For political comedians, the joke's not on Obama

For political comedians, the joke's not on Obama

www.washingtontimes.com

What's so unfunny?

That's what some comics - citing the scarcity of satire directed at President Obama and his administration - want to know.

Claiming that his peers are "panicky" about "being called a racist," stand-up legend Jackie Mason said too many once-fearless satirists are settling for "hero worship" of the new U.S. president.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Yes, you heard correctly ladies and gentlemen:
The very same "comedians" that spent the last 8 years lampooning ol' Dubya are - surprise, surprise - completely silent on Saint Obamanius.

As E.B. White best put:
In a free country it is the duty of writers to pay no attention to duty. Only under a dictatorship is literature expected to exhibit a harmonious design or an inspirational tone. A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom—he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold. His gravest concern is lest gaiety, or truth in sheep's clothing, somewhere gain a foothold, lest joy in some unguarded moment be unconfined

Just like Obama exercising = Good, Bush exercising = Bad, negligent President[/url, there's no double standard here folks:
Just another 4 - at least - years of rehashed, recycled "durr, I am Bush and I iz so dumb" jokes.

[url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/05/for-political-comedians-the-jokes-not-on-obama/]www.washingtontimes.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I know

It's sad, but instead of making it plain outright illegal to mock, poke fun, or attack the President, they simply just ruin your career, with remarks your a racist.

I mean look at how bad that guy from Seinfields image was after he said the god forsaken word white people mustn't say!

I on one hand treat Obama to no greater regard then I treat a Hobo.

I treat a hobo with respect, just as I do Obama, do I make fun of hobos yes, but not personally do I make fun of Obama darn sure. Do I make fun of him personally no.

Obama is a politician, Politician = Liar, cheater, con artist, manipulator, whore.

Yes ITS TRUE! You know it I know it Enough said, to think otherwise is to forget the past Presidents. (Except TJ, GW, AJ)

I'm not making any statements pro or con either Obama or Bush, but in fairness to political comedians, Bush was a lot easier to mock. I think that's worth considering.

reply to post by TheStev


C'mon, really, Obama has an extreme amount of comedic acts!

Fist Bumpin his wife.
Spending his way out of debt.
Hiring ONLY tax cheats!
Foreign Policy!
Respect for terrorist, now called Enemy Combatants.
Maybe they'd like to sit down for a cup of joe?!?!

I could make millions of dollars off of straight jokes from him alone. I fear i'd only be called a racist, anti-american, and more for it.

Edit to add: Remember Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay.
They both did something illegal with Mr. Bush. If you put Obama in that scenario, you would be called a stereotypical person, with great prejudice!
But hey, it'd be funny, and no different, If you become a Giant Figure in Society You CANNOT expect to have no slander come your way nor any comedy! It just happens!

[edit on 7-5-2009 by Republican08]

I work in a place where a slip of the tounge about His Highness would probably get me in a fight at the least and out on charges of racisim at worst.

We have long ago lost our right to say what we feel about most issues.

The thought police are not that far away..

"Why can't we all just get along" Indeed....

Peace and Light

reply to post by Chaoticar


Blame it on political correctness. Whoever came up with that concept was right, to a point, but it has become ridiculous.

It is ok to joke about nations, gays, lesbians, etc but not blacks.

I have been very uneasy about Obama since he was elected, and I have been accused of racism on this site. I am not a racist.

Obama is only human (I hope) - surely there is something they can joke about. (Or maybe they believe that he is the anti-christ...)

I get called a Jim Carrey look alike all the time by black people (although I do look a bit like him) but they call every white person a look alike of him. Yes I said THEY!!!

I laugh and get on with my life.

A guy once said to me "I'm an equal opportunity sht giver" Made fun of every persons race I was around then walked away. Odd enough everyone laughed and got on with there lives, why because it was funny. trully funny, maybe not true, but funny nonetheless.

Joke about anyone, thats what a joke is!

reply to post by spellbound


I can see where you say PC might have been an OK idea.

But that egg has hatched into something we no longer have the ability or means to kill.

I will call any situation as I see it - PC or not!

Not calling shennanigans is what got us in this spot to begin with.

Peace and Light!

reply to post by Republican08


Maybe you are right... We do seem to take this stuff too seriously.

Thanks man.

Peace and Light

reply to post by HERACAT


Exactly! But why is it ok to joke about whites but not blacks? This is what I can't get my head around.

reply to post by spellbound


I think we are being programed to accept whatever the hell they want us to think.

