Ah, the controversy is splendid. This poor jerk is just expressing his faith. Help me out here. Why does anyone’s faith have to be expressed in terms of what they think is sinful? Isn’t there a positive aspect to all this?
This controversy (which is far right Christians being at war with themselves because the rest of us don’t give a crap and wouldn’t be caught dead watching this show.) Is being fought on so many levels. Most people are laughing. I know I am.
Has anyone else noticed how this Phil dude looks like bin Laden? Dead ringer in my eyes.
I agree with Camille Paglia that the suspension of Phil Robertson was “utterly fascist, utterly Stalinist.”
While it is true that the 1st Amendment technically protects free speech only from the government, employers have historically respected an open airing of employee’s views unless it was a threat to the bottom line or strayed into vicious hate speech. Phil Robertson’s interview was critical of gays, but it really did not cross the line into hate speech. His mention of bestiality was only one item in a laundry list of transgressions, including adultery, promiscuity, drugs, etc.
And what percentage do gays comprise of the viewing audience of Duck Dynasty? It is probably not even 1%, so there was no threat to A&E’s bottom line. This whole episode will likely increase viewership and sales of Duck Dynasty and its merchandising. It seems very unlikely that Robertson’s statements could have a significant impact on A&E’s profits.
The only rational conclusion is that this is an attempt to muzzle public criticism of the gay life style by public figures. In that regard, it appears that Paglia is absolutely correct.
I don’t expect many gays watched DD. However, that isn’t the point. Why would you think that A&E would want to be embroiled in some sort of dust up over gays? Gays have a lot of money as a rule. Most networks, other than Faux News, want to discourage controversy.
A & E has plenty of programs that appeal to general audiences. Then on the other hand, perhaps A & E just plain old gets offended by remarks like that.
I agree with Moon that this whole thing is ridiculous. More distraction from real issues. If we all just kept our religion to ourselves (and out of politics) we’d be a lot better off.
Why would anyone, including A&E, CARE what this guy says? There were other Robertson quotes from before A&E hired him that could have clued them in if they were worried about it. A statement from A&E that the network does not condone or agree with Robertson’s statements should have sufficed.
Of course, it could have all been planned. Duck Dynasty just got a lot more exposure, and that’s priceless to the network and the Robertson’s.
I had never heard of the show. No one I know had ever heard of the show, much less watched it.
I took the bait and just turned on On-Demand. I am watching the episode called Redneck Christmas. Its probably the dumbest show I have ever seen. Bad acting. Reality? not even. Gross? Yea. Pig on the counter with eyeballs still inside the sockets.
Its all about bad taste and ignorance and bad stereotypes of the south. Hell, it gives rednecks a bad name.
Gay bashing fits right in. So do stupid remarks about blacks.
I have ducks in my living room. I am going to find a home for those guys. I will never think the same of them. Hand carved decoys just don’t have the same ring to them.
For the record, I actually have known a few rednecks in my day. Look where I am from, for heaven’s sake. My rednecks have far more class than these folks. Also, sweet potato pie is next to godliness. It isn’t redneck food.
@Kelly_3406 Soooooooooo – employers should not be allowed to fire employees for expressing their religious or political views, eh? Good to know that. That’s gonna come back and bite ya right in da butt!
Watching the whole thing unfold, I think that the pro-gay lobby’s more strident portion has become overly strident, and guilty of intellectual fascism. Let’s stop pretending this guy’s vicious when all he did was state what a chunk of Amecans believe, and a majority used to believe, in a way that was careful not to be hateful. (I do seem to remember that the 2004 election swung to the GOP based on homophobia in Ohio. People saw this issue differently as recently as 10 years ago).
Having said that, the guy’s comments about black people are I think more troubling. He went even further back into time and ignorance to pull that stuff out. If I owned a TV network, I wouldn’t want to give this guy a platform.
Ah, I’m doubling back as I frequently do, thinking out loud … you know what, reading his quotes again about black people, they’re not that bad. He’s just an old guy thinking out loud, communicating his life experience from his viewpoint.
It’s not only not hateful, it’s actually well-intentioned. I say let the old guy talk. This what we let old people do. They tell us what they think, and then we measure it out and decide what there is value in and what is outdated bull****.
We witness in this day and age a plethora of “conservatives” telling the President of the United States to “go back to Africa”. We saw the 2004 election swing on organized himophobia. Let’s not pretend that this old guy, who is not hateful, is what’s wrong with America. Let’s embrace free speech in this case.
As to the strident gay lobby, look … these guys had a hard time growing up, and they’re mad about it. I think they need to understand that there’s no value to attacking the “Duck Dynasty” guy. It’s not going to make gay people more liked or accepted if they try to accuse people of thinkcrime.
I wonder how many of them were this shrill when they came out to their own parents … and how much of their anger at this guy should really be reserved for other people in their lives.
Very sad day when a ‘Reality’ TV show becomes the news of the day and week – while in the South Sudan our military members and citizens are coming under fire. A few NATO soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, yet our outspoken political leaders are coming to the aid of a private enterprise (Duck Dynasty) and against the corporate (A&E) entity.
