Why Letterman's "knocked-up" joke was funny.

[johnaries]

Obviously, he was referring to Bristol Palin who was pregnant during the campaign. The reason the joke was funny had nothing to do with feminism, etc. The situation itself was funny. Here you have a candidate who is strongly pushing for Abstinence Only, and yet her own daughter is living proof that Abstinence Only doesn't work.

Palin's hypocrisy was the joke. And that's why it was funny.

If you read something else into it, then obviously you and I think differently. That's ok. We all have our own perceptions. But it's obvious to most reasonable people that Letterman had no "anti-woman" agenda when he told it.

[Captain Hilts]

1. The one that attended the ballgame was the 14 year old. Glad you defined 'reasonable' for me. nt

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

2. Please provide evidence that it was the 14yo at the game. -nt

[TZ]

7. It was the 14 year old.I had a discussion with a poli scientist about this.and even if it wasn't

Think about what your reaction would be if Chelsea Clinton was the butt of this joke. Sorry, but making jokes like this about KIDS of politicians is WAAAAY off base. Letterman was out of bounds.

[tridim]

10. ^ Comedy cop ^

Bullshit, comedy is free speech. Bristol is an adult.

[cboy4]

14. +1

[TZ]

18. Why is it okay to make fun of Palins kids but not Chelsea Clinton

when she was that age. HYPOCRITE. Its wrong for BOTH parties

[cboy4]

27. Bristol Palin is an adult.

Everyone knows, whether it was the younger daughter at the game or not, that Letterman was referring to the one who was the pregnant teenager.

I have no problem with late night comedians making jokes about adults.

[mitchum]

39. Because they are the offspring of hypocritical white trash grifters?

Works for me

[ColbertWatcher]

101. The Wasilla Hillbillies!

Add your own jokes: http://www.wikiality.com/Wasilla_Hillbillies

[verges]

48. Chelsea was younger than Bristol is now when the

tastless jokes were made about her. Bristol is 18 and making public appearances on her own. She is fair game.

[EOTE]

59. Get it through your head. Letterman's joke was not about a 13 or 14 year old.

The jokes directed at Chelsea where when she was 13 years old. If Chelsea had gotten herself knocked up at 17, I would have expected comedians to go after her because of that. It would have upset me, but I certainly wouldn't have thought it to be contemptuous.

[aikoaiko]

94. Not only is Bristol an adult -- she a public speaker, a pundit of sorts.

nt

[mitchum]

37. So...you've got NOTHING

The poster asked for proof it was the 14 year old and you change your poutrage to and "...even if it wasn't"

[ColbertWatcher]

100. Next time, try talking to a comedian about it. n/t

[marshall]

105. Letterman should have mentioned which daughter he was lampooning

I wish he would just accept responsibility for a joke that many people thought was funny and quit trying to make us believe he wasn't talking about the daughter who actually accompanied Palin on the trip he was talking about, but he was talking about the daughter who was back home in Alaska. His backpedaling mambo is almost as bad as Imus's bogus apologies and groveling to the team he insulted.

The joke's not worth it if you're not willing to stand up for it.

[CrownPrinceBandar]

8. Here's a NY Daily News article that says it was the 14 yr old...........

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2009/06/10/2009-06-10_sarah_palin_attacks_david_letterman_over_sexuallyperverted_joke_on_late_night.html

4th paragraph.

That said, I do believe that the joke was aimed at Bristol's hypocrisy, and not Willow who was just attending a baseball game.

[tridim]

13. And nobody has mentioned that the two girls in question look almost exactly the same

If they weren't standing next to each other I couldn't ID either of them.

[johnaries]

3. When the average person hears

the phrase "Sarah Palin's daughter" who do they think of? I bet that like me, at first most people didn't know who Palin was referring to when she said "Willow".

[no_hypocrisy]

4. I agree. I think Letterman and his writers gave his audience the benefit of intelligence

in crafting the line so that it would be reasonable to surmise he was referring to Bristol Palin. With all this nonsense, I'm surprised that Sarah Palin didn't go on the warpath for Letterman making a joke about her seven year old daughter, Piper.

[cboy4]

6. LOL

Now that's funny and so true.

