not so fast......

I admit it!

I mocked!

I belittled!

I berated!

In the past I believe I wrote about Brother Camping. a hard core bible thumper, who seemingly is on the radio 24 hours a day. During a long drive I will skip around stations looking for something "unique" to listen to. I can't listen to stations that play music, odd- I know,.I love talkers. Not, call in shows, they depress and/or infuriate me, I like a show where someone with knowledge of their subject is given time to tell a story.

Often , this will lead to religious radio, they know their subject and are more than happy to share. Sometimes heartfelt and touching, sometimes fire and brimstone and sometimes just ...extraordinary.

The lyrics for the song, ONCE IN A LIFETIME, ("you may find yourself, living in a shotgun shack...") were culled from a radio preacher.

For a long time I have been fascinated by televangelists and their ilk (just wanted an excuse to use the word , ilk) The greatest of all reality television was back when , Jim and Tammy Bakker were building HERITAGE USA, their time share/Christan amusement park complex and at the same time where in the middle of all sorts of lawsuits and looming scandals.

The fate of the ministry was being decided, but there were also lots of live television shows that needed to be sent out to the faithful, The PTL (praise the lord or pass the loot) network was the lifeline that kept them connected to their audience and to the audiences checkbooks. If a show was set to start at 1 pm, the cameras turned on at 1 pm and somebody would walk on and host the show, Maybe Jim or Tammy, sometimes their daughter Tammy Sue, or one of the PTL singers.

For weeks the entire network was stream of consciousness television, Jim would lay it out , on the air, Live (!) what was going on, from his perspective. Sometimes on the set in front of the studio audience, but more often than not he would wander the grounds followed by cameras and show the home viewer what was happening at HERITAGE USA. Songs and prayers and tears and paranoia and joy and pain...... The most compelling TV I have ever seen. My pals and I first started watching in full ironic mockery mode, but after a bit you just had to watch to see what was going to happen next because it was totally raw. Amazing.

On TV , Jim and Tammy, had no filter , 24 hours a day they had their own network with a huge audience who hung on every word and the words just poured out.

Brother Camping on the radio is hardly as fascinating as the Bakkers , but I have become enamored of late because he is 100% sure that the world will come to an end in May of this year. He gives an actual date, but I can't remember it right now. I always think, What does he say the next day? The day after the end ,when every one tunes in to hear what went wrong. I'm sure he'll have an answer and I'm sure it will be based on a thorough reading of scripture.

I mock. I belittle. I berate.

This past weekend, in Arkansas, 2.000 birds fell out of the sky, dead. And tens of thousands of fish washed up on shore, dead.

hmmmmmm.