From Hobby To Passion

February 23, 2009 7:45 AM

The magic of beadcraft and jewelry-making, brought to you in four parts by Dr. Laura Schlessinger. The results can be purchased from her website, with all the proceeds going to Operation Family Fund, a charity which has raised over $1,700,000 for families of soldiers wounded or killed in the Global War On Terrorism. The series is notable for its complete lack of moralizing or comments on a relevant family controversy-- seriously, this is really just about beads, people!
posted by hermitosis (44 comments total)

Dr. Laura Schlessinger

oh hello late 90's how is the clinton administration is he the worst president ever or what
posted by Avenger at 7:55 AM on February 23 [2 favorites has favorites]

oh hello late 90's how is the clinton administration is he the worst president ever or what

She may not seem relevant because she's managed to avoid scandal over the last few years, and she's also not as bad as, say, Coulter, but she still has a massive fan base and a ton of influence.

And she still uses her influence to spread all manner of fuckery, but this is a nice thing she's doing, and I'll take it a step further and praise the terrific work-from-home resources on her website, a nice example of putting her money where her mouth is regarding her position that mothers should be at home with their children.
posted by padraigin at 8:01 AM on February 23

Why do we care about this?
posted by delmoi at 8:02 AM on February 23 [3 favorites has favorites]

Why do we care about this?

It's what America is about, the last few years. Beads and bigotry. Mostly bigotry.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:03 AM on February 23 [3 favorites has favorites]

I wonder if 'Operation Family Fund' is happy to be associated with a naked-photo-posing, husband-cheating unlicensed-therapist fake-psychologist.
posted by box at 8:04 AM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

Why do we care about this?

I've wanted to do a crafting post ever since orange swan brought them back into vogue!
posted by hermitosis at 8:06 AM on February 23

Bigotry Beads! Now available in black, white, or red! Be careful not to mix-n-match!
posted by The Whelk at 8:21 AM on February 23

This reminds me of the recent sad news about the closing of DC's Bead Museum.

I went there once. It was about as interesting as you'd expect.
posted by MrMoonPie at 8:23 AM on February 23

Nothing says "this is only about the beads" like two links to how evil Dr Laura is. Not that I disagree.

As for the beads: They look like something Dr Laura would wear.
posted by DU at 8:31 AM on February 23

What a bizarre post.
posted by mediareport at 8:41 AM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

I wonder if 'Operation Family Fund' is happy to be associated with a naked-photo-posing, husband-cheating unlicensed-therapist fake-psychologist.

TTIWWP
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 8:47 AM on February 23

It's nice to collect $1,700,00.00 for a cause, the question is how much has been paid out.
posted by pianomover at 8:58 AM on February 23

Wow, it's too bad that women who wear jewelry are whores.
posted by troybob at 9:00 AM on February 23 [3 favorites has favorites]

Naked Pictures of Doctor Laura

does what it says on the tin
posted by dunkadunc at 9:02 AM on February 23

This makes Paris Hilton's scrapbooking line look positively attractive by comparison!

There actually seems to be a mini-trend of weird celebrity crafting endorsements. It started with Vanna White's yarn line, I think. Deborah Norville has yarn, too, now. I don't totally understand it, but it seems like a basically harmless trend. I'd much rather Dr. Laura spend her time designing ugly jewelry than doing any of her other favorite pastimes, honestly.
posted by craichead at 9:20 AM on February 23

Those prices are insane! $1,500 or $1,000 for a necklace? $500 or $600 for a bracelet? And the designs are nothing special at best. Good grief, you can go down to your local bead store and make something equivalent for $20 or so, send the rest of the money to charity, and get a tax receipt.
posted by orange swan at 9:25 AM on February 23 [4 favorites has favorites]

Inspector.Gadget, you really don't want pictures. Don't click dunkadunc's link!

I wrote Dr. Laura a letter, she didn't respond, and I didn't expect her too, but it made me feel better for having written it.

I saw the naked pictures of you on the internet. There are some things a man wishes he could just unsee! I didn't have even one impure thought. It was worse than the time I watched the "2 Girls 1 Cup" video. Have you ever seen that? It's disgusting.

Speaking of photos...can I get an autographed one? I prefer one where your clothes are on, but that's really up to you.

I listen to your show, but think you are evil. Whenever I find myself agreeing with you I have to reexamine my beliefs. Thankfully this doesn't happen too often.

And sadly this is all pretty much true. I used to listen to her show a lot, since I like to wind myself up, she's generally entertaining, and it was her or Hollis Monroe on the "Story Hour" on IPR. And while I love Monroe he gave me the nods. A great show for before bed, not so great during drive time. And I really do reevaluate my belief system whenever I find myself agreeing with her.

I found that last link to be nearly as bad as the hate tripe that Schlessinger fosters on the world.

I'm not too excited about this post. Sure, it might just be about the beads, but that's like linking to a Fred Phelps eBay listing. I don't really care if it's for a good cause. I don't believe in hell, and neither does Schlessinger, but I am still pretty sure she's going there. Somehow, I don't have any difficulty reconciling these concepts in my mind.

