Who's Shafting Who?

My pal Hazel pointed out that there's some controversy surrounding the Issac Hayes-Chef-South Park-Scientology brouhaha. Supposedly, crazy Scientologists (that's like an anti-oxymoron) "took advantage if his infirmed condition to issue a statement claiming to be Hayes leaving the show." (Hayes had a mild stroke in January.) The whole thing is pretty crazy, regardless of what the truth is. This guy from foxnews.com claims Shaft didn't have a problem with South Park ripping into Scientology. Hayes seems like a pretty cool guy, so I guess I'll choose to believe that he's been taken advantage of, and maybe brainwashed even further by Hubbard's cult.

Trey Parker and Matt Stone wasted no time in firing back at Hayes, killing Chef off the other night. (Did anyone catch the episode? I unfortunately missed it.) They'll also be bringing Chef back, with a different voice. One of the great things about South Park is their incredibly fast turnaround time. While a Simpsons episode takes close to a year to produce, South Park is low-tech enough where they can react to things incredibly quickly.

If Hayes is really the victim here, I feel bad for the man who would risk his neck for his brother man. Shaft! I can dig it...