SpongeBob Squarepants, a symbol for tolerance

What has the world come to? Apparently there are certain overzealous Christians accusing SpongeBob Squarepants of promoting homosexuality.

We are talking about a CARTOON SPONGE.

I can't believe the cartoon creators have to even defend themselves, saying that SpongeBob was created as an asexual character.

If anyone paid attention to their marine biology class, they'd know that sponges are very simple cells, or rather a colony of cells. Where does sexuality enter in this case???

Okay, granted the cartoon takes artistic license with biological truth, so any arguments about scientific properties of a sponge don't necessarily make a good case. But why is there even an assumption that even this anthropomorphized sponge is gay? Just because he talks a certain way wears his pants too high, has pretty eyelashes, and is very close with his anthropomorphized buddy, Patrick the starfish?

What about all the effeminate heteros? Are they allowed to be effeminate even if they are hetero? Not that there's anything wrong with homosexuality!! AAAAAaaaa!

How is there such animosity against a nerdy little sponge who lives so gleefully in a pineapple under the sea??