H/t Jonathan Tate.
Delaware has joined 44 other states with reported cases of measles, a disease that had been eradicated in the U.S. in 2000. The state health department has confirmed five cases in Kent County without specifying where.
Though there has been no official statement about it, various social media accounts are claiming the outbreak occurred in the Amish community. That wouldn’t be surprising; vaccination rates among the Amish tend to be lower than among the general population.
The Amish rejection of such modern technology as the diabolical chain-driven bicycle didn’t attract the attention of gawking visitors until the 1950s, when businessmen in Lancaster County, Pa., hit on the idea of making their way of life a tourist attraction. They’ve been the subject of fascination and mockery ever since, rarely as thoroughly as in Weird Al Yankovic’s “Amish Paradise.”
Of course, he wasn’t just mocking the Amish alone – he was using them to mock gangsta rappers with his parody of Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise.” Coolio initially was not at all cool with it – his people gave Yankovic the OK over his objections, and he voiced loud, public displeasure about it. Years later he recanted. “It just made me look dumb,” he said in 2016. “It was one of the dumb things I did. And I’m willing to admit I did something stupid.” He also admitted he found the video funny.
“Amish Paradise” appeared on Yankovic’s 1996 album “Bad Hair Day.” The single stalled at No. 53, which wasn’t unusual – only three of his singles have made the Top 40 over the years – but the LP reached No. 14 on the album chart. And yes, that’s Florence Henderson making a cameo in the video.
