Not cute, Dave!
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- Wonder Man
- Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.
8 comments:
Seen it. It's no big deal. Don't fall into the hysteria hype over a joke.
It simply wasn't very funny...
but not much of what Letterman says ever is...
I didn't find it so offensive, nor did i find it so funny.
It's really offensive, and ties into the "panic" idea that so many murders have used to sway juries into acquitting them. I'm not going to go calling for his resignation over it, but I'd like an apology for sure.
Polerin, I buy that no more than I buy that violence in Movies/TV has a vast influence on the murder rate.
Hell, you COULD argue that the announcer did the right thing by getting up to deal with it on his own rather than punching a cameraman, etc. But you don't and why not? All together now: It's. A. Silly. Joke.
You could argue any number of things, and probably have, but that doesn't make them valid. The joke is based off the idea that trans women are vile and discusting, which is the same idea that leads to the trans panic defense and juries buying it. The jokes like this one and in ace ventura (which is basically where they stole it from) help perpetuate that image.
In fact, you could argue that the same thing is behind this joke as is behind the recent string of homophobic attacks.
Othering me may be silly to you, but you don't live day after day of tranny jokes, of people telling you to lighten up when someone posts a porn image and everyone jumps on the bandwagon of how didgusting trans people are. It's silly yes, but that doesn't make it any less harmful than a "god hates fags" sign from westboro.
Othering? Far from it.
While the othering via religion extremists certainly applies, it does not mean one's own personal identity that should be paramount.
If the severity of ANY given statement is to be taken as a full-stop litmus test of personality (or in Letterman's case: taste), as demonstrably taken by you, then logically there is no middle ground. Seeing the world in only black vs. white--- or even worse, US vs. THEM is a pitying way to live.
If comments of any kind taken (via your point of view) as offensive, you do have the right to shun/turn off the TV/cease communication. But you'll find that to be quickly self-ostracizing, and garners no change in the society you're looking to advance. Again, I suggest you look at hard-core religious institutions who have done this, like the Westboro Church who you so pointedly referred to.
Honestly...
Why should the HRC be up in arms over this? It was a lame joke that fell flat.
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