Sunday, June 12, 2011

Titus & the Newtones

I can honestly say I'd forgotten Christopher Titus existed until this past week.  And I was okay with that. Unfortunately, I was reminded of his existence when he opted to break out that gut-busting, knee-sleeping, pants-peeing joke about perching atop the grassy knoll should Sarah Palin be elected President. Assassination Humor at its finest.  (Ever notice that "assassination" has "ass" in it - twice? Sorry - brief tangent.) 

My immediate reaction was one I imagine many folks had: What if he'd made the same "joke" about Barack Obama?  Anyone with an ounce of intellectual integrity knows the answer to that question, of course.  He'd have been massacred by the media. And rightly so. Oh, whoops, I forgot. Not supposed to use words that evoke violent imagery. Unless, of course, they're directed at a conservative.  Then, they're funny

It was just a few short months ago that the professional left upped its contortionist quotient exponentially with attempts to pin the horrific shooting in Tucson on "violent rhetoric" from the right, and even worse, on Palin herself for having the audacity to target specific congressional districts (including that of Gabrielle Giffords) in the 2010 elections.  Then, it was all about how Talk Radio and evil conservatives have created such a hateful tone that the Loughners of the world are compelled to go on vicious shooting sprees. Never mind the fact that further inquiry into Loughner's background indicated no such link, and he has since been diagnosed with schizophrenia.

The hypocrisy is mind-boggling. And yet, blithely dismissed. I try to think back to my leftward days and imagine what my old self would have thought of such a "joke."  Yeah, I don't think even then I'd have found it funny.  Sick is what it is.  I think when you're to the point of trolling for laughs with assassination jokes, it might be time to take a long hard look into your soul. If you dare.

--Q

No comments:

Post a Comment