Grade School Science Students Cringe At Impending Memorization Overload; New Planets To Include Ceres, Charon, Xena, 7 Zark 7

So, as Jerry Seinfeld would say, what's the deal with that whole debate surrounding the new definition of the word "planet" thing? The mind reels at the thought of every science textbook on Earth needing to be updated to reflect a new total of 53 round objects in orbit around the sun.

And talk about "an inconvenient truth" -- this would also mean doomsday for large portions of the science fiction community, as the term "Tenth Planet" would no longer avail an author of an easily applied sense of mystery to any solar system-based thriller they currently have in the works. Not to mention it would impose a name change upon any number of sci-fi and comic book shops around the world. And don't even get me started on things like kooky alternative Canadian rock bands, small mom-n-pop film and television production companies, and international web design companies who aren't afraid to display unnecessary and unfortunate Flash video loops on their Internet homepages.

As loyal John Eats commenter Anonymous A put it recently, this must be a conspiracy of some model planet manufacturing cartel who are obviously salivating at the prospects of the huge demand for revised classroom plastic solar system kits this decision will no doubt create.