'Tain't funny, McGee

Is it my imagination, or has rape become the new funny "edgy" comic material thing?  And if it has, can we just, y'know, stop it?

I read a report of this (read the article below) on Twitter this morning, and what was remarkable (i.e., disturbing) was the reaction to someone complaining about a comedian .  To wit:

1. To complain about it is censorship and shows you hate the First Amendment.  Dolt. To say the government should shut down any comedy show that Tosh is doing, or that features rape jokes — that would be censorship. Saying that rape jokes are bad and icky and socially unacceptable — that's criticism. To say that TV networks that showcase such comedians should be informed (through contact and by boycott) of the social unacceptability of such things is not censorship, it's society itself. And at the risk of doing the old bounce-back tactic, trying to stifle criticism by calling it censorship is worse than criticism itself, because it's wrong.

2. Why care what Tosh is doing comedy about? It's a free country.  See #1. Yes, it's a free country — free to criticize people who are acting in a crass, hurtful fashion, even if they term it comedy.

3. Some forms of comedy are all about being shocking. If you don't like it, don't view it.  Again, so no matter what the topic, no matter how rude, or personal, or insulting, or profoundly unfunny, we should just ignore it because it's "shock comedy"?  If the comedian starts talking about how downright hilarious it is that the Nazis sexually molested retarded Holocaust victims, we should just say, "Huh, guess that's not my cuppa" and shrug it off?  If a comedian starts joking about what a good and pleasant time was had at Southern lynching parties, we (let's even say the hypothetical African-American audience member) should simply internally tsk-tsk about how shocking shock comedy has gotten these days and order another watered down Coke & Rum?  I disagree.

4. Why didn't she just walk out, rather than speaking up?  Because some folks feel the need to stand up to what they think is wrong.  And feel that simply leaving is not a strong enough statement (are you going to the bathroom? do you have to go home to relieve the babysitter? are you just tired and want to leave?). Read the actual article, why don't you — she talks about that? 

Now, I would like to think that I'm not so much of a hypocrite that I would feel (or write) differently if the comedian had been poking fun at something I consider humorous and someone else would be deeply hurt and offended by.  I think that's the case — criticism of such things is part of the social dynamic, as legitimate as the initial "comic" statement.  Your right to say something doesn't mean that everyone has to listen, or refrain from comment or disagreement. Making any sort of controversial statement — whether it's one I agree with or one I don't — has social consequences, and that's part of why it takes courage to be actually controversial to make a point (as opposed to being controversial to make a buck).

Ugh. It's too late to be pondering this sort of thing. I'm out.

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