[tridim]

16. Tawd implied exactly that.

If I were an Alaska cop I'd keep an eye on him.

[hiphopnation]

74. exactly

what percentage of those "outraged" here do you think even WATCH Letterman on a regular basis? pathetic.

[nxylas]

78. I think it was a mistake

From Letterman's semi-apology, it sounds like he thought it was Bristol at the game when it was actually Willow.

[sandnsea]

21. Bristol is also an abstinence spokesperson herself

So she is now a public figure in her own right. Who knew what daughter was at the game? I certainly didn't.

[LibDemAlways]

22. Of course he was referring to Bristol. Most people probably have no

idea how many offspring Palin has, much less their ages.

Given that Bristol did recently go through a very public pregnancy and Rodriguez is known for his womanizing, Dave's writers merely put 2 and 2 together. It may not have been in the best of taste, but it certainly doesn't deserve all this attention. Palin is a famewhore who should go home to Alaska and take care of state business for a change.

[DeschutesRiver]

57. My dh was just asking how come he never sees Palin in Alaska anymore

I am sure she has real business there, if only she'd stop with the soap opera drama she's written for herself, and get back to her home state. I saw the Lauer interview this morning on msnbc, and she sounded like a dolt trying to stretch Letterman's comments to include this Willow kid, in order to get some spotlight time for her highness. Might be playing well with right wing fundies who aren't known for their reasoning abilities, but it sounded rather pathetic and wierd to me. Certainly not something you'd like to see your future presidential candidate engaged in first thing in the morning.

To my knowledge there has only been one knocked up Palin daughter - maybe the Palins know something I don't. The only person acting like a perv and talking about "raping Willow" so far has been her father Todd. I can't believe he doesn't realize this makes him look a bit creepy.

I couldn't tell you the names of all the Palin offspring, males included, nor how many children they have in total. And I agree that probably goes for most people.

[RaleighNCDUer]

58. You do understand that he would have told the SAME joke if NONE

of Palin's daughters was there, don't you? And it would have been just as funny, and just as tasteless. And NOBODY would have thought it was about the 14 year old.

Sarah was the target, not the girls (with a side-slap at A-Rod's sterling character, of course).

[ColbertWatcher]

103. Exactly. I think you should put all your responses in one post and start your own thread. n/t

[ColbertWatcher]

104. Exactly. I think you should put all your responses in one post and start your own thread. n/t

[Matariki]

5. While I get the hyprocrisy of SARAH Palin - I have to wonder what's funny

about a woman getting pregnant?

The underlying message to the 'humor' is that women have no right to be sexual - that they are 'dirty' and deserve ridicule if they are. It's like Olbermann calling Palin 'slutty'. It perpetuates a bullshit attitude toward women.

There are lots and lot of things to make fun of Palin about. Including her hypocrisy - without publicly ridiculing her daughter's sexuality.

(edited for spelling)

[TZ]

9. Yes.

As I said above how many people here would be outraged if CHELSEA CLINTON were the butt of this type of joke?

[merh]

15. If Chelesa Clinton was used in the campaign the way Bristol

was used and if she was now out in the media as the face of "abstinence", I would not be outraged if the joke were about her. She put herself out there, her hypocrisy and that of her PTA soccer mom, make them easy targets.

[TZ]

20. Okay,

Blaming the kid for her mothers misbehavior. I guess I'm not religious enough to believe the sins of the parents should reflect on the kids. Hell I actually believe that not all republicans are evil and that DEMOCRATS CAN EXHIBIT SEXIST BEHAVIOR when it suits them. No

[merh]

29. The Clintons went out of their way to protect Chelesa, to not let her

be the butt of the joke.

The Palins did not.

Do you not see the difference?

Bristol is 18, she could easily say to the media "no, I don't want to give the interviews" - she has not.

If you are going to make your inane comparisons, be accurate.

If Bristol is upset that her mother dragged her into the public eye, she needs to let her mother know that. As her mother, SP, has no room to complain about the publicity she has caused her children because she used all of her children as her props.

[JonQ]

38. No don't you get it?

all your standards should be thrown out the window if the other person is someone you really don't like.

[cboy4]

42. Riiiiight, because that's the precise argument everyone is using.

:eyes:

[JonQ]

60. More or less

I just summed it up.

