Jul 12, 2012

Osh Tosh B'gosh

Whether or not you've heard by now, Daniel Tosh did something quite repugnant. In saying that, I'm not going to entirely rant about how much of a douche muppet he is - why? Because I am trying to assess this situation from some kind of middle ground (or at least 70/30). I realize that simply because I have a vagina that would very much like not to be raped, it might not be possible to be unbiased, but there it is.

I would like to think that we're not all complete idiots and when you go to see a show with the likes of Daniel Tosh and Dane Cook headlining that you are going because A) You somehow appreciate their sense of humor and actually paid, or B) Got free tickets and understand who they are but still have thick skin enough to stomach their routine for 90 minutes, or C) Have no idea what you're getting in to because you've been raised in a protective bubble filled with cotton candy.

I would be in the B group, for the record.

Everyone has their limitations to what we do or do not find funny, mostly due to our own unique life experiences and tragedies, so what some would find horribly offensive, someone else thinks it's hilarious. For example, I made an abortion joke on Twitter last year that single handedly lost me almost 30 followers... but I laughed at myself so hard I was nearly in tears - and some people loved it, so I wasn't entirely alone.

And I have laughed at religious jokes.
I have laughed at racist jokes.
I have laughed at sexist jokes.
I have laughed at Helen Keller jokes - actually, they're some of my favorite to tell.

And I also have NOT laughed at religious jokes.
Nor have I at racist jokes.
Nor have I at sexist jokes.
Umm... sorry, Helen.

But I get it. 
And I don't internalize them as personal attacks if I think a joke is in poor taste. We cannot control what we do or do not find funny, but we can control our contextual understanding of every situation and take them with big chunky grains of salt.
So when Daniel Tosh starts making a joke about rape and how hilarious it is (OBVIOUSLY HE WAS BEING SARCASTIC), I would have sat there and zoned out. Since he was allegedly "going on about it" he was very likely struggling to get a laugh and dying a slow comedic death, regardless of the heckling from this offended girl.

Should he have responded to her heckling by saying that it would be funny if she was gang raped?

FUCK NO! WHAT A FUCKING MORONIC THING TO DO.

Slow fucking clap to you, Daniel.
It's obvious that his inability to defend himself with nothing but a juvenile, asinine "I know you are but what am I" type of insult just demonstrates the true depth of his comedic intelligence.

I'd like to think that if it was me, I would have been able to say something like, "Actually, Daniel, it wouldn't be quite as funny as YOU getting raped by 5 guys, or at least one giant guy who's nickname is Tripod."

And only then would I have made my grand exit.

The terrifyingly beautiful thing about the internet is that once you do something so incredibly stooopid, it gets out there for the entire world to see. Tosh acknowledged the situation (which is more than most public figures do on Twitter) and said this...


And here's where I throw in my two cents worth of Devil's advocate to Tosh. When it comes to stand up comedy, have you EVER seen a comic apologize ON STAGE for a joke? Hell no. If comics had to start doing that, they'd sound like us Canadians and begin apologizing after every fucking punchline. Could you imagine Lisa Lampanelli in that situation? She's be toast. As would all other "shock tactic" comics out there. Do these comics impress me? Not in the least...

...but I also wouldn't agree to see them in the first place.




10 comments:

  1. I see your point. It's all about personal taste.

    I, personally, don't think he should have apologized at all. He isn't sorry. Why bullshit this chick and the rest of the webz? Just say, " It was a joke. It was a bad joke but a joke, still. Take it or leave it. "

    I don't see why someone who would be sensitive ( understandably ) to such a joke would go see him...? Hasn't she heard his routine before? It's all racist / sexist / way crude.

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  2. Nevermind...I just read her story. She didn't know she'd be seeing him. :o/

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  3. I think he's kind of funny, in small doses like Lisa Lampinelli. I don't think heckling is cool - at all. If you don't like what's being said - leave. This chick made a thing out of something she should have just ignored. Because she wants attention. I hate people like her.

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  4. Whenever a celebrity makes such an all-out asshat gaffe, I lol harder than I ever do at any of their so-called jokes. I am in complete agreement with you. Don't like him, ignore him. There's no such thing as bad press for these dickheads, so we shouldn't be adding any more fuel to their fires.

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  5. @Lesley

    No, she didn't know, but she did know about Dane - who is pretty much the same. I don't know what she was expecting... she must have been from column C) raised in a cotton candy bubble

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  6. Definitely a cotton candy bubble. I've never seen/heard a comedian that wasn't offensive to someone in someway. One would think if you are going to a comedy routine you wouldn't expect different.

    Unless I've missed it? Do they have comedy shows with all g-rated knock knock jokes these days?

    I really hate people sometimes

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  7. If you go to a comedy club, be prepared to:

    - Laugh
    - Get offended
    - Pee your pants
    - Heckle
    - Be singled out and made fun of (especially if you sit close)

    I have seen 2 comics live, and both times was singled out one way or another. One resulted in me conceiving my first-born son, the other involved me schooling the comic himself.

    I feel sorry for her, but she was going to see some offensive comics. Even if she only came for Dane Cook, he's just as misogynistic as Tosh. The only difference is Dane's filter is a tad bigger.

    What Tosh said was horrible, but not surprising. I agree that he should not have apologized, because you know he doesn't mean it. Will he change? Absolutely not. It's sad but true.

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  8. @Fernweher

    I agree with you, but personally, I tune it out. Why? Because it's too easy. It's like shooting fish in the proverbial barrel. I feel the exact same way when artists use shock tactics to get their art known (ie. Andres Serrano's Piss Christ) It's not smart, clever or creative - it's the easy way.

    Coming up with material, whether it be comedic or creative that is actually thought-provoking for THE RIGHT REASONS is a hell of a lot more admirable than taking the easy route by simply offending people. Yawn.

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  9. Another well made point. While I could argue the side that we should abolish off coloured jokes, you've clearly demonstrated that sometimes, in difficult situations we use humor as a way to bring out a discussion or make ppl aware.
    Awesome writing.

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  10. We went to The Second City in Chicago this past Saturday and I was amazed at the people who heckled and the others that got offended. The bought tickets to see a comedy show about Politics and then they seemed offended,what? I was baffled!

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