That's some valuable training, truly.

I feel I was lucky that my family sort of defaulted to a low-church Presbyterian church because more or less it was near our home. At least the way our Pastor taught it, faith requires a lot of questioning and thought, and personal salvation is a private struggle.

Man, I love American culture. I'm watching this Christina Aguilera video on VH1, and they put something over her hands when she gives the camera the finger. Writhing around in latex and masks and gags and everything else? Fine. Straddling various men and women? Fine. No nips showing, so it must be OK. Middle finger up? VULGAR!!!

Jesse, in the Nickelback video on earlier, they bleeped something about the weeds in the backyard, and I assume it was the word "smoked". WTF?

THE CHILDREN!! We couldn't have something on the teevee about smoking weed!

I'm not saying that I'm holier than thou, or that I'm not well and truly wrathful about this. It's just funny to figure out why I am willing to acknowledge that there are other circumstances too.

It's just funny to figure out why I am willing to acknowledge that there are other circumstances too.

Oh, I agree! I didn't mean to imply you were holier than thou. I can do the devil's advocate thing pretty well, just not usually when it comes to something intensely personal. At least not until after the fact.

THE CHILDREN!! We couldn't have something on the teevee about smoking weed!

As if! Of course, it was clearly fine that every single woman in the video was in a bikini and uniformly one size-two shape. Blech.

Anyhow, I think going to that high school really taught me to question my own assumptions, to be devil's advocate and to really try to maintain and multi-perspective place. It makes me a contrarian in lots of ways because I'll argue 8 sides of an argument, but it also allows me to slow down, even when I'm really rage, and make an effort to see a second side.

So, like the nun equivalent of Jesuits. Still, Kat, what a stressful situation, especially when what you want to do is rage and smash things and yet you know nothing's going to be accomplished by giving in to the urge.

Man, I love American culture. I'm watching this Christina Aguilera video on VH1, and they put something over her hands when she gives the camera the finger. Writhing around in latex and masks and gags and everything else? Fine. Straddling various men and women? Fine. No nips showing, so it must be OK. Middle finger up? VULGAR!!!

The one I can't understand is the Gaga/Beyonce song "Telephone". Ok, the song I understand, it's a pretty uncomplicated message. But in the (extended) video, there's the odd spot of swearing. For isntance, on separate occasions, both Gaga and Beyonce say "motherf**ker". Our music channels, most of the time, give it the bleep treatment. (They also fuzz out the rat poison recipe, which makes no sense to me, but it's at least mildly heartening that they seem to be more concerned about violence than sex.)

That's the common state of affairs, but there are times (late at night?) when they play the video without the censorship. On these occasions we get to hear Gaga's 'mofo' (it has a not unpleasant drawl, like she's savouring it). But even on these occasions, when the rest of the video is uncensored (including the rat poison recipe), they still bleep out Beyonce. This I find utterly baffling. Why censor one of them and not the other?

Watching Telephone also calls to mind those days - it seems an age ago - when Poker Face had recently been released and I thought Lady Gaga's outfits in the video were a bit outrageous. Paparazzi, Bad Romance and Telephone later, it's touching to realise that at the age of forty, I still have innocence left to lose.

This I find utterly baffling. Why censor one of them and not the other?

That is bizarre.

Paparazzi, Bad Romance and Telephone later, it's touching to realise that at the age of forty, I still have innocence left to lose.

Heh.