"chelsea clinton is a dog"

- outrage! You can't say that about a poor little girl. Don't you dare attack her to because you don't like her parents. This is unacceptable, etc.

"statutory rape joke involve palins kid"

-hilarious, she totally had it coming, serves her right for what her mom has been saying, etc.

[cboy4]

64. The dog comments happened when Chelsea was a child .. and that was

completely inappropriate.

Everyone, except the faux outrage brigade understands that Letterman was referring to the adult daughter who was involved with unprotected teenage sex.

[JonQ]

77. But that's not what he said

he said the other one.

[cboy4]

81. LOL. He was referring to the one who already had the unprotected

teenage sex.

It doesn't matter which one was at the game.

Everyone, with an sense, knows which one has been in the news, and which one the joke was about.

The answer is, the adult: Bristol Palin.

[JonQ]

82. So to understand what he said

you have to ignore what he actually said.

I'm sure that makes sense to some people.

[cboy4]

85. It makes sense to most people.

Which is why only a small number of vocal DUers are attempting to make a big deal about this.

I know the right wing is, but we know what their motives are.

[JonQ]

86. Don't get me wrong

I'm in no way trying to tell you to stop enjoying statutory rape jokes. I don't happen to find them funny but that's just me.

I'm merely pointing out that pretending he said a different thing than what he actually said because that would make it ok is a bit dishonest.

[cboy4]

88. And don't get me wrong. I'm not saying having an undeveloped

brain sense of humor is a crime.

I'm merely pointing out that at some point, it's time to take the blinders off.

[RaleighNCDUer]

63. Technically, this is a case of the sins of the child reflecting on the parent.

It was about SARAH, not Willow OR Bristol.

[tridim]

19. Chelsea Clinton isn't the butt of jokes because she's not a joke.

The Palins, however are walking-talking jokes.

[TZ]

23. Yes so the Chelsea Clinton is a dog joke was funny then?

I never thought she was attractive but that was not funny either. I don't give a shit about what Bristol does with her life, I don't give a damn that she got herself pregnant. And anyone who things this is hilarious definitely is sexist. A girls sexual life is her own. Palin was wrong to exploit it. So was Letterman.
Sometimes I wonder about this board.
If you don't think the Clinton's were walking jokes than I guess you weren't paying attention. But hey they are democrats so making fun of them is a NO-NO.

[tridim]

32. I didn't think it was funny

Dave didn't make fun of Bristol's looks, he made a joke about the FACT that she was knocked up.

[TahitiNut]

24. +8

:thumbsup:

DU has its share of the humor-impaired.

[TZ]

26. and the politically biased

Republican--funny....Democrat...Not funny

[vanlassie]

28. Chelsea got knocked up at age 17 and then paraded around talking about teen pregnancy??

Bristol---((that's BRISTOL.....))and her boyfriend, made a big mistake according to her own parents. But Sarah goes on the TODAY show and claims LETTERMAN is hurting young women's "self esteem." Is she serious? It is BRISTOL herself who is in charge of her self esteem. BRISTOL chooses her own actions. Sarah needs to get a bunch of clues. And the rest of us need to keep this story straight. This was about BRISTOL, the knocked up one.

[RaleighNCDUer]

62. That would be a good point, if Willow, or even Bristol was the butt of THIS joke,

but they aren't. It was aimed at Sarah Palin - you know, the same person the OTHER 9 'Top Ten' jokes were about.

[rustydog]

108. No one is outraged at the jab at A-Rod? Kinda sexist isn't it?

Or maybe A-rod got it and knew what the comment was: A jab at two public figures. Yes even the children were public figures because Sara propped them up for all America to see and worship. Sara can dish it out, but really can't take it at all, a true political lightweight who would probably sell her daughter if it got her ten more minutes of fame.
When you do that you have to take the jabs with the "adoration".

The Clinton's had to take it when Republicans suggested Chelsea was homely because Ruth Bader Ginsberg was the father.

[emulatorloo]

17. 1. When did Olbermann call Palin slutty? 2. The jokes are more aimed at insulting to A-Rod and Spitz

er and sarah palin herself.