I won't!

reply to post by HERACAT


I know, I doubt him totally. with a Billion dollar debt, who would've thought you could spend you know say a few trillion to get out of that debt!

Whether it'll last or not, it's funny. Imagine Credit card commerciallys,"Owe BoA money, pay off your credit debt with AMEX! Now ". Haha.

I don't approve of him, but still I'm laughing right now, without fear of anything, whether or not he makes the SHTF or not, i'd still laugh. He's a president. We mock him ,it's something a lot of countries don't have the privilidge of, and personally i'm going to use it to the fullest.

Enjoy it, first Black President, doesn't expect humour coming his way! I really feel, like he wouldn't mind personally but his extreme followers do, he's got to have some sense of what the world is.

Bush took it all in stride, and then some!

I may make a thread to all the absolute jokes you can make on Mr. Serious Obama!

[edit on 7-5-2009 by Republican08]

I agree with Republican08. Obama does tons of funny things and comedians like Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are missing out on it. Obama could do a lot to reduce the tension between races if only he could laugh at himself, but he can't. He is very thin skinned and has made it clear that he can't tolerate criticism and immediately cuts off access. I don't know why comedians should care about that because they don't need access to anything but the news and their writers. I think they basically worship him, and genuinely want to make him look good and continue to badmouth the last administration and oddly enough Palin and Rush Limbaugh. Palin and Rush aren't all that funny. It's just gratuitous sniping. I don't think stewart and colber even think it's funny. they are doing it to help out. some comedy.

I'm appalled that obama actually snipes at Rush and Fox News. Really. as president he gets weekly free prime time tv and endless news coverage, and he can't stand that anybody isn't a supporter. what country does he think this is? but even if he can't manage to laugh at himself and his absurd cabinet of keystone cops, we can. it's too bad that anything but worship has come to be called racist. he may be the first black president but he's set back everyday race relations big time.

reply to post by HERACAT


I won't either.

Sorry, mods, had to reply to a supportive person.






















Sorry mods, had to reply to a supportive person.

Originally posted by Republican08
reply to post by TheStev

 

C'mon, really, Obama has an extreme amount of comedic acts!

Seven simple words:

Fool me...you can't get fooled again.

I'm not saying that a talented political satirist couldn't work with Obama as material, but come on. Bush was way easier to make fun of.

To some, like self-identified Christian comic Brad Stine, the kid-gloves treatment of Mr. Obama is blatant political cheerleading.

I don't get it - this is from "the RIGHT wing" and they no sense of Irony in the way FOX and other news stations behaved during the Bush administration ......sort of a bit weird.

reply to post by TheStev

Originally posted by TheStev
I'm not saying that a talented political satirist couldn't work with Obama as material, but come on. Bush was way easier to make fun of.

I don't think a political satirist has to be very talented to find material on Obama. It goes much deeper than that.

And Bush may have been easy to lampoon, but he's no longer the Prez, is he? The job of satirists is to work with current material, not to make funny jokes about past admins.

The MSM is a) enamored and b) afraid of Obama.

Jon Stewart didn't seem to have a difficult time finding humerous things about President Obama. In fact, the last three nights, at least, there have been plenty of things to lampoon, and I've been pleasantly surprised that Jon took up the challenge with the same gusto as he went after President Bush. Can't say about Stephen Colbert..... rarely stay up that late.

There will be a whole range of topics and lampoons and general humerous criticisms that will continue to be off-limits as President Obama is concerned (my opinion). In these charged times, people that cross that boundary will have to be financially independent to do so. I'm not suggesting opposition/punishment will come from the government itself, but in some cases from employers and advertisers and others with power and influence.

It's a

Its called personal bias. Political Satirists have no social responsibility to the public to make certain jokes about certain politicians, they make the jokes they want to, for the entertainment of the viewers that they have...so, why on earth would Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert waste their time, ridiculing the presidents that they, probably, support the policies of, and therefore run the risk of alienating their audience who, probably, support the current Administration?

Come on, is it really that difficult to understand?

You don't cut off your nose to spite your face.

The comedians who ridiculed the Bush Administration, as easy as it is to do so, have spent a lot of time building their viewer base and creating a certain political image...why would they pull a complete 180...?



But I suppose its all just part of the vast, Left-wing Media conspiracy...right?