Big Bird is bringing peace to Northern Ireland

October 9, 2002 7:52 PM

Big Bird is bringing peace to Northern Ireland This brilliant (and timely) story is doing the net 'rounds. The scary thing is? This story is true. And to think: it was only next month Sesame Street was dealing with AIDS. Maybe Kermit will have sorted out Iraq by Christmas...
posted by tapeguy (10 comments total)

Weird: a 'tb' before a comment?!!?
posted by dash_slot- at 8:02 PM on October 9, 2002

Uh, OK, now I get it...
posted by dash_slot- at 8:04 PM on October 9, 2002

it was only next month Sesame Street was dealing with AIDS.

FutureFilter.
posted by oissubke at 8:35 PM on October 9, 2002

Big Bird may be promoting peace in Northern Ireland, but don't forget that Bert is supporting bin Laden in Afghanistan.
posted by gen at 9:22 PM on October 9, 2002

Maybe Kermit will have sorted out Iraq by Christmas

"Kermit the Frog here in Baghdad, where I have helped draft a deal to allow for disarming Iraq and preventing war"

Meanwhile in America..

GWB: "Darn that Kermit, I always trusted him!"
posted by RobbieFal at 10:09 PM on October 9, 2002

Muppets: Indisputable force for good in the universe.
posted by joemaller at 10:36 PM on October 9, 2002

I don't see how this is either brilliant or scary. Is this somehow a bad idea? I think everyone involved knows they're going to singehandedly solve the world's problems with friendly Muppets, but that means they shouldn't try? What's wrong with regional versions of the show that actually address the problems in those regions in terms that children can understand?
posted by UnReality at 5:46 AM on October 10, 2002

Not going to singlehandedly solve the world's problems with Muppets.

Damn. I really have got to start using that preview.
posted by UnReality at 5:47 AM on October 10, 2002

Well, I think it's brilliant. Likely to be incredibly cheesy, but brilliant nonetheless.

People from Northern Ireland, to make a rash generalisation, don't tend to think much of local television... but whether or not children would have a different view is another matter.

Sounds good for a laugh anyway and, who knows, there's a teeny-tiny remote possibility that it could help in some way.

A major problem with something like this is that it assumes people are just misinformed, rather than intentionally ignorant, and that a TV show can weild more power over children than their family, their peers, society and basic idiocy.

Disregarding the whole twee aspect, people would probably have reservations about (effectively) an American company telling them how they should live. Especially if they are actively bigotted.

Regardless, more Cookie Monster on our screens can only be "a good thing".
posted by digiboy at 7:45 AM on October 10, 2002

Big Bird is coming to Belfast??? That's absolutely fantastic!!! Maybe he could take over from NI's fuck-wit politicians, who are finally set to collapse the NI Assembly which has been limping along since the Good Friday Agreement was signed. Headline news here. As always, some of these clowns would prefer to go back to tried-and-tested chaos rather than risk establishing a normal society. Idiots.
posted by Doozer at 2:30 AM on October 11, 2002