There is a saying that nothing reveals a man's character so clearly as the joke he tells. There is a lot of truth to that. My ex-boyfriend used to joke that a woman's place was "in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant". Of course he'd immediately defend himself with "it's just a joke! I was only kidding!" but the truth is, he WAS the chauvinistic, sexist type. Maybe not in huge, obvious degrees like your stereotypical chauvinist who insists on speaking to a man when calling tech support. But it was there, subtly, and his so-called joke belied the true attitude beneath a veneer of civility.
Recently, the Twitter-sphere (Twitter-verse?) exploded with this activity:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/turtlefeed/nbc-voice-celebrity-brags-about-killing-turtle-on-ruc
Basically, country singer Blake Shelton tweeted that he'd intentionally swerved on a road to run over a turtle. I knew when I first read it that it wasn't true, but it was a horrible, tasteless "joke" just the same. I was outraged over it, as were many others who wondered if it was true or not.
After getting lambasted by enough people, he didn't simply set the record straight. That would've been nice, and an apology would've been icing on the cake. But no. Instead, he chose to outright INSULT the very people who were responding with concern. Calling them names, acting very flippant and arrogant. The flames were then fanned further when his fans jumped into the fray, joining in the name-calling and threatening to intentionally harm turtles.
I think that's what really turned me off to Blake Shelton. His original "joke" was in poor taste to begin with, and already bad enough. But insulting those who voice concern? Was just way over the top, totally uncalled for, and indicative of a really heartless, shallow, arrogant character. I mean, geez-- is it so hard to either ignore your detractors, or address them somewhat professionally? Must you call them "dipshit" and have the nerve to accuse them of blowing things out of proportion when you're the one fueling the fire? I'm not a huge fan of his music (though there were a few songs I liked), and this is just one more reason why I'll never be a fan.
There are many things in the world that are great fodder for jokes. Politics, Allan, TV shows, the Kardashians... but some things you just don't joke about: rape, domestic violence, cruelly harming innocent critters... and especially when you're in the public eye.
Shame on you, Blake Shelton. Not just for your terrible joke, but for the callous attitude that followed. Cover it up as a "joke" all you want, shift the blame back to the protesters all you want, but all this really says something about you, and about your character. I sure hope you treat your wife better...
I hadn't heard about this and Blake Shelton is no more than a name to me so I'm still processing it, but I certainly know my response isn't a positive one. I can't quite wrap my head around the logic of this behaviour. The joke is maybe an understandable flub, but clearly it's characteristic of bigger issues this guy has. It's sending up all kinds of red flags for me.
ReplyDeleteJust this afternoon we were discussing the Daniel Tosh rape "joke" again. I brought up that I don't personally believe there are taboo topics in comedy, but the way in which a topic is handled is different. If the joke is at a victim's expense, that's an issue. If the joke is about how messed up society can be, there is the potential for humour - usually a mix of "funny cause it's true" and absurdist. Wanda Sykes' approach is the classic example: http://www.thenation.com/blog/168856/anatomy-successful-rape-joke
And of all things for you, Helly, a TURTLE!
Yeah, the fact that it was a turtle was just the last straw, but I would've definitely felt this way even if it had been a creature I'm not that attached to. Living beings are living beings, and all deserve respect.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really fascinating article, and definitely articulates what I could only express peripherally about the appropriateness of joking about things like this.
In either case, Shelton's comment definitely did not fall into the same realm as Wanda Sykes' routine, and he made it that much worse by treating his protesters condescendingly, and not discouraging his fans from lashing out. One person even posted a picture that showed him aiming a gun at a turtle!!