although the swear words controversy was spectacular and got all the press, i think it really distracted from the more real issues that Carlin was pointing at. Especially relevant in this day and age of the incomplete to wholly misleading 911 Commission; see the petition read into Parliament couple weeks ago, and the articles of impeachment for Bush given in Congress also couple weeks ago. And Bush’s hedge fund/private equity buddies making off like bandits (nevermind the oil, banking and other corporate interests).

where can i get more information on mcCan’t’s use of That Word?

sincerely,

a canadian democrat.

e

I think in the case of discussing it in the media, especially any mention of McCain using it towards his wife (and the one he DIDN’T divorce, no less) there is the whole FCC issue, and the perception that saying the word would generate so much mental static in the audience that no one would pay attention to the actual story.

My first exposure to Carlin was by way of Nickelodeon, of all places. Obviously it was not the Seven Words Sketch, but enough to get the hang of his humor. He was part of a proud lineage of wiseass lapsed Catholics who realized, much to the dismay of the nuns at their schools, that rules for the sake of rules soon becomes ridiculous.

You know why the call it a cunt??

Because that’s the sound it makes when you kick it.

It is difficult, as a person who wants to defend all jokes as being a person’s right to tell, to simultaneously hold the understanding that there are some jokes I would like to have the right to not hear. BUT. I believe what Carlin did was tell the jokes he wanted to hear, the same way that I think Vonnegut (and RAWilson, for that matter) wrote the kinds of stories he wanted to read, which is the purest kind of creativity. And when you find people who also want to hear your jokes (or read your stories), it’s one of the purest feelings of connection, and it means something, really. It is almost impossible to mourn their passing, when they accomplished –at least in my mind– their goals so very well. I mourn them anyway, though: no more of those jokes, those insights, those stories. Those “four star epithets”, man, leaving us here to fend.

RIP, George. You rocked better and harder than anyone. Thank you for sharing your insights with the rest of us.