Father Orthoduck™ wishes to commend David Letterman on finally uniting both conservative and liberal women’s groups. Normally those groups work against each other on various issues, and rarely do they agree. Nevertheless, after a serious two-day personal effort, Mr. David Letterman managed to be so offensive that BOTH Concerned Women for America (conservative) and the National Organization for Women (liberal) issued statements condemning him. He has accomplished that most difficult of political plays, the true double-play of infamy by someone who is not a shock jock.
As we all know by now, on 8 and 9 June 2009, Mr. Letterman relentlessly critiqued Gov. Sarah Palin and her 14 year old daughter. He said that Gov. Palin dresses in a slutty fashion, which was bad enough, as it was not political commentary but ad hominem arguments. However, what has earned him the united enmity of both left and right wing women’s groups is that he joked about the daughter being knocked up by Yankee’s player Alex Rodriguez during the baseball game that Gov. Palin and her daughter attended. Not only did he make an inappropriate sexual joke about a female minor, but he also managed to hint that a Latino adult baseball player would be willing to be a pedophile if given the chance. Since Father Orthoduck™ has female ducklings and was himself born south of the border before taking a northern migratory flight, he is quite offended on two counts.
So, Father Orthoduck™ is particularly glad that both groups have condemned him. However, since Gov. Palin is a known conservative, Father Orthoduck™ quotes below the liberal National Organization for Women so that no one accuses him of being politically biased on this issue. Again, I am quoting a liberal organization condemning a fairly liberal talk show host joking about a conservative governor. That has to merit a place in the Guiness Book of Records.
. . . 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. . .
It should be noted that Letterman did finally apologize for the joke last night. He also clarified his target for the joke (which, when I heard it, I assumed he was making another tired Bristol joke as well). As I understood it, the joke war referring to willing sexual relations between two legal adults, both of whom have been made famous for sexual promiscuity and impropriety.
This isn’t a defense or an excuse for the joke, mind you, as any attempt to put this in context elicits such accusations. As grouchy as he is, I certainly doubt Letterman would make such a joke about a 14 year old girl (of course, making it at all was distasteful). Not that the context of the joke excuses it, but it should make us stop and think before we haphazardly start accusing someone of being a sexual deviant.
I was having fun with two things. One was the thought that a known liberal organization would critique a known liberal. The same would have been true of a known conservative organization critiquing a known conservative. Nowadays, you tend to defend your own even when they do or say something indefensible.
The second thing was indirectly pointing out that we tend to dehumanize those with whom we disagree by simply making up untrue things about them and then calling it a “joke.” Hmm, it is not funny!
That being said, I like Conan better. And Craig Ferguson.
I agree with Terry. Conan and Craig Ferguson rock. I will probably not watch Letterman anymore after watching Conan last night for the first time (in his new time slot).