At least once in a while, this feels like the right thing to do.
July 6 // June 14, 2017
Compassion isn't partisan. It just feels partisan, depending on the news of the day.
Today’s Life Lesson from Two Weeks Ago News: Shocking behavior isn’t clever. And Life Lesson Number Two: Reacting with compassion to the news of the day isn't a partisan act. It’s called being a human being. Remember that?
Point 1: Kathy Griffin. Yes, spectacularly old news (sorry for the delay) but what a dummy she is. Why? Two words. No, make that four words. Or six words. Daniel Pearl. James Foley. Steven Sotloff. And let’s not forget Paul Marshall Johnson, Jr., Alan Henning, Herve Goudel, and David Haines.
We only wish that everyone who cackled with delight over the Griffin “protest” image had had the names of these men immediately posted on their facebook walls, or tweeted to them non-stop for the next 24 hours. We guarantee you that family, friends, colleagues and even acquaintances of these seven men (some American, some not) who were decapitated by enemies of the United States and the West will never find a fake bloody severed head funny. Not ever. Especially a fake bloody severed head of a political figure.
But simple ideas like this, simple ideas of human decency don’t occur to someone like Kathy Griffin, who wants to express how much she despises President Trump and whip up other easily amused, like-minded dolts to rally around her and her free speech expression of hostility and violence. As this ugly episode unfolded, the more enlightened among us let the rest of us know that appearing in an image that features the President’s decapitation is an act of bravery.
Please.
It’s nothing of the kind. It’s pathetic and desperate. Equally sad were the people who felt the need to defend this publicity stunt. For others who were outraged and dared to express it, they found themselves immediately bombarded with the “What about all the offensive President Obama images that depicted violence?” The answer to that question is simple: What about them? They were horrible! They were hateful and venomous! They’re all reprehensible!
It’s called being a human being and having compassion for the victim or subject of ridicule. It’s called being a member of a civilized society, where civil disobedience is just that, and doesn’t require a machete. Nothing partisan about that. Next pathetic individual...
Point 2: Bill Maher. On his cable television show, Maher used a racial slur as he tried to be clever / be funny during an exchange with a Republican guest. He was neither.
Unlike the Griffin episode, the outrage from anyone regarding this colossal misstep was all but absent. Yes, the newspapers ran their lukewarm and brief coverage of the story and yes, a few prominent individuals from the black community made their statements but in terms of the expected social media outrage…well, our experience was almost (but not quite) crickets. (If yours was different, please share it. We are anxious to hear about it.)
How do we explain this? It could be that many conservative people chose not to waste time or energy denigrating someone they believe is marginal at best in terms of the national conversation. It could be that the liberals who may like Maher and his point of view tried to ignore the whole thing so the less said the better. It could be that people like Maher get a “Pass” on this in the name of comedy. Well, they seem to from some people in Washington, anyway.
Please.
The outrage here should have been immediate, loud and relentless. It should have shown compassion for the millions of people who endured this insult in the year 2017. But as near as we can tell, Maher has emerged from this intact. Two Weeks Ago News would have liked to believe that you don’t get to degrade an entire race of people and keep your national spotlight without suffering some consequences. Apparently, we were wrong.
But speaking of suffering…Point 3: Steve Scalise. Remember Republican Representative Steve Scalise? He and other Republican lawmakers were attacked by a gunman in mid-June during practice for a charity baseball game in Washington, D.C. and Scalise was seriously injured. (Police killed the attacker, identified as an angry individual who was not a fan of Republican President Trump.) Now a few weeks past the attack, which was a few weeks after Griffin’s antics and a few weeks after Maher’s joke, Representative Scalise has been readmitted to an intensive care unit as he fights an infection.
Anyone still laughing about any of this? Look, the world has always been and will always be full of unstable, dangerous people who are a threat to the social order. We've also always had some form of radical social commentary, that even when authored by comedians, has always been uncomfortable, disconcerting and delivered precisely to upend mainstream thinking and activity.
All that may be true but let’s review. A bloody, violent image of a severed head, displayed by a celebrity, which guaranteed widespread exposure and national headlines. A hateful racial slur that should have disappeared from the national lexicon at least one generation ago, spoken for laughs by a comedian during his show that airs on a premium cable channel. A group of Republican lawmakers shot at by an individual who favors the left and opposes the Republican President.
Remarkable. It’s almost as if the last eight years never happened. Repeating (and/or) condoning the same kind of imagery that was offensive when it was used to depict violence against President Obama isn’t payback. It’s incendiary. Using a racial slur that would have been personally insulting to President Obama and his family isn’t a failed attempt at humor. It’s indefensible. Shooting at a group of politicians because you don’t agree with their platform is nothing but attempted murder, not something to be celebrated. (The non-partisan lovefest of support lasted for Congressman Scalise lasted about 36 hours (maybe less) before the divide opened up again.)
Sorry folks. This kind of news – even when it’s a few weeks old – is still hard to take. Onward.
