Back in the 90s me and a Turk friend watched Eddie Murphy's "Delirious" over and over, and we laughed and laughed, and one of the jokes was about Mr. T being gay, and some bits about gay people being just the same as anybody else, except they'd suck more dicks than straight men, as well as some hyperbolic bits about being careful not to kiss them on the mouth, lest you get some "AIDS on your lip"
We laughed at that, I was maybe 14 or 15, my Turk friend laughed too, and we understood that this was exaggerations and irony, that Eddie Murphy doesn't *really believe* AIDS just sits on someones lip, and gets transmitted like that, or that he *really* believes gay people suck dicks wherever a straight person would have a beer
We understood that it was a bit deeper than that, that he was making fun of peoples unfounded panic regarding gays and AIDS, he was poking fun at peoples ignorance, and in his own little way, he was on the gay people's side: He was using irony - he was saying:
Gay people are the same as us, except they suck dicks instead of drink beer = Gay people are the same as us, they even drink beer.
Kiss one on the lip, and get AIDS = You actually *don't* catch anything by touching or kissing a gay person, they are not dangerous!
Nonetheless, Eddie Murphy got in trouble for those jokes. He had to answer to offended gay people. Why!?
He took their side in the matter, now he has to apologize to them!? WHY!?
Simple: They didn't get the fucking joke. Irony went woosh over their heads.
Years go by, and similar incidents keep happening, comedians keep attempting to resort to dark, crude irony in order to make points, and they keep being misinterpreted as being dead serious about what they're saying.
One of the obvious points here is that a comedian *cannot* just say shit *outright*
A comedian can't just open up a show and say "gay people are okay. did you know, that you can't get AIDS from touching them? They drink beer, but not all the time, but now and then."
There's no humor in that.
Jim Jeffries made a whole entire bit about JUST that, as a result from his Bill Cosby routine backlash, he had to *spell out* that he was *against rape*
In that particular context, the act of spelling this out became so absurd in itself, it actually got a big jolly laugh. But how on earth does he get to the point, where he has to *explain* that he does NOT approve of rape!?
This isn't just on the lefties (although my fellow lefties have had a long habit of being very sensitive to jokes that initially take their side in liberal matters: diversity, homosexuality, equality), I've seen far rights people disown Jim Jeffries after he apparently expressed several liberal views in his Comedy Central TV show.
I ask myself, before disowning him - when did they ever own him? Was it the part where he classically, drunkedly muttered "women are the worst", or something, and all the alone-bros went "ARRIGHT! HE HATES WOMEN AS MUCH AS ME!" - no he doesn't. He has a wife - he has a mother, he never hated women: He used irony.
In fact, most of these comedians, from Richard Pryor, to mundane ol Eddie Murphy, to Chris Rock, to Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Louis CK, Bill Burr, Ricky Gervais, Jim Jeffries, none of them have ever actually come out to say *anything* outright, never any kind of statement like "violence is bad" "I do not approve of rape" (except Jeffries, who had to) - nor have they expressed any kind of outright belonging to any overt political wing "I am socialist!" "I am right wing!", most of them have only tried to express a bit of common sense wrapped in (sometimes hyperbolic) irony, as in - say one thing in order to express a sentiment to the opposite.
For MOST adult humans, this irony is easily detectable and appreciated.
For a minority of adult humans, it goes woosh over their heads, and they go on loud, vocal, noticeable tirades for everyone to see and hear, and sometimes a comedian has to go as far as to outright explain their joke - or worse - apologize for it. Apologize to the ones they were supposedly trying to "back up" with their use of irony and dark humor.
I guess before the time of internet it was a matter of just throwing it out there, and if people didn't get the humor, then they didn't get it, and they could move on. But with the internet outrage-culture, it's a lot more difficult.
As a someone who believes in equality and diversity and freedom for people to be who they are without persecution, I am finding it increasingly worrysome to see spokespersons targeted for defending these exact values - just because they chose to use humor when doing it.
