The Sodom and Gomorrah Teddy Bears

Amusing.

Conservative columnist is outraged by "How inappropriate commercials have cheapened an important holiday."

You know... ever since the "Saint" part was removed, it's hard for a right-wing conservative Christian to celebrate it properly. He's disgusted with the teddy bears and pajama-grams and the suggestiveness of...everything! He even used the phrase "galloping towards Gomorrah." Some background on Vs-Day is provided by the History Channel here:

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor's daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure.

February 14 has been a "romantic" holiday since the Middle Ages. Not sure what the columnist thinks the holiday should go back to...

I would tend to agree, though, that some of the advertising has become obscene simply because of the plugging of diamonds. Ugh. It's just not the kind of obscene he's talking about.