Ricky Bobby Easter

All over America, at least in the South, families are sitting down to dinner together while the Ricky Bobby prayer is recited, "Thank you, little baby Jesus..."

I for one, got just to the border of being offended by that scene in the movie, not so much because of it picking fun at the simple life of many southern families, but more at taking a stab at people of faith. Like most "spoof" films, things get a little carried away, but I wonder if there was anyone in the writer's booth that perhaps thought this one was a bit too much for a different reason. I would have to think that making fun is one thing, but making fun at the expense of something so explosive as people's religion is perhaps another.

Are we held accountable for our words and actions, even when just poking fun? I am sure that no one intentionally meant to harm anyone in a mean spirited sort of way, there were a few spots in that movie that were pretty hilarious (not as many as "Elf" for sure) but the regional nature of the humor is not going to make for a very lucrative play at the box office. Is that worth straying into an area that perhaps has some far reaching implications?

Is it really the impression of faith in the Bible-belt south that everyone has such a simplistic and skewed perception of who Jesus is? I hope not, if anything it seems that no one really cares about what goes on "down there," "over there" or "up there" so long as it does not encroach on my life.

I am not sure if this is a statement on our society in general, how we interact as different regions in the US, or just plain apathy. I could stand the first few lines of the prayer, but come on guys, enough already after a few minutes. I got it.