As far as I know Olbermann has never called Palin "slutty"

Nor did Letterman - his joke was that she has a "slutty airline stewardess" fashion statement. Tasteless perhaps, but it is hard to deny the Palin attempts to use her sexual appeal as part of her package.

======

As to the Bristol jokes it seems to me that there are several layers:

-- making fun of Palin for her hypocrisy - If I remember correctly initially Bristol said the abstinence didn't work. Apparently Palin has required that she recant that and go on an abstinence tour.
-- making fun of the promiscuity of AROD and Spitzer

Admittedly in poor taste. but I guess that is what comedians do.

----------------------------

[Neecy]

30. exactly

He works in an A-Rod joke almost every night, and the joke was clearly directed at him more than anyone else.

[Matariki]

34. I learned about the Olbermann thing here on DU

someone posted a poll and explained that is was in reaction to Olbermann using the term.

You can use the google search feature on the site if you are really interested.

[Matariki]

36. btw - "slutty airline stewardess"

that's what I find objectionable. That attitude toward women. What's funny about it?

[RaleighNCDUer]

69. Maybe you don't remember the 60's and "Fly Me!" ads.

Stewardesses (not flight attendants in those days) wearing tight mini-skirts, who had the popular image (due to a couple books and several movies) of jet-setting around the world - and if the HS ideal was the cheerleader, the grown-up swinger ideal was hooking up with a stewardess - a lot of fun today and she'd be gone tomorrow.

It is a sexist stereotype of a sexist era and THAT was part of the joke - that Palin is STILL in that era. Did you see how she dressed on the campaign, even with tens of thousands of dollars to spruce up her wardrobe? She dressed like a 1960s stewardess, saying 'Fly ME!'

[emulatorloo]

95. Good Context n/t

[Matariki]

45. Here - in case you're lazy - the thread ends locked with the mod saying:

"just because Olbermann said it doesn't mean it's appropriate here."


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5822089

[emulatorloo]

96. Thanks I am feeling lazy today -- it is friday. So Olbermann quoted the letterman joke then?

I thought Olbermann pretty much said that Letterman's joke was over the line and it was inappropriate to use the word slutty. At least that is how I remember it.

[RaleighNCDUer]

61. It's called 'comedy'.

A key element of comedy is the surprise, or twist - and when Palin started her campaign last year I'm sure she was 'surprised' by Bristol's pregnancy. The joke is in the surprise of 'her daughter' (un-named, but presumably the one who surprised her before) hooking up with A-Rod and getting pregnant during the 7th inning stretch - which is, by ANY accounting, something of a stretch.

The joke is Palin being totally clueless about what is happening in her own family.

don't you just hate it when somebody has to explain a joke to you?

[ColbertWatcher]

102. Someone is going to have to explain reality to the Palins. n/t

[theHandpuppet]

73. Well said!

Exactly why I found Letterman's "joke" to be little more than classless, sexist bullshit.

[BlooInBloo]

11. (shrugs) Letterman told an uncouth joke? Ohnoes!

I'm still waiting for this brouhaha to be carried on by The Family Guy. If you're looking for uncouth, methinks the Palins ain't seen nuthin yet.

[cboy4]

12. Of course the other half of the joke involved Alex Rodriguez, who is always

being tortured mercilessly on the show for being a womanizer .. cheating on his wife .. picking up hookers, etc.

That's one of the reasons the joke was so fricken funny.

And while I realize there are many Sarah Palin DUer supporters because she's a woman, this whole "controversy" has officially crossed into the absurd. :eyes:

[TZ]

25. I hate Sarah Palin...

I just hate rampant SEXIST BEHAVIOR more. Calling her slutty or her daughter slutty IS SEXIST..and as the person who likes to scream "racism and homophobia" all the time, I'm sorry you can't understand how women can be offended by this shit.
I don't think that just because a woman has a different political view she should be treated like a floozy.

[cboy4]

33. No, there's real life comments and then there are late night comedian

comments.

I'm not going to sit here and pretend that I didn't have milk coming out of my nose after I heard that joke.

I did. In fact, most things Letterman says make me laugh out loud.

I'm not saying you don't have a right to be offended as a woman if that's how you feel.

Of course, you'd also have more credibility if I ever heard you point out something that was racist and homophobic.

