Letterman Vs. Palin

If you consider the amount of press coverage given to this whole Letterman/Palin debacle you would think that it's the reason Iran is protesting. In a world where media hosts insult half the nation on a daily basis I find it absurd that a veteran comedian is being taken to task for what was obviously a mistake. HOW THE JOKE IN QUESTION SHOULD HAVE READ: Sarah Palin took her 14 year old to the Yankee game today. She left Bristol home in fear she'd get knocked up by A-rod.

I agree that we should also be careful about how we handle children in the media but I don't think Willow was harmed by the mishap and if there are to be any developmental repercussions they were just amplified by the fact that they are now even reading that joke in Palin's cozy neighborhood of Russia.

Maybe Letterman should just have compromised and apologized instead to Tina Fey. Ironically Palin may have been angered because by making a stupid remark he looked more Vice Presidential than she does. Apparently she was so upset by his insensitivity she couldn't even shoot a wolf today.

I think the people that Letterman should really apologize to are his fellow comedians. The first Palin apology should have been enough but when he repeated it again a second night he showed that it was now no longer about the joke but more about his fear about what the world would think of him. As far as monologue jokes go it was just as unfunny as most of his material.

Dave, you survived a heart attack and a change of networks. I promise you that even if it went to the top and the supreme court decided you were wrong it wouldn't matter because, Palin doesn't remember any of their decisions anyway.

 

Comments

[wendoxia]

very good rewrite of the joke buddy

i hope your remember your former buddy,
wendie dox
(ex tnt art director)

[BuddyWinston]

Of course I remember you. Get in touch through website wordsofwinston.com

[elbzee]

I'm sorry, but this is the most insightful, truthful, and HILARIOUS statement. "Ironically Palin may have been angered because by making a stupid remark he looked more Vice Presidential than she does." Absolutely brilliant!

Thank you for the hearty LOL as I read those words!

[mychagal]

I completely agree. Letterman's integrity is light years ahead of Palin's. In fact, it's clear to me that she has none.

[Justaride999]

This is the type of humor that Sarah Palin loves:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJdZr4rByrw

Her opponent Lyda Green being mocked by Sarah's favourite right-wing "shock-jockeys" as a "bitch" and "cancer" - Sarah just finds it hilarious!

Must-see video clip.

[Holypat777]

They should play this everywhere!!! What a vapid woman!

Thanks!

[flowereater]

So what? This is just more FAKE outrage.

[MaxBet]

I stand corrected. Thank you HuffPo!

[MaxBet]

I'm having a hard time with people twisting arguments like pretzels in attempts to justify taking shots at kids. This has slipped out of the realm of scoring a few quick points on a disliked politician, and into the realm of trying to say that publicly attacking a kid is okay. And I'm not falling for it's okay because the kid is 18. Do a quick rundown in your mind and try to think of another 18 year old or younger that you feel that it would be okay for a major public figure to publicly rip on. Yeah, I didn't think so. When you're off justifying attacking kids, you just might, just this one time, be in the wrong.

[Marnie1]

I agree and disagree.

What is not OK is a parent who parades their children before the press and media for political and monitary gain.
What is also not OK is they then claim the children are off limits.

But you are right the targtet of scorn should be and is the parent.

Unless the child chooses to to be a public figure and sell their soul for profit. Then they are fair game.

Liz Chaney is fair game. Briston is fair game. That is their choice.

[grooveygrover]

like bristol palin

also, dave didn't mention rape, it was sarah herself that brought rape into the conversation

[KayJay90]

The point is, chum, that Sarah Palin lied about her 14 year old even being AT the game David Letterman was joking about, therefore the joke couldn't have been about the 14 year old.

Not only that, the two Palin adults who WERE at the game weren't even there during the time frame of David Letterman's "joke", namely they left in the 6th inning, and the "joke" was that "during the 7th inning stretch Palin's daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez". That's the exact wording of the joke. No Palin daughter's name mentioned. No Palin daughter's AGE mentioned.

So, which Palin daughter has already been "knocked up", and which Palin daughter did 99.44% of people who heard the joke think of?

Yeah, BRISTOL Palin, who ALSO wasn't at the game.

[MaxBet]

Let me clarify, I'm not concerned with the slicing and dicing of the facts of what was happening at the baseball game. I'm concerned with the over all lowering of the bar.

I feel that it's okay to go at Sarah with everything you got, every slicing criticism, every witty retort, and even every boorish stereotype. However, her kids being used as helpless sitting ducks to try and diminish her is fundamentally objectionable.

Setting Sarah aside, I am opposed to anyone in public or private life having their kids attacked.

Also, I'm not going to treat anyone who has had an unmarried pregnancy at a young age as some kind of offender that is fair game to be kicked down the stairs. There are millions of young girls out there that have the same story. Are they all bad people? I don't think so.

[flowereater]

Get over it people -- it was a JOKE!!!! Remember them? Jokes? You know, ha-ha funny? Or not funny. This is completely FAKE outrage fanned by the tighty righties all with their panties in a bunch and just waiting to pounce on the next NON-ISSUE.

[grooveygrover]

love that
tighty righties hilarious!!!!

[mychagal]

Give me a break with all of your plattitudes. If you're having a hard time. Log off.

[MaxBet]

Let me clarify my platitudes.

I have been attempting to get my point across by explanation of my views on this issue, without launching into name calling, or any kind of personal attack. I didn't like this dragging in of the kids, just like I didn't like when unfair comments were made about Chelsea Clinton.

I'm not grinding a partisan axe here. It's clear that some feel that it's okay to attack family.
I don't.

As for "If you're having a hard time. Log off."
Welcome to the internet mychagal!

[flowereater]

He did not ATTACK a kid. That is where you are completely wrong with your FAKE outrage.

[MaxBet]

Who was the butt of the joke? Let's take a look at that.

The daughter (I don't care which one,) A-rod, or Sarah?

Clearly, A-rod at this point, has nothing to be gained or lost by being part of this. So that leaves us with The daughter, and Sarah. And truthfully they both were the butt of the joke but in different ways. The daughter was because we were supposed to remember that she had a kid out of wedlock, and might be open to a seventh inning quickie with A-rod. Sarah was because we are supposed to remember that she had a daughter that had a kid out of wedlock and is probably promiscuous making the point in round about way that Sarah is a bad mother and her family is not practicing what they supposedly preach, all the while using this to dimmish Sarah to her assumed religious backers.

This sort of joking is a well known way of cutting a public figure down to size. It's a dirty dirty game.

Again, if this helps with understanding of where I'm coming from, I would also not be good with the Obama kids being drug into anything and I would fight just as hard on their behalf.