|
| quote: | Originally posted by kush paintings
Before we start generalizing the entire right/conservatives as Bush supporting, big-government yearning nutbags, lets realize there are a number under the same label whose ideals clash with these neo-cons that have now been dubbed "conservatives" by the left. |
Okay, let me clarify. I will stop generalising the "entire right/conservatives as [being] Bush supporting, big-government yearning nutbags" as soon as they earn that dignity. I am told that there is a "libertarian" wing of the GOP: where have they been for the past six years exactly? I am also told that there is an independent libertarian movement in the US: where have they been on civil liberty issues like abortion, gay rights, habeas corpus or euthanasia recently?
If people on the right of US politics don't want to be lumped in with Bush and the cabal he's appointed then they should start acting like it. When I see a self-described "conservative" actually sincerely denounce "Bush", "big-government" or the "neo-conservatives" then I will happily differentiate them from the riff-raff I'm referring to here. Until that time, however, then I fail to see how I could possibly be wrong in lumping them in dismissively with the "conservatives".
| quote: | | Also, I will state it again, as I guess only firestarter caught it. South Park. Created, and each show being written by a card carrying Libertarian. In fact, there was a term created to refer to the brand of politics presented on the show "South Park Republican." The satire on the show is expertly crafted, and in fact is one I find easy to support. I find their satire the most appealing, as they simply have a strong distaste with all of politics. For anyone that has watched, think of the Giant Douche and Turd Sandwich episode. |
I've got no qualms with South Park. In fact, I personally see it as the genuine counter-balance to the Daily Show: it has a knack for cutting through partisan bullshit, a knack for highlighting the absurdity of many mainstream political beliefs and tilts about as far the right (that is to say, not very far at all) as the Daily Show tilts to the left.
But still, even on issues where I agree with them 100%, the humour does still often come across as mean-spirited virtriol not-so-subtly disguised as a particular ideology. Take the Tom Cruise episode, for instance: I dislike Tom Cruise and his personal crusade, I dislike scientology more than I can possibly express in a single post and yet I felt that the entire episode was nothing more than a prolonged "he's-gay-and-scientologists-are-stupid" joke. Not that they don't have it coming, of course, and not that I didn't find it funny (South Park usually is when it gets preachy) but there was nothing particularly sophisticated about the humour and little to differentiate it from the sort of conservative humour that I'm talking about here (barring the fact that it was non-partisan and included - gasp! -sexual references).
Perhaps there is a form of "conservative" humour that breaks this mold, but I haven't seen it yet. Take South Park, remove the insightful satire, and I think that's pretty much the standard of humour you're going to find on this new Fox News show. Expect plenty of gratuitous Barbara Streisand and Alec Baldwin jokes.
___________________
http://eschatonnow.blogspot.com/
Last edited by Renegade on Feb-16-2007 at 18:46
|