I must have missed those posts. :shrug:

edit...TYPO

[Stephanie]

40. He didn't say she was slutty.

And since she's been "knocked up" before, why the outrage?

[Matariki]

43. Apparently he did in an earlier show

"slutty airline stewardess" is what emulatorloo quoted.

Sexism. So funny.

[verges]

49. NO. He said:

"Slutty Stewardess look." Which is not the same as calling someone a slut.

[Matariki]

83. Oh, my mistake. The WOMAN wasn't 'slutty'. The woman's CLOTHES were 'slutty'.

such an understandable difference ;-)

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

99. You know about women who dress up for their man?

"Naughty Librarian"

"Slutty Stewardesses"

The implication to me was it was part of some kind of sexual roleplaying.

[emulatorloo]

106. Agreed -- she is "dressing up" to get her further with her base, quite frankly

EOM

[Matariki]

41. You shouldn't even have to explain this.

Here of all places. It's sad.

[verges]

53. NO one was called slutty. nt

[RaleighNCDUer]

75. Problem is, NOBODY called her or her daughter slutty - at least not

here in this context.

It was a comment on her clothing style, not her actions.

At other times, well, what would you call a woman who goes up an a state 8' above the audience wearing a miniskirt?

A lot of people made fun of Hillary's pantsuits during the campaign, but SHE was smart enough to know what it would look like and she never was is a position that compromised her modesty. Palin, OTOH, seemed to relish the thought.

[lame54]

46. the part of the joke that is missed...

refers to Levi's remarks that he and Bristol were having sex right under Sarah's nose - so while Sarah is watching the game her daughter is getting knocked up by a player

[cboy4]

47. And during the 7th inning stretch at Yankee Stadium no less!

Good point!

[zoff]

31. Palin, like the dyed-in-the-wool RWinger that she is ...

... will use this issue to distract from the harsher language used and evil deeds committed by their followers. I will not forget how a good doctor and innocent security guard were shot to death after these lunatic killers immersed themselves in all that "righteous and godly rhetoric." To repuglicans, no one in their parallel universe can ever do any wrong. Truly, rethuglicans are the party of crazy.

[tomreedtoon]

35. To begin with, Letterman is NEVER funny.

Like his current competitors Kimmel and Leno, he's a fratboy who makes snotty remarks about whatever displeases him, be it a fat girl or a guy who sort-of looks gay.

He modeled himself, like Kimmel and Leno, after Johnny Carson. But Carson always at least feigned surprise that his remarks would be taken so badly. Letterman doesn't. He smirks and sneers.

Second, all those "hypocrisy" jokes were told during the election, when they were pertinent. Letterman was just recycling them, the same way that Leno continues to tell blowjob jokes against Bill Clinton years after they ceased being funny. Letterman and his writers - writers whom he works with intimately, so he can't foist the blame off on them - were being lazy and telling cheap jokes.

Third, Palin was within her right to be upset about having her child picked upon. This is not the child she paraded in front of the nation as an example of anti-abortion. Palin may have learned something from her inability to raise her older daughter. She shouldn't have been beaten up about that.

Finally, Letterman's apology came off insincere. But what's new about that? He is one of the most insincere entertainers to rise to national fame. Not as bad as Limbaugh, but not anywhere near honorable.

[Name removed]

44. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bullwinkle428]

50. The right never made a peep when Letterman was making "blow-job/Lewinsky"

jokes about Bill Clinton 5 years after he was out of office! Jesus Hussein Christ, he still does, and Bill and Hillary continue to make appearances on the show! Feigned outrage, anyone?

[ismnotwasm]

51. It wasn't funny

But asshole Palin is milking an unfunny Letterman joke for all the political capital she can.

[Bucky]

54. thank you

[Matariki]

56. exactly. Palin is an asshat.

And Letterman makes sexist jokes.

[Bucky]

52. If you have to argue why a joke is funny, it's not funny

Jokes about someone getting knocked up tend to come off either angry or snotty. Of course different people find different jokes funny. Like my cousins from Tennessee used to tell race jokes. They might still, but they quickly found out our branch of the family doesn't find them funny.