Compassion isn't partisan. It just feels partisan, depending on the news of the day.
Today’s Life Lesson from Two Weeks Ago News: Shocking behavior isn’t clever. And Life Lesson Number Two: Reacting with compassion to the news of the day isn't a partisan act. It’s called being a human being. Remember that?
Point 1: Kathy Griffin. Yes, spectacularly old news (sorry for the delay) but what a dummy she is. Why? Two words. No, make that four words. Or six words. Daniel Pearl. James Foley. Steven Sotloff. And let’s not forget Paul Marshall Johnson, Jr., Alan Henning, Herve Goudel, and David Haines.
We only wish that everyone who cackled with delight over the Griffin “protest” image had had the names of these men immediately posted on their facebook walls, or tweeted to them non-stop for the next 24 hours. We guarantee you that family, friends, colleagues and even acquaintances of these seven men (some American, some not) who were decapitated by enemies of the United States and the West will never find a fake bloody severed head funny. Not ever. Especially a fake bloody severed head of a political figure.
But simple ideas like this, simple ideas of human decency don’t occur to someone like Kathy Griffin, who wants to express how much she despises President Trump and whip up other easily amused, like-minded dolts to rally around her and her free speech expression of hostility and violence. As this ugly episode unfolded, the more enlightened among us let the rest of us know that appearing in an image that features the President’s decapitation is an act of bravery.
Please.
It’s nothing of the kind. It’s pathetic and desperate. Equally sad were the people who felt the need to defend this publicity stunt. For others who were outraged and dared to express it, they found themselves immediately bombarded with the “What about all the offensive President Obama images that depicted violence?” The answer to that question is simple: What about them? They were horrible! They were hateful and venomous! They’re all reprehensible!
It’s called being a human being and having compassion for the victim or subject of ridicule. It’s called being a member of a civilized society, where civil disobedience is just that, and doesn’t require a machete. Nothing partisan about that. Next pathetic individual...
Point 2: Bill Maher. On his cable television show, Maher used a racial slur as he tried to be clever / be funny during an exchange with a Republican guest. He was neither.
Unlike the Griffin episode, the outrage from anyone regarding this colossal misstep was all but absent. Yes, the newspapers ran their lukewarm and brief coverage of the story and yes, a few prominent individuals from the black community made their statements but in terms of the expected social media outrage…well, our experience was almost (but not quite) crickets. (If yours was different, please share it. We are anxious to hear about it.)
How do we explain this? It could be that many conservative people chose not to waste time or energy denigrating someone they believe is marginal at best in terms of the national conversation. It could be that the liberals who may like Maher and his point of view tried to ignore the whole thing so the less said the better. It could be that people like Maher get a “Pass” on this in the name of comedy. Well, they seem to from some people in Washington, anyway.
Please.
The outrage here should have been immediate, loud and relentless. It should have shown compassion for the millions of people who endured this insult in the year 2017. But as near as we can tell, Maher has emerged from this intact. Two Weeks Ago News would have liked to believe that you don’t get to degrade an entire race of people and keep your national spotlight without suffering some consequences. Apparently, we were wrong.
But speaking of suffering…Point 3: Steve Scalise. Remember Republican Representative Steve Scalise? He and other Republican lawmakers were attacked by a gunman in mid-June during practice for a charity baseball game in Washington, D.C. and Scalise was seriously injured. (Police killed the attacker, identified as an angry individual who was not a fan of Republican President Trump.) Now a few weeks past the attack, which was a few weeks after Griffin’s antics and a few weeks after Maher’s joke, Representative Scalise has been readmitted to an intensive care unit as he fights an infection.
Anyone still laughing about any of this? Look, the world has always been and will always be full of unstable, dangerous people who are a threat to the social order. We've also always had some form of radical social commentary, that even when authored by comedians, has always been uncomfortable, disconcerting and delivered precisely to upend mainstream thinking and activity.
All that may be true but let’s review. A bloody, violent image of a severed head, displayed by a celebrity, which guaranteed widespread exposure and national headlines. A hateful racial slur that should have disappeared from the national lexicon at least one generation ago, spoken for laughs by a comedian during his show that airs on a premium cable channel. A group of Republican lawmakers shot at by an individual who favors the left and opposes the Republican President.
Remarkable. It’s almost as if the last eight years never happened. Repeating (and/or) condoning the same kind of imagery that was offensive when it was used to depict violence against President Obama isn’t payback. It’s incendiary. Using a racial slur that would have been personally insulting to President Obama and his family isn’t a failed attempt at humor. It’s indefensible. Shooting at a group of politicians because you don’t agree with their platform is nothing but attempted murder, not something to be celebrated. (The non-partisan lovefest of support lasted for Congressman Scalise lasted about 36 hours (maybe less) before the divide opened up again.)
Sorry folks. This kind of news – even when it’s a few weeks old – is still hard to take. Onward.