Did Letterman cross the line?

[SteamWake]

Late night talk show host takes pot shots at Sarah Palin and her daughter referring to her as having "A slutty stewardess look" and that her 14 year old daughter got 'knocked up' by Alex Rodriguez.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/200...letterman.html

[FIREWALL]

I can't be impartial. I've never liked Letterman.

[AVGWarhawk]

Yes, he crossed the line. The comment of Palin's daughter and getting knocked up by Yankees A-Rod was way of bounds.

[atuhalpa]

Only idiots watch TV, and only stupid idiots watch network TV.

[Aramike]

Originally Posted by atuhalpa

Only idiots watch TV, and only stupid idiots watch network TV.

Interesting first post...

Nice try confusing the issue.

The only thing confused in this issue is you, that is because really simple things are quite beyond your grasp.

My post above stands completely

Your post demonstrates that you havn't the faintest idea what you are talking about.

There's a great tool called a dictionary that can define "underage" for you.

Indeed , there is a thing called a dictionary , it explains what words mean.
Underage is clearly defined
So perhaps you can find a dictionary , then find someone in your house who has a functioning brain and then they can explain to you in really simple words why you are completely clueless.

[Onkel Neal]

Originally Posted by Aramike

Interesting first post...

Yeah, no kidding.

[Onkel Neal]

Originally Posted by Tribesman

The only thing confused in this issue is you, that is because really simple things are quite beyond your grasp.


Your post demonstrates that you havn't the faintest idea what you are talking about.


Indeed , there is a thing called a dictionary , it explains what words mean.
Underage is clearly defined
So perhaps you can find a dictionary , then find someone in your house who has a functioning brain and then they can explain to you in really simple words why you are completely clueless.

Originally Posted by Aramike

Nice try confusing the issue. My post above stands completely to this convoluted attempt at communicating.

There's a great tool called a dictionary that can define "underage" for you. Here, let me pull a Tribesman:

Keep dancing, though.

This isn't going anywhere, let's take a break.

[GoldenRivet]

you can make fun of a public figure all you want as long as you stick to making fun of their political ideology, slip ups, bad acting, poor singing etc.

but family, and personal pot shots are below the belt. for example calling someone fat, or ugly, or calling their family names or making fun of their family's failures, disadvantages or shortcomings.... its off limits and its uncool.

i dont care for Sarah Palin either way, but Letterman lost me as a fan.

not only did he take serious pot shots at Palin, but he has also insulted flight attendants, a group of highly trained professionals, many of which take their jobs very seriously and are not there to serve drinks - they are there to pull your ass out of flaming wreckage when the sh*t hits the fan.

I used to really like Letterman when i was much younger, but he doesn't "make fun" of others equally or fairly - if you are going to have a late night talk show and you are going to make fun of a political candidate - do it like Conan O'Brien or Jay Leno... apply your jokes equally across the board to candidates on the left and right. an entertaining and professional host can remain neutral while still being funny.

Letterman seems to lean way too far Left and aim his jokes way too far right. and his show serves as a personal far left forum and shooting gallery at right wingers.

so in short.

not only has he offended an entire profession, but he also alienates a large part of a potential audience by consistently targeting the right.

besides; the election is over! why is he still talking about Palin? I think he has a crush

[Kapt Z]

Yes, he crossed the line. Yes, it was tasteless. Comedy often crosses the line. It's often tastless. I've seen MUCH worse at live comedy shows and MUCH, MUCH, MUCH worse on South Park.

His 'apology' was much funnier than the original 'joke'.

The Palin's would have been more effective if they had responded, "David Who?"

[SteamWake]

Whats with all this angst with Palin anyhow.

Are they threatend by her somehow? (They=Liberal elite)

I just dont get it.

[AVGWarhawk]

It make news Steamwake. It generates better ratings. Nothing more.

You know what though, anyone who can dream up a joke about an adult male having sex with a 14 year old needs to have his head examined.

[Stealth Hunter]

While I thought it was in poor taste, I did laugh.

People who are making a big deal out of it though are only doing it because of their politcal views.

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Stealth Hunter

While I thought it was in poor taste, I did laugh.

People who are making a big deal out of it though are only doing it because of their politcal views.

And if it Obama's daughter as part of the joke the response would be?

Give me a break SH, I would not be amused if Letterman said the same about my 14 year old daughter. I do not give two rat's arses what political view he or I hold. It is way out of bounds.

[Safe-Keeper]

Whats with all this angst with Palin anyhow.

Are they threatend by her somehow? (They=Liberal elite)

Oh? If that's the case (that attention is proportional to angst), one wonders why everyone is so petrified of Obama, Al Gore and Kerry.

Most people wouldn't find any joke about rape funny

Oh? Making juvenile jokes about rape, unfortunately, seems to be incredibly popular these days in my eyes.

Up theirs... Bring it on. Jokes about anything and anybody should be made, and as long as they are meant as jokes, I really can't see the harm...

The problem is that we Westerners don't understand how important Islam is to Muslims - even in the US, you rarely if ever see people believe in and practice religion with the same fervor. Certainly not in Scandinavia. A blogger I followed once published an essay about how she had lived in Oman, and a friend of hers there recounted to her that once he dropped a Qur'an to the floor accidentally once. His classmates were outraged (even though it'd blown over by the end of the period, after apologies and whatnot). Islam is life itself to these people, and we Westerners forget both this and that we, too, are incredibly easily offended when values we hold to be vital to our society are in question. Imagine some politician stating that rape of children should be legalized. With values important to us questioned, Would there be a huge outcry, or would everyone sit in a circle, sing kumbaya and praise freedom of speech? Aren't there a lot of people who want prison sentences for burning flags?

Also, it's easy for us to make this a question of principles and publish the cartoons because we see the alternative as some kind of arbitrary defeat, but a bit less so for the people who are actually harmed, physically, by bombings and other threats to their persons due to the actions of some "freedom of speech advocate" half a world away.