God Save Us From Janet Jackson! (2)

(Cont. from Part 1) Louis Sheldon, head of the Traditional Values Coalition, shows his brand of Christianity by describing Janet J's flash of a nearly-nude breast not as sin, but as mental illness: "Sexual exhibitionism-the desire to expose one's private parts in public-is a sickness that needs treatment. It cannot be considered just part of an 'act' on TV."

I'm sure he would be much more comfortable if women just wore burqas like God intended.

I was going to quote some of the ways in which he tries to equate Janet's breast-flash with the crimes of which Michael Jackson is accused. But it would make me nauseously conscious that this man professes the same religion I do. What a jerk. The only "traditional values" that Sheldon's column represents is cheap sleaze-slinging.

Another fine Christian gentleman, Tony Perkins, the head of the Family Research Council, reacted to the Janet Jackson episode this way (his emphasis):

"The entire half-time program was tasteless and not family-friendly. CBS should know better than to turn the half-time entertainment over to MTV, which relishes its ability to shock. CBS would do well to adhere to the adage: if you sleep with dogs you'll get flees [sic]. I am sure there is a lot of scratching going on at CBS today.

I've been around enough of this kind of stuff to see the nudge-nudge wink-wink edge to "sleep with dogs." I doubt he would have used that particular symbolism if the offending performer weren't African-American. Is that an unfair characterization? Maybe. But I just have little patience with this kind of prissy nonsense.

You don't really have to read between the lines to see that a certain horror at the idea of a woman's body is part of what's assumed in the various comments linked. You don't have to read between the lines, because that attitude oozes all over the place.

Some of these guys need to go buy a Playboy and read it while listening to Britney Spears sing "Touch of My Hand." If it didn't give them a stroke, they might actually loosen up a bit.