Comedist Views on the Separation of Church and State

Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere:

This week, brother pm inquired about Comedist beliefs regarding the separation of church and state. Let me say unequivocally that Comedism does not seek to base man's law, civil law, or coleslaw in any way upon Comedist theology. We firmly believe "render unto Sid Caesar that which belongs to Sid Caeser, and render unto the Lord that which belongs to the Lord." You will never see Comedists demanding monuments of Flip Wilson with "Here comes da' judge!" in the nation's courthouses.

That is not to say there is no humor to be found in politics -- one will never remove that. And we are never saying that laws should not be written from one's person comic values, but that we support pluralism. Just as we believe in the existence of good jokes about every possible group, so we believe these groups should participate equally in the political process. Religion in politics is only meant to silence certain voices and that should never happen...with the notable exception of Harpo Marx, of course.

But there are, of course, gray areas. In general, Comedists are appalled by religious discrimination in hiring. One's faith is one's personal business and should it not impact the ability to perform one's chosen occupation, it ought to play no part in the hiring process. But...

So "I" and I (starting to sound like a reggae tune here) were on the phone the other day talking to Bob Weir, guitarist for the Grateful Dead, interviewing him for the upcoming book The Grateful Dead and Philosophy. A couple of pieces in the book look at the Dead as a larger organizational entity. Incredibly, such a complex organization was run by consensus. If anyone -- and I mean anyone -- had reservations about something, then it was off. The band had considered a tour of Europe in the early 90's, but the road crew decided they didn't like the idea and so it was scrapped. So I asked Bobby, if so much trust was given to folks who worked for the band, how did they hire? His answer..."We only hired people who made us laugh." So...the Grateful Dead, Comedists? Associated with the Merry Pranksters, after all...