservatives have been trying to win their respective sides of the culture war through incrementalism, Justin, Janet and Roy end up throwing wrenches into the very causes they hope to further.
It's the old story of successful frog boiling: If you toss the live frog into boiling water he'll hop out, but if you put him into tepid water then slowly bring it to a boil he'll be cooked before he realizes it.
The cognoscente on both sides, though the liberals do it more effectively, seek to boil the frog slowly, and so the public accedes to their viewpoint without ever knowing they've been manipulated. But then a Roy Moore does his Ten Commandments dance and prostitutes something God meant to be holy or Janet and Justin bow at the altar of shock -- and their causes are set back, not advanced as they'd hoped.
Though at the opposite ends of the morality spectrum, Roy and Justin-Janet are really the enemies of their own goals. Roy wants more people to be Christians, but his methods smack most of shove-it-down-my-throatism, and so even fewer are likely to be brought into the kingdom of God. Justin-Janet hope, on the other hand, to bring more free expression, but their Super Bowl halftime display instead was so offensive to most people that NBC ended up editing out a planned breast shot from its Thursday night ER episode.
Without the Super Bowl fiasco, the ER shot would have gone little noticed, and incrementalism would have won a small battle toward its eventual goal. Now, we'll have to wait a few years longer before public nudity becomes a constitutional right.
By the same token, Roy Moore flashing his breastplate of righteousness has made it more difficult for me to convince people of their need to know Jesus Christ as savior. If only there were a way for the church to fine Roy's inappropriate behavior -- but, alas, most of its members agree with him.
Strange fire
So what did Nadab and Abihu do that angered God so much he burned them to death in the tabernacle? Leviticus 10 says only that they offered "strange fire." But what does that mean?
Obviously, they didn't follow directions for proper sacrifice, which had just been given in exacting detail. But were they being rebellious, or did they just think it didn't matter that much? The text doesn't say -- which makes for interesting conjecture.
But the real point is that they didn't do exactly as told. Exactly what they did do isn't as important as the fact that they thought they could monkey with God's commands and he wouldn't really care.
Many of the same questions people have about Nadab and Abihu's actions are brought out in Genesis 4, where Cain and Abel offer sacrifices. God regards Abel's sacrifice favorably, while he had no regard for Cain's.
The text hints that Cain didn't offer a proper sacrifice, but it doesn't say what was wrong with his -- or what was right with Abel's. Some have argued that because Abel's was meat, it was a foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice. Other's have pointed out that the text notes Abel gave of the firstborn, while Cain's is not referred to as firstfruits.
Despite these theories, the interesting thing, again, is the vagueness. Readers of the text are left to wonder exactly what Cain, Nadab and Abihu did wrong, and as a result they must be even more vigilant not to repeat their mistakes.
It's like if you started a new job and your boss gave you a list of do's and don'ts, warning that he tolerates no rule-breaking. Then you find out a guy was fired one week after getting the rules, but you aren't told what he did.
What do you do? You read the rules carefully and try to follow all of them to the letter.
But if someone tells you the guy was fired for embezzlement you might get a little more slack. Of course the boss would fire him for embezzlement, but he would never fire you for being habitually 10 minutes late, would he?
So we are in our spiritual lives. Sure, God struck Ananias and Sapphira dead for lying to the Holy Spirit, but my copying of software isn't like that. After all, Bill Gates has all the money he needs, right? And my cussing those idiots on the freeway isn't all that bad since it is their stupidity that's fueling road rage. If not for them I'd be a peach.
Right?
Obviously, they didn't follow directions for proper sacrifice, which had just been given in exacting detail. But were they being rebellious, or did they just think it didn't matter that much? The text doesn't say -- which makes for interesting conjecture.
But the real point is that they didn't do exactly as told. Exactly what they did do isn't as important as the fact that they thought they could monkey with God's commands and he wouldn't really care.
Many of the same questions people have about Nadab and Abihu's actions are brought out in Genesis 4, where Cain and Abel offer sacrifices. God regards Abel's sacrifice favorably, while he had no regard for Cain's.
The text hints that Cain didn't offer a proper sacrifice, but it doesn't say what was wrong with his -- or what was right with Abel's. Some have argued that because Abel's was meat, it was a foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice. Other's have pointed out that the text notes Abel gave of the firstborn, while Cain's is not referred to as firstfruits.
Despite these theories, the interesting thing, again, is the vagueness. Readers of the text are left to wonder exactly what Cain, Nadab and Abihu did wrong, and as a result they must be even more vigilant not to repeat their mistakes.
It's like if you started a new job and your boss gave you a list of do's and don'ts, warning that he tolerates no rule-breaking. Then you find out a guy was fired one week after getting the rules, but you aren't told what he did.
What do you do? You read the rules carefully and try to follow all of them to the letter.
But if someone tells you the guy was fired for embezzlement you might get a little more slack. Of course the boss would fire him for embezzlement, but he would never fire you for being habitually 10 minutes late, would he?
So we are in our spiritual lives. Sure, God struck Ananias and Sapphira dead for lying to the Holy Spirit, but my copying of software isn't like that. After all, Bill Gates has all the money he needs, right? And my cussing those idiots on the freeway isn't all that bad since it is their stupidity that's fueling road rage. If not for them I'd be a peach.
