Pass the Veggies, Light on God

You know, there are days I simply want to...scream.

NBC bought VEGGIE TALES for Saturday morning television. On the surface it sounds like a neat idea, though a bit surprising, given the religious content. They're wonderfully made, quality shows. I think we own them all. With their often sophisticated cultural allusions and punny humor, they amuse adults and teens as well as children.

However, NBC thinks the shows are too religious and their "broadcast standards" department has been editing out all "non-historical" references to God. The show's creator, Phil Vischer, was not told when the rights were purchased that NBC would be editing the programs. Even relatively generic statements such as "Remember kids, God made you special and He loves you very much" have been removed from the shows.

NBC compounded its error by first lying about the cuts, initially blaming them on "time constraints," before coming clean Friday with the real reason for the editing.

HELLO?

The entire point of these shows is that they communicate moral, religious Christian values, illustrating stories from the Bible.

If NBC thinks Christian messages are too controversial to air on their network, they never should have bought the show in the first place. I'd be awfully curious to know what's even left in each episode after the censors go at them with the scissors, but I'm not going to give NBC the viewership in order to find out.

I can't imagine what NBC was thinking when they bought it, or what they're thinking now. This has to be one of the most bone-headed moves I've ever heard of a TV network making.