Zygoteville

he'll always be my neighbor

I've been meaning to post this for a while, "this" being the most incredible video I've ever seen in my life (I'd say it even beats out Peter Cetera's "The Glory of Love"). It's a 7-minute exchange between Mr. Fred Rogers and Senator John Pastore, the latter of whom was chairing a series of hearings before the U.S. Senate Communications Subcommittee on funding for the newly developed Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Then-President Richard Nixon wanted to cut CPB funding in half to free up money for the Vietnam War.

The thing that makes the exchange so incredible -- besides the fact that Mr. Rogers somehow manages to very, very gently pwn the ornery old Senator, by in fact singing to him -- is that this kind of exchange simply could not happen today. It could not happen because no man today would have the balls to sing a song like this one in front of a Senate Subcommittee. It could not happen because people today would likely be suspicious and even hostile to a grown man with such interest in young children. And it could not happen because people today are incapable of speaking with the same simplicity and sincerity of spirit that people once were able to -- we are all too jaded now, too cynical and too world-weary to speak plainly from our hearts as Mr. Rogers does, and always did. But beyond that, the real reason why this exchange could not happen today is because there was really only ever one human being born on this planet who could have accomplished this exchange, and that human being is no longer with us. We salute you, Mr. Rogers. The world shall never see the likes of you again. Watch the video >>>