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In the immediate aftermath of 9/11 every MAJOR comic in New York City was doing NOTHING but 9/11 jokes and crushing.
Patrice O'Neal did a bit about how he kept buying cheap leather jackets because the Arab vendors were having an "I didn't do it" sale.
A Syrian comic named Hood would go onstage, announce that he would like to open his set by doing something in the name of ALLAH, and he'd open his jacket to reveal a DYNAMITE VEST strapped to his chest.
The joke KILLED, figuratively. And it showed me how comedy has the ability to take the power away from unimaginable torments for a few seconds at a time. It unites people who don't agree on an issue by pointing out universal truths we HAVE accepted on the issue.
Patrice's joke about Arabs feeling persecuted spoke honestly about the mood at the time. Hood's dynamite vest joke, however insane, played on a suspicion that nobody would ever admit to feeling today because they'd be called racist.
Regardless of how you feel about those jokes, they helped THOUSANDS of New Yorkers muscle through the biggest disaster they'd ever witness. (Outside of the De Blasio administration)
Today, those jokes aren't tellable in most forums because the language crackdown in this country over the last 20 years has seen hundreds of comics have their jokes treated as hate crimes. People who kid and pretend, held to the same standards as our Government leaders.
Here's the thing you need to understand before you post a hateful comment about me, Trump, or Fox News:
Big Institutions don't change speech rules because they care about decency, they change speech rules because they care about control.
They ban ideas they don't agree with because it gives them more control on society and their political opponents.
They ban ideas they don't agree with because it gives them more control on society and their political opponents.
Seeing as comedy is an industry that's 99% LIBERAL, most comics adopt whatever the bigger names tell them because they're afraid if they don't, they won't get booked at New York's Funniest Plumber Night. (Talk about cracking jokes)
I get a lot of you hate Trump. I agree Twitter is a private company that can do what it wants. But in the end speech censorship ALWAYS makes it back to comics because we TALK FOR A LIVING.
And if they can silence the PRESIDENT what chance do folks who get paid in drink tickets have?
My point is, call yourself a Democrat, call yourself a Republican, but if you're out here cheering censorship, DON'T call yourself a comic, because you're killing our industry.
My point is, call yourself a Democrat, call yourself a Republican, but if you're out here cheering censorship, DON'T call yourself a comic, because you're killing our industry.
