Wow, I could have written your post. I too thought I’d see what all the talk was about so I found an online episode–same damn one in fact. Only difference is I only got maybe 20 minutes in, then had to skip around. Just couldn’t sit through it all. Worst I’ve ever seen. And I sat through an episode of Honey Boo Boo.
From the Walmart infomercial start, to the beyond-cheesy dialog, to the “hunting” (pigs obviously released just to be killed for the camera) it actually felt kind of evil. I don’t know. Just so pandering and cynical. Plus, yeah, unbelievably f*cking stupid.
i’d argue that you cannot take one side of the freedom coin without the other.
free speech is the right to speak your views and mind free from obstruction from the law/government from doing so. anyone is allowed to say the stupidest most vile things they want, that is their right. that right does not mean that people cannot form opinions about what they say, or that their won’t be consequences for them saying those things. of course it doesn’t mean that. you are allowed to say stupid things, but saying stupid things does have consequences. those natural reactions are also a part of that same freedom, just the other side of that same coin.
they are not a “witch hunt” (targeting people for things they didn’t do), they are a very tangible reaction/consequence to their freely expressing their opinions and are just as much a right as was the original expression of said opinions.
I support a network’s right to choose the cast of its programs, including a person who expressed an opinion that I disagree with in a stupid and awkward manner. Phil’s comments reflected a ridiculous idea that gay men have illogically formed a preference for a man’s anus over a woman’s vagina. That is more stupid than hateful.
Suspending Phil was a reasonable choice and would not have been a violation of his freedom of speech or freedom or religion as many people claimed. Keeping him on the show and making it clear that Phil’s comments do not represent the views of the network is also a reasonable choice. Given two valid choices, why would a business choose the option contrary to its economic interests when the purpose of a business is to make money?
Most of the people I know who objected to Phil’s suspension are pro-gay but viewed Phil as a good man with whom they disagree and objected to his being penalized for expressing his opinions. Accepting people with whom we disagree is not a negative thing for our society. I’ve also known conservative Christians who have accepted gay people.
I imagine it’s not good enough to support [quote=“Mitch_M1, post:23, topic:17998”]
Most of the people I know who objected to Phil’s suspension are pro-gay but viewed Phil as a good man with whom they disagree and objected to his being penalized for expressing his opinions. Accepting people with whom we disagree is not a negative thing for our society. I’ve also known conservative Christians who have accepted gay people.
[/quote]
"Phil continued his verbal attack by claiming society’s become too accepting of sin. He says, “Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and those men … they won’t inherit the kingdom of God. It’s not right.”
Again, you’re fine with homophobes using the show as a mouthpiece. We know. Those conservatives you’re chums with who are “totally cool” with gays probably also have great black friends who totally agree with how they feel about “other blacks”.
Believe whatever you want to believe about gay rights, but if you think we’re going to applaud your defense of homophobes over gays, you’re incredibly not self-aware.
Again, this is hillbilly minstrelsy, this isn’t art, this isn’t sincere (aside from the Palinesque pandering to the dumbest identity-driven persons in America.)
man, that’s a stellar example of trolling. i’m starting to buy into the theory that they planned this whole thing from the beginning, and didn’t just have to do damage control because one of their stars opened his bigoted hate-filled pie hole.
I think Phil’s comments reflect some stupid and backward ideas about sexuality. I also accept A&E’s right to deal with the situation involving things he said outside of the show in a way other than suspending him.
The whole controversy is leading to more discussion regarding sexual orientation and that is a positive thing. It’s also leading to people making snarky comments and putting words in other people’s mouths but that’s another matter.
I didn’t read a transcript of what he said, but I’m pretty sure he wasn’t quoting scripture verbatim. While the bible certainly does contain its fair share of craziness, what this bigot actually said wasn’t a direct quote, to the best of my knowledge.
[quote=“redesigned, post:20, topic:17998, full:true”]
this is a case of them not being at all the people they are pretending to be in tv. they didn’t look like this before the show at all, not even one iota. they grew their beards specifically for the show and are faking being a group of people that they aren’t. [/quote]
Again - not an expert on Duck Dynasty history, but a quick search shows me the show started in 2012, and their beards are much older than 2 years. I found a pic of Phil from 1988 where he has a huge, full (non grey) beard. They were duck hunters making duck calls way before the show and live in rural Louisiana (IIRC). While I think they are playing up their roles, so to speak, I don’t quite understand what it is they are supposed to be faking. Are they acting dumber than they really are, maybe?
[quote=“redesigned, post:20, topic:17998, full:true”]
they are acting out a stereotype that they are not a part of, which is despicable behavior imho.[/quote]
I’m not convinced they are completely acting - but isn’t this kinda like doctors and lawyers wearing black leather jackets with skulls on them on Harleys on the weekends? Or some New Yorker in cowboy boots and a Stetson?
And again, I get that cringe when I hear “You can’t do something/act like that because you aren’t really_______.”
Exactly…I don’t see how looking different a couple of years ago makes them a fraud. Beards have made a comeback. I don’t see why rednecks couldn’t join the fun along with hipsters and whoever else decided to grow beards.
Kinda weird that our tolerance of hate speech in the U.S. has in reality made for a country filled with more flourishing hate groups than probably any other country in the first world. I’d say that tolerating the intolerable has not been very positive. Unless, of course, you’re a white, straight, Christian male, which in case it’s been very successful at helping keep you at the top of the American hierarchy.
Hate speech isn’t an “opinion”. There’s right and wrong. Don’t hide behind that foolishness. By your reasoning any of history’s tyrants should have been tolerated because their sick ideas were “just their opinion maaaan”. Poor little victims of “witch hunts”…
In other matters, Mitch_M1’s entire family are a horrible brood destined to be condemned by God to Maldebolge right along with the adulterers and terrorists.
There! Now we can have a discussion about whether your folks are in fact demon-spawn, which is positive because people might learn they’re not so bad. You’re welcome; I’m only sorry you probably won’t get to see the discussion happen again and again, the way homosexuals do.
So weird that the show became not only popular but spawned so much merchandise. I was at an arcade earlier and they had a big Duck Dynasty hunting game. I played skeeball instead.
Although I haven’t owned or watched a TV in over 25 years I am certainly unable to remain free of it’s nonsense and power. Here in flyover southern Illinois I see all kind of people loading up DD paraphernalia, shirts, pillow covers, fuzzy slippers that look their beards. It’s Good, It’s Great, I love it. Now these ditto brained chumps have yet another bit of reinforcement that an old gay man like myself is an abomination in the eyes of their god. Their slack-jawed drooling offspring have yet another role model in their narrow little lives. Thank god these ill-begotten little sheep got yet another shepherd to guide them on their way to gluttony and glory. This kind of biblical filth has been grinding on my psyche since I was old enough to know that I poked a stick in gods eye just by breathing. Still though, just once it would be cool to see or hear one of these money whores say; You know, we really are sorry we let one of our stooges got out of line. We’re for all you black, brown gay, yellow people got hurt again. We’re gonna quit this BS and even offer some insightful information so you can maybe feel ok about yourselves…and buy some of our shit.
Or maybe I need to go so far into the jungle that are aren’t any goddam ducks or bibles or tv or even resources to attract the greedy. Fuck Phil and his Duck too. I’m sick of’ em.
