Gay Marriage... Merely the MacGuffin
It was never really about gay marriage. It was just happened to be the MacGuffin. Carrie Prejean's recent slosh through the slime (released photos, medical records, called a bitch, the c-word, her parent's released divorce records, etc.) was over something much more basic, much more crude....
*****
I remember a little while back watching Craig Ferguson's late night show, and Ferguson didn't do his normal monologue. He stood before the cameras and said, No more. No more jokes about Brittney Spears.
She was shaving her head bald, going through a divorce, flashing her beaver exiting vehicles, and partying at a level that crossed from mere foolishness to dangerous self-destruction.
And it was supposedly hilarious. "That Brittney sure is dumb.... Sure is a slut.... Sure is a crazy bitch.... Sure is a has-been at 25."
Yuk yuk yuk. Hilarious stuff it all was. The pile on was severe, merciless, and in her face.
And in the midst of this, Ferguson essentially said, "Enough, this is not funny, I will no more be a part of this." (You can watch him here.) I happened to be fortunate enough to watch that original broadcast. I felt a tiny bit of shame because up to that point I had been passively cheering on all of the ugly spectacle.
*****
Man is a bullying creature. The better among us know we shouldn't, and while we have set up societal guards against it, occasionally we slip. We fall short of those standards we set for ourselves. It is our nature.
Of course, there are also those who embrace being a bully, and as always, going back to the schoolyard, they go after an easy target. And if possible, they work in packs.
In our media, there are elements that have become pretty adept at being facilitators to such bullying.
Brittney Spears became a target due to her odd fall from fame. Prejean's was an answer counter to the attitudes of a vocal number of our media elite. It cannot be emphasized enough that Prejean's off the cuff answer, in a silly environment like a beauty pageant, is the same of our current President. But Barack Obama is not an easy target. A 21-year old beauty queen is.
That answer was the MacGuffin, what allowed the process to begin, and any defenses of the treatment she received afterwards are merely rationalizations. Had Prejean managed to avoid that gay marriage question, many of the same folks taking aim at her now would instead be laughing at Lindsey Lohan for dyking it up, or the Octo-mom's severe mental issues, or whatever.
It ain't about politics. It ain't about gay marriage. Just an excuse, a rationalization, to get off berating somebody else to make you feel good about yourself.
That's what bullies do.
*****
I remember a little while back watching Craig Ferguson's late night show, and Ferguson didn't do his normal monologue. He stood before the cameras and said, No more. No more jokes about Brittney Spears.
She was shaving her head bald, going through a divorce, flashing her beaver exiting vehicles, and partying at a level that crossed from mere foolishness to dangerous self-destruction.
And it was supposedly hilarious. "That Brittney sure is dumb.... Sure is a slut.... Sure is a crazy bitch.... Sure is a has-been at 25."
Yuk yuk yuk. Hilarious stuff it all was. The pile on was severe, merciless, and in her face.
And in the midst of this, Ferguson essentially said, "Enough, this is not funny, I will no more be a part of this." (You can watch him here.) I happened to be fortunate enough to watch that original broadcast. I felt a tiny bit of shame because up to that point I had been passively cheering on all of the ugly spectacle.
*****
Man is a bullying creature. The better among us know we shouldn't, and while we have set up societal guards against it, occasionally we slip. We fall short of those standards we set for ourselves. It is our nature.
Of course, there are also those who embrace being a bully, and as always, going back to the schoolyard, they go after an easy target. And if possible, they work in packs.
In our media, there are elements that have become pretty adept at being facilitators to such bullying.
Brittney Spears became a target due to her odd fall from fame. Prejean's was an answer counter to the attitudes of a vocal number of our media elite. It cannot be emphasized enough that Prejean's off the cuff answer, in a silly environment like a beauty pageant, is the same of our current President. But Barack Obama is not an easy target. A 21-year old beauty queen is.
That answer was the MacGuffin, what allowed the process to begin, and any defenses of the treatment she received afterwards are merely rationalizations. Had Prejean managed to avoid that gay marriage question, many of the same folks taking aim at her now would instead be laughing at Lindsey Lohan for dyking it up, or the Octo-mom's severe mental issues, or whatever.
It ain't about politics. It ain't about gay marriage. Just an excuse, a rationalization, to get off berating somebody else to make you feel good about yourself.
That's what bullies do.
posted by Lee | 2:35 PM
1 Comments:
Craig Ferguson had always been a favorite and after catching that episode too, he's my very favorite and watch him whenever I'm up that late.
I hate the "mean girls" attitude our media and society have about kicking someone when he/she is down.
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