[Lilith Velkor]

70. +1

[hiphopnation]

72. the joke WAS funny

it's not an explanation of the joke it's defense of a TV funny man who constantly makes jokes about anything and everything (including himself, by the way) who's incurring the phony wrath of a political half-wit in order to garner herself more face time because, as a politician, she's got nuttin'.

letterman's been making jokes for 30 years, often times bordering on questionable in the taste department. IT'S HIS JOB! no one's forcing anyone to watch it.

[mitchum]

89. And if one has to explain why a joke is funny...

the uncomprehending listener is either willfully obtuse
ignorant
or maybe just a fucking idiot

Would you apply the same formula to great literature? If one has to argue why a work is great, it's not great?
I doubt it.

[democrank]

55. The "knocked up" joke was vile.

Why anyone would get a kick out of a grown man (with a giant microphone) joking about a teenager and her unplanned pregnancy is beyond me.

[CreekDog]

65. The term "knocked up" antiquated, a 17 year old getting pregnant is just not funny material

not suitable for jokes anyway.

Although I admit to finding stupid jokes about Elliott Spitzer kind of funny. :hide:

[hiphopnation]

71. isn't she 18 now? nt

[CreekDog]

84. I don't think the 1 year difference makes it good material for comedy

it's not like i thought, oh she's 18 now... :rofl: :bounce:

[hiphopnation]

91. ....

it makes the difference between a minor and an adult silly!

AND the Palin's, the whole lot of 'em make for GREAT comedy jokes!

what's the first thing you think of when I say "Bristol Palin"?

i think "knocked up". hilarious.

:rofl:

[Seeking Serenity]

66. Why (some) people here think it was funny is simple to explain

Because the target of the joke was someone we don't like. All the rest of the justifications about hypocrisy, a different situation than when (our political friend) was joked about, etc., is just white noise.

The joke was not objectionable (I won't say "funny" because it wasn't; it was lame) because it was ultimately against Sarah Palin. Period. We don't like her, so it's OK.

It's OK to admit that.

[dorkulon]

67. It doesn't matter if it was funny.

He's a comedian, not a politician or even a pundit. He can say whatever the hell he wants. His only accountability is to his ratings. Palin is embarrassing herself by continuing to flog this.

By the standards of some here, the greatest comedians in this nation's history are all horrible scumbags.

[hiphopnation]

68. d'ahh forget it

if you have to explain it, it just ain't funny anymore.

what about palin latching on to this as a good opportunity to bring her from the back page obscurity ink back to front page bold face print? a tad opportunistic there, ain't it? but that should surprise no one.

[cboy4]

76. Despite all of the deletions in this thread, censoring support of Letterman,

the bottom line is the joke -- which was about the adult daughter who had the unprotected teenage sex, is hilarious.

[hiphopnation]

92. +1

:thumbsup:

[jeremyfive]

79. Palin is a Whackadoodle.

It is called "late night comedy", people. The apology was more than adequate.

Now Palin can get back to her witchcraft invoking rituals, murder of small animals and book banning.

If Palin really cared about that brat, wouldn't she have given her a human name?

[PopSixSquish]

80. I'll Tell You What's Funny

If Sarah Palin hadn't said anything, nobody but Dave's audience in the studio that night or those watching on TV would know about this and we'd have to find something else to be upset about...

[mwb970]

107. And we *would* be discussing Palin's inflammatory comments about Obama...

...and whether there was any connection between them and the recent shootings. But we're not talking about that, are we? We're talking about a joke instead.

Game over. Palin wins.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

87. Why did the chicken cross the road?

THAT'S NOT FUNNY! A chicken crossing the road is dangerous because the chicken can get hit by a car, which is a tragedy and NOT FUNNY! This joke implies that the farmer is being negligent with his chicken, and animal negligence is a CRIME! You should be making the joke about the farmer and LEAVE HIS CHICKENS ALONE! And besides, chickens only don't live past 15 years or so, so the chicken is UNDERAGE and cannot consent to being hit by a car. This joke is SICK, SICK, SICK!

[johnaries]

90. I LOVE IT!

:rofl:

[tridim]

93. Yep, that's THE response to this entire thread.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

97. It will be even funnier when the younger one ends up pregnant in a few years

History repeats when stupidity blooms.

[ColbertWatcher]

98. "History repeats when stupidity blooms." QFT.

I even LOL'd.