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Ed Brayton is a journalist, commentator and speaker. He is the co-founder and president of Michigan Citizens for Science and co-founder of The Panda's Thumb. He has written for such publications as The Bard, Skeptic and Reports of the National Center for Science Education, spoken in front of many organizations and conferences, and appeared on nationally syndicated radio shows and on C-SPAN. Ed is also a Fellow with the Center for Independent Media and the host of Declaring Independence, a one hour weekly political talk show on WPRR in Grand Rapids, Michigan.(static)
Ed Brayton also blogs at Positive Liberty and The Panda's Thumb
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Posted on: October 3, 2009 9:23 AM, by Ed Brayton
And unlike when I usually say that, I'm not being sarcastic. He cracks me up. And I'm still bummed that I barely missed out on an opportunity to meet him earlier this year. And I watched him on Top Chef a couple weeks ago and cracked up when Padma Lakshmi mentioned that she'd had bull's testicles before and Penn said, "I bet you have." Anyway, here's Penn in a self-created video explaining why he was an asshole about Padma in that episode.
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Comments
Ok, so he's an asshole. Most people are, including me. But I'm not all that much fun to hang out with, and Penn is. If he wants to hang out, drop a few brews and make sexist remarks during a football game on TV, I'll save him a seat.
Posted by: kehrsam | October 3, 2009 9:37 AM
Pssst....it's Jillette.
Posted by: Gretchen | October 3, 2009 11:20 AM
Considering how no one on the show likes her I thought his comment on the show was spot on and long overdue. I was surprised that made it through editing.
Personally I think she is the worst part of the show (even over the editing) but I know I am in the minority with that opinion.
Posted by: yoshi | October 3, 2009 11:33 AM
We went to see the Penn and Teller show in Vegas two years ago. The two of them hang out after the show and sign programs, talk to people, etc. even though they looked obviously pretty tired to me. But they were very gracious (yes, Teller talks) and I had a somewhat starstruck conversation about the Bill of Rights with Penn before getting a picture taken with him. He wears crazy t-shirts under that suit.
Posted by: Gretchen | October 3, 2009 11:41 AM
"If he wants to hang out, drop a few brews"
Penn claims to have never had a drop of alcohol in his life.
Posted by: Xaro | October 3, 2009 11:52 AM
I have to say this -- that was a LOT of handwaving...
Posted by: xebecs | October 3, 2009 12:07 PM
That is, I believe, the North Las Vegas library in the background of his video.
Posted by: Jillian | October 3, 2009 1:53 PM
Penn is cool, but his commitment to Libertarianism as an ideology is infuriating and what keeps me from watching Bullshit. I like Massimo's take on P&T
http://rationallyspeaking.blogspot.com/2009/09/dear-penn-and-teller-bullshit.html
Posted by: JR | October 3, 2009 1:57 PM
I own every single available season of Bullshit! on DVD and will get the seventh season the second it hits the shelves. Yes, whenever they do a topic on anything remotely related to the environment they pull out all the denialist stops...but the show is just too damn entertaining to pass up otherwise. Yeah, I'm a bad skeptic, sue me. :P
Posted by: Tyler DiPietro | October 3, 2009 3:15 PM
"That is, I believe, the North Las Vegas library in the background of his video."
It's his house.
Posted by: Xaro | October 3, 2009 3:31 PM
And I didn't say I was sharing. ;P
Posted by: kehrsam | October 3, 2009 4:46 PM
Alan Keyes (whom you don't like) writes a column denouncing Ron Paul (whom you also don't like) because he claims the latter doesn't like the declaration of independence. Or something. WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?
He also calls Obama a Nazi.
Posted by: Three Wolf Shirt | October 3, 2009 9:54 PM
Three Wolf Shirt:
None of their sides. I do like Rep. Paul's being a member of the House of Representatives (as long as he's not mine) and think he'd be a far better Senator than Texas'junior senator John Coryn.
Alan Keye's knowledge of history and the Declaration of Independence is a value significantly less than zero. When it comes to this subject he reminds me of the saying, "He's not even wrong.". It's merely a more florrid Chuck Norris or Pat Boone shtick with an edge that suggests he hates children and dogs.
Posted by: Michael Heath | October 3, 2009 10:30 PM
I like it when he growls though. ;)
Posted by: Three Wolf Shirt | October 3, 2009 10:41 PM
She's a Clark University alum. I am also, but not nearly as good-looking.
Penn better not meet me, I won't have anything to distract him.
Posted by: joemac53 | October 4, 2009 8:58 AM
I haven't been able to take Penn seriously ever since he started appearing on Glenn Beck's show, nodding along with whatever batshittery was coming out of Beck's mouth that day. Granted, this was before the '08 election sent Beck way over the cliff psychologically, but Beck's essential dishonesty and lack of critical thinking should have put off Penn even then.
Posted by: Daniel Harper | October 5, 2009 10:02 AM