Snope's on the Open Letter to Dr. Laura (inspired a scene on The West Wing).
posted by cjorgensen at 9:29 AM on February 23

A place for all that money.
posted by pianomover at 9:42 AM on February 23

There actually seems to be a mini-trend of weird celebrity crafting endorsements.

This is the result of a few factors: celebrities often have a full-blown case of situational narcissism and think they can do anything; there are people in the industry who will latch on to the opportunity to make a buck; and the publicity generated by the celebrity's name reaches at least some undiscriminating buyers.

For instance, Madonna writes some really crappy book for children, a publishing company snaps it up because it's sure to sell, they hire a very talented illustrator to make the book look fantastic, and then the book gets lots of attention when it's launched because, hey, it's Madonna. Then people who can't really tell a bad children's book from a good one, or who can't resist wonderful illustrations, or who are disinclined to put effort into finding better books, or who don't think too much about their purchases at all, or who think Madonna is cool, buy it.

I wouldn't buy Vanna White yarn unless it was really a superior and/or cost-effective product (and it doesn't appear to be) but there are people who would buy it for much the same reasons as people buy a Madonna children's book.

There's nothing really wrong with filling some buyer's need, but sometimes it really pisses me off to hear about yet another celebrity product line. The celebrity usually already makes some extreme amount of money, and the product usually really adds nothing to the market. It seems so greedy and wasteful to me. I should think that celebrities who do this would want to make sure that the product line were really superior or innovated or more eco-friendly compared to what's already available, and/or that it raises money for charity. They don't have to do anything just for the money, so why wouldn't they want to really accomplish something? But then again, some of them really are just out to make as much money as they can and/or think whatever they do is wonderful.
posted by orange swan at 9:54 AM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

The only good thing about Madonna's children's books are the high-paying jobs to some very, very talented illustrators.
posted by The Whelk at 10:05 AM on February 23

Actually, I think that Vanna's yarn does fill a niche. It's acrylic that comes in more sophisticated colors than most cheap acrylic. It's been very successful, and I don't think that the association with Vanna White is really the reason it's been successful. I actually think that craft supply producers are drawing entirely the wrong conclusions from the success of Vanna's Choice. They think it shows that there's a market for yarn that's endorsed by celebrities, whereas it really shows that there's a market for inexpensive yarn in fashionable colors.

And actually, the Deborah Norville yarn seems to fill a niche, too. At least, the sock yarn does. There's a real dearth of sock yarn available at chain craft stores like Jo-Ann's. There's Paton's Kroy, which is decent yarn but only comes in a few colorways, and I think that's pretty much it. The Deborah Norville sock yarn comes in almost 20 colorways. If it's halfway decent yarn, I think it will sell really well for reasons that have nothing to do with Deborah Norville.
posted by craichead at 10:11 AM on February 23

Bees?
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:16 AM on February 23

Madonna writes some really crappy book for children

That's the beauty of writing children's books. You have an automatic excuse for writing at an elementary school level.
posted by Joe Beese at 10:19 AM on February 23 [2 favorites has favorites]

I call bullshit. Why don't we have an FPP dedicated to the many other charities dedicated to helping soldier's families instead of one showcasing the single charitable act of a hatemongerer? Gee, that's nice that she has sympathy for the families. Given her general lack of compassion and usual gross hypocrisy, it's quite an accomplishment. But you don't have to go through her to help the families out, and the fact that Dr. Laura has managed to muster empathy for her fellow humans is not worth an FPP.

Scroll down on some of the links to see some of the programs helping families specifically.
posted by foxy_hedgehog at 10:22 AM on February 23 [6 favorites has favorites]

I think the post hinges around the initial cap "Global War on Terror" which can't be anything other than ironic, and took it from there.
posted by maxwelton at 10:29 AM on February 23

Although I can't fault Dr. Laura for these efforts, I am not sure why her efforts are notable.

In any event, shouldn't we be taking care of these families through our taxes? Of course, we should fill in whenever the government won't, but the idea that it wouldn't isn't something we should let go and pretend that charities are going to take care of it.
posted by krinklyfig at 10:32 AM on February 23

Bees?
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:16 AM on February 23

They don't allow you to have bees in here.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 10:43 AM on February 23

Operation Family Fund is a homefront group for America Supports You. Apparently, there have been some issues with what happens to the money.
posted by Bernt Pancreas at 11:07 AM on February 23

That West Wing episode gave me a chubbie...the nekkid pics...not so much.
posted by lobstah at 11:10 AM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

Operation Family Fund is a homefront group for America Supports You. Apparently, there have been some issues with what happens to the money.

Oops! GIVEWELL
posted by foxy_hedgehog at 11:21 AM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

I'll say this about Deryk Schlessinger: I'm really glad an image search of my name doesn't bring up a naked picture of my mom on the first page of results.
posted by nanojath at 11:33 AM on February 23

Apparently, there have been some issues with what happens to the money.