Agreed. I feel even more that way since I bit the bullet and watched a show. It totally offends my intellectual senses.
I might even quit sending out my White Trash Christmas email cards. I used to think it was funny. Now…not so much.
I just assumed that most of the world was grossed out by such things. How horribly middle class of me.
This ‘Reality’ show seems to have taken advantage of a successful formula of how to turn something mundane into something that many will watch and find some sort of enjoyment. Having an appearance of some type of odd behavior, enhancing stereotypes and having real dumb moments (Jessica saying it was chicken in the tuna can….) – is what will get some ratings as it makes the audience feel that they are smarter than the folks on the show. I pity and question the intelligence of those that feel that most of these reality shows are real. Even Pawn Stars (which I sometimes do watch) has turned out to be not so real.
The Sarah Palin reality show immediately popped into my mind as I read what you wrote, Pat. Like fake wrestling and appealing to the lowest common denominator….I recall her clubbing the halibut to death as it watched her out of one fishy eye.
‘Ashamed’: Ex-PR exec Justine Sacco apologizes for AIDS in Africa tweet
By Brian Stelter, CNN
updated 11:42 AM EST, Sun December 22, 2013
(CNN) — Justine Sacco, a former PR executive who sparked a firestorm of controversy on Twitter, apologized Sunday for her “needless and careless tweet” about AIDS in Africa.
In a written statement. Sacco apologized “for being insensitive to this crisis — which does not discriminate by race, gender or sexual orientation, but which terrifies us all uniformly — and to the millions of people living with the virus, I am ashamed.”
She added that she is a native of South Africa and was upset that she had hurt so many people there.
“I am very sorry for the pain I caused,” she wrote.
Media company IAC “parted ways” Saturday with Sacco after the tweet, which read: “Going to Africa. Hope I don’t get AIDS. Just kidding. I’m white!”
“The offensive comment does not reflect the views and values of IAC. We take this issue very seriously, and we have parted ways with the employee in question,” an IAC spokesman said in a statement.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/22/world/sacco-offensive-tweet/
Well, well, well. Where are all the moaning, groaning and gnashing of teeth about a person being fired for exercising free speech? Huh? Ms. Kelly????? You like how this works?
Kelly is a MR. Kelly
She should have been fired and so should Daddy Duck. No company needs to have these loose cannons rolling about. Perhaps I should say I think any company has the right to terminate people who are either employed by or associated with said company if they are blackening the eye of that company.
A & E also had a right to terminate Dawg, even though I disagreed with their decision because he thought he was in a private conversation. It’s still their right….
@Starryflights
You should not misinterpret my previous statement as advocating a law/regulation that forbids a company from firing employees for public statements. I am only suggesting that companies should be more tolerant of employees’ public statements if they are not directly related to their line of business or bottom line. A republic cannot function if its citizens fear for their jobs every time they speak out on controversial issues.
In the case of Sacco, her statement does relate to the bottom line. As a communications director who is supposed to be adept at handling public relations, she created a PR nightmare for an internet media company that depends on good PR. This had nothing to do with an expression of religious faith or political beliefs. She was making light of the tremendous suffering in Africa. I can see why they canned her.
And that’s exactly the point. This was a brilliant PR stunt by the guys in the C-Suite at A&E. People who never watched the show are now watching and the merchandise is flying off the shelves faster than it can be stocked.
Bloody brilliant play, wish I could hire these guys..
It sure didn’t hook me. I can’t imagine anyone with developed humor thinking the show was even remotely interesting.
If the DD show is such trash as several of you have stated, then you have to ask yourself why is it a tremendously huge hit. I’ve heard it’s the family togetherness and support along with their show of moral values and lack of cursing that appeals to viewers. Now if that is the basis for trash viewing, then you might want to double check your own values.
I had never heard of it. After viewing it once, it hit me just like Dawg. I have had to deal with enough folks like that to last a life time. I will leave it to those who perhaps haven’t reached their quota.
Family togetherness? Bwaaaaahahahahahahahahahahaha
How lame.
So Moon, it’s easy for you to pass judgement on the likes of the DD folks, but you would go absolutely ballistic if I was to pass judgement on say … a minority of some sort. Illegal immigrant Hispanics as an example? Nice to know the double standard is still alive and kicking in this country, otherwise I guess there was real change!
Pass judgement? In what way have I passed judgement? Do I think the show is stupid and ridiculous? You betcha.
SA, if I went ballistic every time you passed judgement on illegal immigrants I expect everyone would have heard a sonic boom long ago. I recall you telling the blog that there were too many of them in a park you went to. SA decrees that there are too many Hispanics in the Park. Now hear this.
No, you are the hypocrite.
@Moon-howler
Amazing how you whine and bitch about someone else’s beliefs, it’s always such a double standard for you people
You are not welcome on this blog.
Your abuse and vulgarity in the past have been unacceptable. I will leave your remarks up as a reminder.
@Moon-howler
No he’s not and illegals are still the scourge they always were.
It seems that you are still the Ahole.
IP address will be published if you return.
@Mr. Elvis
Still living in Lake Ridge?