Right?
You'll want to divorce me from your favorites list
Several entries ago I mentioned a doctrinal disagreement I have with my church. Actually, it is with most churches and most Christians, or for that matter, society in general.
I declined to name it because all discussion of the issue ever does is create enemies, but one reader said I should talk about it, and after much thought, here it is: divorce and remarriage.
My position is that divorce and remarriage constitute adultery. I take this position from a literal reading for the gospels of Matthew and Mark and from First Corinthians.
In Matthew 5:31-33 and Mark 10:2-12, Jesus says that whoever divorces his wife for any reason other than that she has had sex outside the marriage causes her to commit adultery. And, he adds, a man who marries a divorced woman is committing adultery.
When some members of his audience ask why Moses, then, had given permission for a man to write his wife a bill of divorcement, Jesus responds that it was because their forefathers' hearts were so hardened that he allowed it, but that this plan had not been God's intention from the time of creation. Instead, God had meant for a man and woman to marry for life. It was only after one of the spouses had died that it was permissible to remarry.
In the First Corinthians passage, the Apostle Paul says that a Christian should not divorce a non-Christian, but should allow the non-Christian to leave if he or she refuses to stay. However, he adds, the Christian should remain unmarried or be reconciled to his or her spouse. This appears to be a reference to Jesus' command that divorce and remarriage constitutes adultery.
Objections to my arguments include the fact that the Bible does include guidelines for a "biblical divorce." And that it does, including adultery and/or abandonment by one's partner. While I agree that the Bible condones both these reasons for divorce, it does not condone remarriage even then. First Corinthians clearly states that one must remain unmarried or be reconciled to his spouse.
Another objection is this arugument: "What do you expect a person to do -- never be married again and remain celebate for the rest of their lives?"
My answer to this question is "Yes." It is a difficult answer, but Jesus himself says in these passages that it is a hard thing for most to accept.
Another question: "What are people who are remarried supposed to do, especially if they have children by the second marriage?"
I admit that this is a difficult situation. If there are no children, I'd say they should probably separate. If there are children, they should stay together but refrain from sexual relations.
Now you can see my dilemma. You perceive that I'm calling you or your family members or your best friends adulterers. And for that you have lost any warm feelings you might have had for me.
So why is this such a burning issue with me? Because First Corinthians 6:7-10 lists a group of people who will not inherit the kingdom of God. Among those people: adulterers.
I'm not trying to be judgmental or critical. But my religion requires me to warn people against eternal damnation. You may disagree with me, and that's your right. But that doesn't require me to accept a view of relative morality. My exclusivist views push me to state my case, which you are then free to accept or reject. That notwithstanding, state them I must.
If only I'd been born 50 years earlier.
I declined to name it because all discussion of the issue ever does is create enemies, but one reader said I should talk about it, and after much thought, here it is: divorce and remarriage.
My position is that divorce and remarriage constitute adultery. I take this position from a literal reading for the gospels of Matthew and Mark and from First Corinthians.
In Matthew 5:31-33 and Mark 10:2-12, Jesus says that whoever divorces his wife for any reason other than that she has had sex outside the marriage causes her to commit adultery. And, he adds, a man who marries a divorced woman is committing adultery.
When some members of his audience ask why Moses, then, had given permission for a man to write his wife a bill of divorcement, Jesus responds that it was because their forefathers' hearts were so hardened that he allowed it, but that this plan had not been God's intention from the time of creation. Instead, God had meant for a man and woman to marry for life. It was only after one of the spouses had died that it was permissible to remarry.
In the First Corinthians passage, the Apostle Paul says that a Christian should not divorce a non-Christian, but should allow the non-Christian to leave if he or she refuses to stay. However, he adds, the Christian should remain unmarried or be reconciled to his or her spouse. This appears to be a reference to Jesus' command that divorce and remarriage constitutes adultery.
Objections to my arguments include the fact that the Bible does include guidelines for a "biblical divorce." And that it does, including adultery and/or abandonment by one's partner. While I agree that the Bible condones both these reasons for divorce, it does not condone remarriage even then. First Corinthians clearly states that one must remain unmarried or be reconciled to his spouse.
Another objection is this arugument: "What do you expect a person to do -- never be married again and remain celebate for the rest of their lives?"
My answer to this question is "Yes." It is a difficult answer, but Jesus himself says in these passages that it is a hard thing for most to accept.
Another question: "What are people who are remarried supposed to do, especially if they have children by the second marriage?"
I admit that this is a difficult situation. If there are no children, I'd say they should probably separate. If there are children, they should stay together but refrain from sexual relations.
Now you can see my dilemma. You perceive that I'm calling you or your family members or your best friends adulterers. And for that you have lost any warm feelings you might have had for me.
So why is this such a burning issue with me? Because First Corinthians 6:7-10 lists a group of people who will not inherit the kingdom of God. Among those people: adulterers.
I'm not trying to be judgmental or critical. But my religion requires me to warn people against eternal damnation. You may disagree with me, and that's your right. But that doesn't require me to accept a view of relative morality. My exclusivist views push me to state my case, which you are then free to accept or reject. That notwithstanding, state them I must.
If only I'd been born 50 years earlier.
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