Bill Maher had one of his "New Rules" last night about the ubiquitous "war on Christians" notion, particularly about last week's conference on that subject. He rightly pointed out how silly it is for a group that comprises 80% of the population and controls all branches of government to pretend to be oppressed victims. And then he had a great, great line. He referred to this tendency to strike the victim pose by Christians as "turning water into whining". I wish I'd thought of that.
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This is why I say there is a double standard going on. Not one person has commented on my post where I quoted Bill Maher's great line about Christians 'turning water into whining" and complained that I'm perpetuating stereotypes of Christians or tarring all Christians even though not all Christians…
George Will has written a column saying many of the things I've long been saying about the tendency of some Christians to strike the martyr pose. I like the way he starts it:
The state of America's political discourse is such that the president has felt it necessary to declare that unbelievers can…
I've written a couple times about the "War on Christians" conference held in DC earlier this week, but some others have much more comprehensive reports on the subject. Michelle Goldberg, the terrific writer for Salon, has a full report on that site. She includes this little gem:
Taking the stage…
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument on two cases involving the Ten Commandments being posted in government buildings and courthouses, one in Kentucky (McCreary) and one in Texas (Van Orden). Linda Greenhouse, the excellent legal reporter for the NY Times, had an article…
I'd take Maher more seriously if he weren't such an antivaccination loon.
On the Colbert Report the other night the had this hilarious "Assault on Easter" graphic that you just had to see to believe. It was Jesus inside his tomb using the stone door as shield as he shot back. You had to see it, it was spectacular.
That is a great line. Just a reminder tWoC is for internal consumption only. It's motivation and training to get fundies into voting booths casting ballots. '06 is an election year, so expect to get very sick of this "frame".
TWoC's designers and its targets could care less what the rest of us think about it.
[Not bad for no fingers, huh?]
Orac wrote:
Who said anything about taking him seriously? He's a comedian. The line I quoted was brilliant comedy. That he holds absurd views on some other subject has no effect on the brilliance of it whatsoever.
I liked the parting shot about feeding DeLay to the lions about as much.
I'm with Ed on this one. While Maher is certainly on the altie fringe on some topics (like eating right will protect you from viruses), his political satire is right on most times, and I agree with him on many points. After all, that's why I watch him--not for his warped views on medicine. Penn and Teller's Bullshit on Showtime is the same way, and I'll agree with these three a lot more than I'd ever agree with O'Reilly or Hannity.
I thought Maher's tirade was fantastic! I have no clue about his dietary views, but his show is one of the few truly insightful and hysterical commentaries on television. My favorite line was, in reference to the "war on Christians" conference taking place in a hotel "nothing says opression like the Grand Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency"
ericnh wrote:
Except that I don't even care if his political satire is accurate or not, I just care that it's funny. He's a comedian; I expect comedians to be funny. I couldn't possibly care any less what their political views are. He could be just as funny while attacking political views that I happen to hold, just as Joe Queenan is still funny even when he's lambasting musicians or movies that I happen to like.