Thursday, June 11, 2009

Really Sarah Palin? Really?

Comedians make jokes. It's what they do for a living, it is what has been happening for the span of time. Uncle Milty used to put on a dress, was it offensive? Did anyone get offended that perhaps he was a cross dress or **gasp** homosexual? Kathy Griffin bashes celebrities left and right and is a no holds barred comedienne, and she is damn funny.

Late night hosts are comedians first and foremost. Everyone of them has worked the stand up circuit and/or were comedic writers on television shows and movies. Their jokes are made against everyone, celebrity notwithstanding. Jay Leno had his Jay Walking skit that made complete (and deserved) fun against regular people he would find on the street. Even the beloved Johnny Carson would take pot shots at politicians as they were warranted.

So why then when David Letterman makes jokes about Sarah Palin and her (of adult age) daughter, does she get her panties in a twist? Why do she and her husband continuously refer to their 14 year old daughter and not the 18 year old? If Letterman did not name Bristol (18)specifically and they are trying to make it look like he meant to speak of Willow (14), then why not even take it a step further and say he was speaking of Piper 8)?



It's a joke! Get over it!

7 comments:

  1. THANK YOU!!!!! God, I abhore this woman for that very reason. Welcome to the boys' club you sooo desperately wanted to be a part of, SP!

    Don't you LOVE how her camp uses the word 'rape' and not 'knocked up'??? I wonder if this 'rape' would have happened in Wasilla, would Bristol/Willow been charged for their rape kit???

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  2. Well, for the record, 14 year-old Willow was the one who accompanied her to NYC and the game, not the others. It thus makes sense to assume she was the one being referred to, not the other daughters.

    Here is what the National Organization for Women states on the matter...I applaud their stance.

    "NOW Analysis: After two nights of "jokes" at the expense of Palin and her family, Letterman tried to explain himself and offer something of an apology. On his June 10 show, Letterman said he was referring to Palin's 18-year-old daughter, Bristol -- not the 14-year-old daughter who actually accompanied Palin on her New York trip. Letterman said "I recognize that these are ugly" jokes. NOW agrees. Comedians in search of a laugh should really know better than to snicker about men having sex with teenage girls (or young women) less than half their age.

    The sexualization of girls and women in the media is reaching new lows these days -- it is exploitative and has a negative effect on how all women and girls are perceived and how they view themselves. Letterman also joked about what he called Palin's "slutty flight attendant look" -- yet another example of how the media love to focus on a woman politician's appearance, especially as it relates to her sexual appeal to men. Someone of Letterman's stature, who appears on what used to be known as "the Tiffany Network" (CBS), should be above wallowing in the juvenile, sexist mud that other comedians and broadcasters seem to prefer."

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  3. Christine, normally I would agree with you about the objectification of women in the statement about the "slutty flight attendant look". But when Sarah Palin WINKED at me during the debate, when she deliberately portrayed herself as cutesy and took such pride in her wardrobe that she spent thousands and thousands of dollars on clothes at Saks, then she opened the door and Letterman walked right in.

    However, I was unaware (until I just now watched the View) that WIllow was the one attending the game and that is the reason they assumed he was speaking of her. Still? Not buying that he was insinuating that she be raped or sexually assualted.

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  4. First, thanks for making me feel welcome in your home here to discuss this. I LOVE sharing ideas/opinions in this way. To me it's an opportunity to explore how the "other side" views an issue, and I'm certainly not above changing my mind.

    Okay...onto the issue at hand. Hope to hear back from you. :)

    I honestly don't understand why purchasing a wardrobe for the campaign automatically makes it acceptable to be an object of sexist derision. Sure, a lot was made of the money spent on Palin's wardrobe, but of the three on the tickets she was the newbie to national politics and had to play a game of catch-up. Can you imagine how mocked she would have been if she showed up in the same three suits week after week?

    Obama is a snappy dresser often clothed in designer labels...does this undermine his credibility? Of course not. Michelle Obama is becoming known for her fashion sense combining designer labels with ten dollar tees...why is it cool (in fact, praise-worthy) for them to be fashion-conscious and hip but not Palin?

    I also don't understand why winking or being "cutesy" is be problematic. Can't someone who winks and has a bubbly personality (and doesn't hide that while stumping) also be intelligent, capable, and deserving of respect?

    As to the use of the term 'rape'...statutory rape is more accurate. I agree that Letterman wasn't saying she was assaulted; I am sure Letterman was insinuating that Willow would be a willing participant since her big sister got knocked up at 17. Back to the slut thing.

    I know I don't have to say this, but I am going to anyway. I'm NOT espousing this perspective because of Palin's political agenda...I disagree with many of her stances, and I agree with many of Obama's. Not all of either, but this isn't me defending her because I subscribe to her ideology.

    xoxox

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  5. I honestly don't care if she spends two nickels or 2 million on clothes as long as it is HER MONEY. That's where the hoopla was. And her whole schtick on the ticket was that she was unlike the others and not and "elitist" or "washington insider" that she was more like the "average hockey mom". Sorry, but that is contradiction at it's finest.

    Winking is about one of the most unprofessional thinks you can do. Can you imagine sitting in a business meeting and winking at the CEO? How about if the male CEO winked at you? Right there are definitive grounds for sexual harassment, stupidly but true.

    A Vice PResidential candidate should not be "cutesy" especially if god forbid she became the President. And yes I have a hard time qualifying cutesy and intelligent together.

    And again to reiterate what Letterman himself said, he was referring to Bristol not Willow, watch the tape again.

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  6. Yes, they manufactured this whole "controversy" making it appear as if he was talking about the younger daughter. Letterman, like me, probably did not remember that there was a younger daughter.

    They got their names back in the news for a few extra days, that is how the game is played. Remember the only difference between Sarah and a pit bull is lipstick.

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  7. I agree with Erika, both sides get to have their names in the news. Any publicity is good publicity.

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