Jesus. Color me unsurprised.
posted by mediareport at 11:42 AM on February 23

Man, my mother is gonna have a tough time wrapping her head around this.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 12:05 PM on February 23

Dr Laura likes beads. Perhaps she's a human after all...
posted by crataegus at 12:11 PM on February 23

Okay, the stones have to talk to her, and crimp beads are trashy. Got it.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 12:18 PM on February 23

I'm waiting for Deryk Schlessinger to host his own radio show.

Caller: Hi Deryk. Love your show! I'm having a problem with my mother —

Deryk: Kill her. Next caller.
posted by orange swan at 12:40 PM on February 23 [1 favorite has favorites]

Owned By Bartlett
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 1:42 PM on February 23

I find it interesting that out of over 4000 dead in Iraq, and around an order of magnitude maimed, she's managed to help exactly 275. I'd be quite interested in knowing their criteria for aid, and I'll bet anything you'd like that its a very politically charged process. War widow acting uppity? No money for you.

If we assume 0$ for overhead, the money she's raised would result in around $6,100 per family helped. I'm sure every bit helps, but is that really enough to accomplish their stated mission of helping families shattered by the war she so enthusiastically supports get back on their feet. OTOH, given that the president she so enthusiastically supported worked tirelessly to keep the pay of the soldiers as low as possible they're used to living on scraps.

Still, given that she's personally worth at least $74 million, it doesn't seem as if she's really throwing a lot of her financial might behind the project.

And, finally, I 'd rather chew broken glass than help anything associated with the vile scumbag, no matter how noble the cause. There are charities that aren't associated with evil harpies that serve the same cause; and I really can't help but suspect they serve the cause better. I mean, it isn't like conservative run charities have much of a successful history of not screwing up massively or being a front for various unsavory practices.
posted by sotonohito at 2:06 PM on February 23

Am I an evil person for wishing Laura Schlessinger would just die a painful, humiliating, public, horrible, debilitating, lingering death soon?

And yes, I do realize I can't have both lingering and soon. I'm conflicted. I can live with conflicted, but am I evil? Ah hell, never mind, I can live with that as well.
posted by cjorgensen at 6:53 PM on February 23

I pretty much shut down on Dr. Laura when I heard her rant at the girlfriend of a terminally ill guy, saying how dare she sleep with him, he might get her pregnant and then the kids would be to a single mother.

Seriously. Not a "friend of a friend" told me about this. Was driving home, heard it on the radio, turned it off and have no further interest ever.
posted by effugas at 9:49 PM on February 23

I hope no one who reads this thread buys any of this beadwork. We have given you readers many reasons not to, but none more compelling than the one given by effugas.
posted by orange swan at 6:25 AM on February 24

It's not a competition, but Dr. Laura has said too much damaging shit for me to ever judge which thing is worst.

You know what was largely responsible for that guy’s [Matthew Shepard's] death? Those two guys who killed him did not go out looking for a homosexual to kill that night. They were shooting pool. He went to the bar. He left with two guys he thought he was gonna have sex with. He got murdered. How many women has that happened to? How many women have left bars thinking they were gonna get some action with some guy who raped and murdered and tortured and murdered them? Far more women than homosexual men have ended up dead that way, I would guess. Is that a hate crime against women? I think so but they specifically picked the woman who was willing to leave for sex. If Matthew hadn’t been willing to leave for sex, he might still be alive. That certainly doesn’t make him responsible for his own death but when you put yourself into a situation of going off to have anonymous sex with people you meet at a bar, what kind of person is gonna leave with you? Usually scum.... This was a terrible tragedy but it’s also one that might have been avoided if he had simply gone home with his friends instead of thinking he was gonna get a little. via
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 10:53 AM on February 24

I think someone has just successfully Pepsi-Blued MeFi.

Dr. Laura Schlessinger is filled with hate. She is an unhealthy influence on society. She should not have a media program. Viewer feedback had her last public effort canned: advertisers ran away once they heard about her hateful lunacy.

Let us not promote her here.
posted by five fresh fish at 8:03 PM on February 24

I think someone has just successfully Pepsi-Blued MeFi.

That is an absurd statement. Though I admit to being very curious about the parallel universe in which I am connected to Dr. Laura in some meaningful way, and in which I would be crazy enough to think that displaying her wares on MetaFilter might result in some sort of constructive exposure.

DU really hit the nail on the head with his observation, "Nothing says 'this is only about the beads' like two links to how evil Dr Laura is." I thought it was pretty obvious that I was being facetious about ignoring her villainy, but maybe that didn't broadcast.

I posted this because I found it absolutely mesmerizing to watch someone so polarizing try to lay all that aside and invite people to share in one of her constructive pasttimes. It's sort of like if Barbara Bush had a YouTube channel and used it to show everyone how make birdhouses. It's a really blurry wormhole to a personal/public benign/evil universe that I find fascinating. It may run counter to Dr. Laura's image, but I've never seen someone who was so desperate to be liked. Even in those really depressing nude photos -- I can barely look at them because her need for approval from the photographer is so obvious.

I sincerely doubt that this post will lead to anyone buying any of her blood-bracelets, though I admit if I had one I would surely treasure it, just like I would a palantír or some other relic of vast amoral power.
posted by hermitosis at 8:47 PM on February 24