Earth to White House: GET A LIFE!
Gear up folks, 'cause it's gonna hit again: the right wing outrage squad has apparently targeted another film. This time, their target, Team America, arguably isn't even ideologically opposed to them. The film, by South Park's creators, seems to focus most attacks on left-wingers such as Michael Moore, yet still the White House is already expressing outrage. True, these outrage hissy-fits aren't entirely limited to right-wingers, but let's be realistic: the outrage against The Passion was far outweighed by the outrage against The Reagan biopic, Fahrenheit 9/11, and really any other film that manages to spark an ounce of controversy. In the end, this controversy usually helps the box office of the targeted film, but I'm tired of it. I'm tired of Mel Gibson going on O'Reilly complaining about people putting down his film. I'm tired of people trying to pressure movie theaters into not showing Fahrenheit 9/11. Whatever happened to the free market of ideas? Whatever happened to pluralism?? Isn't it supposed to be the left that can't take a joke? Or does that apply only when the left is the target of the "joke"?
The scary thing is that films that are protested are usually protested for the wrong reason. Monty Python's Life of Brian (one of my all time favorite) films was protested heavily in 1979 when it came out due to a supposed anti-Christian message of the film. Yet, in the film Christ is shown exactly twice, and both times in a positive light. The film isn't anti-Christian, it's anti-organized religion. It's also anti-thoughtless zealotry.
Yeah, Team America may not be in good taste. Trey Parker & Matt Stone are very good at putting together material which is in very poor taste. (witness my favorite episode of South Park, Scott Tenorman Must Die) To top it off, it may not even be very good. (witness "That's My Bush", or at least half of the episodes of South Park including the Mel Gibson episode) None of that excuses people from attacking the right of these films to exist or be seen. The right to free speech requires us to tolerate speech we don't like. We don't have to be forced to like it, or even see it. The last time I checked Michael Moore does not have a gun at everyone's head forcing them to see his film. We need to have enough faith in the strength of our ideas to allow others to exist and compete against ours. Otherwise, free speech is a sham.
Yet when I see people trying to organize to ban films I can't help but think how it's amazing how often in the name of attacking un-American ideas people commit the most fundamentally un-American acts.
Note: Some VERY important caveats. The source for this is an article from drudgereport. So the source is more than a bit suspect. However, apparently Trey & Matt have talked about this and reacted to it which indicates that there's a decent chance it may be a real story. Yes, Drudge Report has about the same level of journalism as Nostradamus was a prognosticator, but even a stopped clock is correct twice a day. I should also bring up the important fact that so far there is no effort to ban this or otherwise. I do not argue against the White House or anyone else's right to criticize anything. I do argue against people attempting to silence voices, even if the voices are silly or obnoxious (or in my case both). That's the price we pay to live in a free society.
The scary thing is that films that are protested are usually protested for the wrong reason. Monty Python's Life of Brian (one of my all time favorite) films was protested heavily in 1979 when it came out due to a supposed anti-Christian message of the film. Yet, in the film Christ is shown exactly twice, and both times in a positive light. The film isn't anti-Christian, it's anti-organized religion. It's also anti-thoughtless zealotry.
Yeah, Team America may not be in good taste. Trey Parker & Matt Stone are very good at putting together material which is in very poor taste. (witness my favorite episode of South Park, Scott Tenorman Must Die) To top it off, it may not even be very good. (witness "That's My Bush", or at least half of the episodes of South Park including the Mel Gibson episode) None of that excuses people from attacking the right of these films to exist or be seen. The right to free speech requires us to tolerate speech we don't like. We don't have to be forced to like it, or even see it. The last time I checked Michael Moore does not have a gun at everyone's head forcing them to see his film. We need to have enough faith in the strength of our ideas to allow others to exist and compete against ours. Otherwise, free speech is a sham.
Yet when I see people trying to organize to ban films I can't help but think how it's amazing how often in the name of attacking un-American ideas people commit the most fundamentally un-American acts.
Note: Some VERY important caveats. The source for this is an article from drudgereport. So the source is more than a bit suspect. However, apparently Trey & Matt have talked about this and reacted to it which indicates that there's a decent chance it may be a real story. Yes, Drudge Report has about the same level of journalism as Nostradamus was a prognosticator, but even a stopped clock is correct twice a day. I should also bring up the important fact that so far there is no effort to ban this or otherwise. I do not argue against the White House or anyone else's right to criticize anything. I do argue against people attempting to silence voices, even if the voices are silly or obnoxious (or in my case both). That's the price we pay to live in a free society.
posted by Jim Casaburi at
10:51 PM
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