Ox Notes: September 19, 2007

If you've not heard the latest controversial bit of news courtesy of The View, prepare to have your mind blown. Yesterday, as the panelists discussed their religious views, it was brought up that born-again Christian Sherri Shepherd doesn't believe in evolution.

Attempting to determine what scientific facts Shepherd believes and which she doesn't, Whoopi Goldberg asked Shepherd if the world is round or flat. Shepherd's answer: "I don't know." The discussion of whether the earth is flat or not continued for several minutes, and despite several opportunities, Shepherd never definitively stated that she knew the earth is round. [Click here for an abbreviated clip of the discussion or here for the full seven-minute clip.]

I watched the first segment of today's episode to see if yesterday's discussion was addressed, and it was. Shepherd said that she knows the world is round, and that she was just very nervous yesterday. Or, in her own eloquent words, her brain had a "senior, poopy moment." Elisabeth Hasselbeck comforted Shepherd by saying that it's "okay not to care if the world is round or flat."

What confounds me about this situation is that, during yesterday's discussion, Goldberg, Joy Behar, and Barbara Walters were so careful not to offend Shepherd that they never said, "Everyone knows the world is round. Next topic." It confounds me even more that Walters has let Shepherd remain a part of the cast after displaying an unforgivable degree of stupidity and a complete lack of creative thinking skills.

Embracing diversity and allowing people to form their own conclusions does not mean tolerating willful ignorance. If the producers of The View are so concerned with not offending idiots that they're willing to let indisputable facts be called into question, that's their prerogative. But the next time I watch The View or post anything about the it will be when Whoopi, Joy, or Barbara quit in protest, or when Sherri or Elisabeth are fired.

On to happier topics, like Dancing with the Stars. Albert Reed says he's prepared for the inevitable rumors of a romance with his professional partner, Anna Trebunskaya, despite the fact that Anna is married to fellow DwtS pro Jonathan Roberts.

The New Zealand version of Dancing with the Stars has raised $1 million for charity in three years by collecting money when fans cast their votes. Makes you wonder how much money the US version could've raised in its four seasons if it had done the same.

The release of the Battlestar Galactica Season 3 DVD has been pushed back again, and won't be released until spring.

Before I shove off to celebrate International Talk Like a Pirate Day, CBS has posted two more behind-the-scenes videos from the set of Survivor: China. Jeff Probst hosts the vids and shows the remote location of one of the challenges, as well as the efforts that went into creating and testing a challenge modeled after the Great Wall of China. Yarrr....