Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Ain't Nothin' Like A Good Ol' Fashioned Hitler Comparison

Well, I lost in the MSFL due to the best game Josh Freeman will ever play.  Think about this, if you and I were in a street fight, and I continually pounded you in the gut over and over and over and over, would you, at any point, decide to protect your stomach?  Would you try a different strategy?  I feel like the Colts allowed that center of the field screen pass far too often and those plays were the death of the Colts.  Nice work, fellas.  Way to be, by far, the worst team in the league.

So I had a 1-2 Fantasy Football week, but the Bears did escape with a win against the Carolina Laptop Thieves.  I suppose I did not have as bad a week as, say, this guy:

Monday Night Football decided to pull the usual Hank Williams, Jr. intro from the air because of comments he made earlier that day likening President Obama to Hitler.  And while I agree that he did NOT say, "Obama is like Hitler" or something exactly like that, as a public figure one should know better than to throw around the Hitler card.  It has the exact opposite value for your public image as a Ken Griffey, Jr. Upper Deck rookie card.

Look, we are not debating politics on this site.  It is the last thing on Earth that I want to do and this is coming from a guy who regularly plays "Don't Stop Believing" on acoustic guitar, in public, for money.  The debate is not about whether or not Hank, Jr. should be allowed to make whatever comments he wants, he should be able to do whatever he wants.  However, ESPN is also allowed to do what they want, and they have the freedom to pull his intro from MNF if they want.

I was listening to Colin Cowherd on this issue, and he actually said something smart and worthwhile!  Good for him!  He pointed out that people of the extreme right who are crying out for "free speech" may want to think back a few years ago on how angry they were toward a different group of Country singers- The Dixie Chicks.

Outside of their current natural habitat.
The Dixie Chicks made some comments that reflected their poor opinion of George W. Bush and Conservatives destroyed them.  Seriously, think about the last time you've heard a Dixie Chicks song.  I can't think of it, because I literally think they were wiped off the face of the Earth.  I suppose they bit the hand that fed them because Country music has more ties to the Republican right, but I digress.  The lack of consistency is the problem.  Both sides of the political spectrum should be held accountable when saying extreme, outlandish, or offensive things through the mass media.  As a public figure, you should not the hot buttons that you should never press.  Hint: Hitler is one of them.

Freedom of speech is a great 1st amendment.  No bullshit.  I love using it here on this site to make crude jokes that are in no way serious.  However, I'm not famous.  In fact, I've tried to make myself anonymous to avoid repercussions of my sarcasm.  Hank, Jr. is a public figure and while he can call Obama "Hitler," "Judas," or "Darth Vader" in the comfort of his own home, I'm guessing that it is not smart to make a remote comparison on a national television show.

Pictured: Barak Obama
People often wonder why Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods worked so hard to stay away from political issues.  Here, my friends, is a perfect example of why they were awfully smart to keep the ball in the middle of the fairway.  When you make political or offensive statements one way as a public figure, the other side will take issue and the repercussions could be serious.

This conversation with myself was boring and stuffy.  Anyone know any good dead baby jokes?

4 comments:

Observer said...

Bottom line is that Disney owns ESPN, and Disney lays the smack down on anyone making controversial statements. Hank Williams, Jr. can go commiserate with Bill Maher and everyone fired from Disneyland for not smiling every moment of every day.

Don't know any dead baby jokes, but heard "Comparing Obama to Hitler is as unfair as comparing Hank Williams, Jr. to his much, much more talented father" on the twitter.

Prime99 said...

Don't mess with the House That Mickey Built!

I enjoyed your HWJ joke. Twitter can be useful for unearthing excellent jokes.

GMoney said...

Jackie Robinson HATED Willie Mays because Mays would not speak out on behalf or racial inequality. I mean, HATED HIM. But, per Mays 700+ page biography that I read last year, he wanted nothing to do with the fallout from that. Which is smart as shit. That's why MJ and Tiger and Jeter don't say shit...because there are too many assholes that will twist your words.

I won in one league by .8 points this week. Great feeling!

Prime99 said...

Your .8 point victory sounds about as great as when I tied Iceman, but beat him via the tie-breaker of bench points. It really wasn't that satisfying (but I'm not complaining.)

I'm pissed I didn't beat Li'l Strut this week. My team is better than 2-2. Time to stop underachieving!