In a promotional blitz for his film, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, Tucker Max has published a series of comedic “facts” to help publicize the IHTSBIH way of life. “Blind girls never see you coming,” reads one insight; “The best thing about fat girls is heart disease,” reads another. These “facts” have been deemed too offensive for ad space by at least one ad agency and the Chicago Transit Authority. But for every feminist spoilsport who finds Max’s facts vile, there’s a fan willing to defend the jokes as just plain hilarious.

I have one big problem with the “but it’s just funny!” defense. If an appreciation for Max’s “facts” requires only a sense of humor, and not latent misogyny, racism, or homophobia, why are his fans willing to listen to the exact same joke over and over and over again? It’s the same fucking joke.

Read More “The Anatomy of a Tucker Max Joke” »

It is a simple formula for both comedy and political commentary:

Take a public figure (Sarah Palin) who holds disagreeable views (abstinence-only education). Zero in on an aspect of her personal life counter to those views (her own teen daughter, Bristol Palin, becoming pregnant). Reveal the comedic irony and/or hypocrisy of the public/private contrast. Repeat ad nauseam on blogs, 24-hour news channels, and late night talk shows.

We should all beware this construction. Though very easy to pull off—and often journalistically and comedically sound—it is a trap. And it will render us all hypocrites. Three lessons from history, after the jump.

Read More “Sarah Palin And the “Hypocrisy” Trap” »

Ha, ha, oh, women are always lying about being raped in order to get out of sticky situations. That’s why the Office is a renowned, award-winning comedy program—because it’s so true to life! But spoilsport Jessica Valenti over at Feministing didn’t like the Office’s recent rape joke. “I generally really love The Office and think that its jokes—even on subjects like race and sexuality—are generally pretty smart and progressive. But I hated this,” Valenti writes, indicating that it is, in fact, possible to screw up the wide-open slam-dunk that is the classic condescending, anti-woman rape joke.