From Gawker today, a ghoulish triptych of crucifixion covers, including Art Spiegelman's April 1995 taxed-to-death Easter bunny and a wittily low-budget Hustler rabbit (guess we know how they feel about Playboy bunnies). Actually, though, it's not sacrilege that gives me pause on the new Nation cover but the ever-frightening SpongeBob SquarePants, who I know the kids are into but who just...freaks me out. Even the edible oddballs of Aqua Teen Hunger Force out-normal him. Forgive me, Pop Culture Lord (and right-wing meanies who find him too metrosexual for their tastes), for I cannot stomach SpongeBob. If an angry mob were going to run any deity out of town, I'd choose him.

Update, almost a year later: Changed my mind. Love the squeezable little guy. Thanks to Sophie H., 3, for the critical appraisal that turned it all around.

The Passion of the Art Director [Gawker]
Which Aqua Teen Hunger Force Character Are You? [fan page]
SpongeBob, Evil Gay Heathen: How sad to be a right-wing Christian in a world full of homo cartoons and scary nipples [SF Gate]