I hate all of you
Naw, Just Kidding, you guys, I was using irony!
Double irony, I actually do hate you.
Triple irony
Quadruple
Quintuple
We laughed at that, I was maybe 14 or 15, my Turk friend laughed too, and we understood that this was exaggerations and irony, that Eddie Murphy doesn't *really believe* AIDS just sits on someones lip, and gets transmitted like that, or that he *really* believes gay people suck dicks wherever a straight person would have a beer
We understood that it was a bit deeper than that, that he was making fun of peoples unfounded panic regarding gays and AIDS, he was poking fun at peoples ignorance, and in his own little way, he was on the gay people's side: He was using irony - he was saying:
Gay people are the same as us, except they suck dicks instead of drink beer = Gay people are the same as us, they even drink beer.
Kiss one on the lip, and get AIDS = You actually *don't* catch anything by touching or kissing a gay person, they are not dangerous!
Nonetheless, Eddie Murphy got in trouble for those jokes. He had to answer to offended gay people. Why!?
He took their side in the matter, now he has to apologize to them!? WHY!?
Simple: They didn't get the fucking joke. Irony went woosh over their heads.
Years go by, and similar incidents keep happening, comedians keep attempting to resort to dark, crude irony in order to make points, and they keep being misinterpreted as being dead serious about what they're saying.
One of the obvious points here is that a comedian *cannot* just say shit *outright*
A comedian can't just open up a show and say "gay people are okay. did you know, that you can't get AIDS from touching them? They drink beer, but not all the time, but now and then."
There's no humor in that.
Jim Jeffries made a whole entire bit about JUST that, as a result from his Bill Cosby routine backlash, he had to *spell out* that he was *against rape*
In that particular context, the act of spelling this out became so absurd in itself, it actually got a big jolly laugh. But how on earth does he get to the point, where he has to *explain* that he does NOT approve of rape!?
This isn't just on the lefties (although my fellow lefties have had a long habit of being very sensitive to jokes that initially take their side in liberal matters: diversity, homosexuality, equality), I've seen far rights people disown Jim Jeffries after he apparently expressed several liberal views in his Comedy Central TV show.
I ask myself, before disowning him - when did they ever own him? Was it the part where he classically, drunkedly muttered "women are the worst", or something, and all the alone-bros went "ARRIGHT! HE HATES WOMEN AS MUCH AS ME!" - no he doesn't. He has a wife - he has a mother, he never hated women: He used irony.
In fact, most of these comedians, from Richard Pryor, to mundane ol Eddie Murphy, to Chris Rock, to Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Louis CK, Bill Burr, Ricky Gervais, Jim Jeffries, none of them have ever actually come out to say *anything* outright, never any kind of statement like "violence is bad" "I do not approve of rape" (except Jeffries, who had to) - nor have they expressed any kind of outright belonging to any overt political wing "I am socialist!" "I am right wing!", most of them have only tried to express a bit of common sense wrapped in (sometimes hyperbolic) irony, as in - say one thing in order to express a sentiment to the opposite.
For MOST adult humans, this irony is easily detectable and appreciated.
For a minority of adult humans, it goes woosh over their heads, and they go on loud, vocal, noticeable tirades for everyone to see and hear, and sometimes a comedian has to go as far as to outright explain their joke - or worse - apologize for it. Apologize to the ones they were supposedly trying to "back up" with their use of irony and dark humor.
I guess before the time of internet it was a matter of just throwing it out there, and if people didn't get the humor, then they didn't get it, and they could move on. But with the internet outrage-culture, it's a lot more difficult.
As a someone who believes in equality and diversity and freedom for people to be who they are without persecution, I am finding it increasingly worrysome to see spokespersons targeted for defending these exact values - just because they chose to use humor when doing it.
I hate all of you
Naw, Just Kidding, you guys, I was using irony!
Double irony, I actually do hate you.
Triple irony
Quadruple
Quintuple
