Ode to a Show That Was Daily

That was the greatest episode of the Daily Show in a while. Shall I explain...

Jon Stewart's guest was a fellow who had written a book called "100 People who are screwing up America" (97 of which are liberals, surprise surprise), one of these B.S. culture war books that try to blame all of our problems on hip hop music from 10 years ago and those "hollywood" types that nobody listens to anyway instead of, perhaps, the people who actually cause our problems like corrupt politicians and the insane and occasionally fascist right wing.

Well, Jon Stewart laid the smack-down on him in journalistic fashion, much like when he was on Crossfire, and I couldn't have been more thrilled. Point by point, articulately, and humorously, he told this guy just how full of crap he was and beat him down, not through yelling and screaming like the fox "news" crowd, but through real debate. Well, not so much debate since the author had nothing worthwhile to add.

But it makes me glad that someone is out there saying what needs to be said. He pointed out that while people might say vulgar things on television more these days, that at least the things that really matter have improved. What's worse, boobs on television, or segregation in schools? Murder depicted on rap albums, or murder carried out by lynch mobs? The fact is that culture is about more than our entertainment, it is about real social values and everyday practices.

But of course, this is how you divide people, motivate people, and distract people. If you have an agenda that no one in their right mind could get behind, say, breaking down the walls between church and state, allowing corporations to control government, and rolling back every piece of civil rights advancement of fifty years, then you need something that can get people behind you that seems urgent. You need to tell everyone that their children and the society is in danger, and that the cause of it is not the legislators, or their bosses, or the people polluting their drinking water, but its those damn people on MTV and the fact that your little Johnny knows the f-word. The culture war is a figment of a deranged imagination, and it collectively belongs to the modern day temperance-victorian movement, the "christian" right (in quotes because I refer not to actual christians, but people who use the title and selectively follow it, such as when they support life when its a fetus but not when its a criminal or a starving child in the third world). They want to act the martyr and pretend that they are under attack, despite controlling every branch of government and having their views forced upon the majority of Americans through popular culture. So, they act like movies, music, and books are all a direct attack on them and that they must be stopped for our own sakes. The fact that we can hear words like "shit" on cable or see partial nudity on television or read about sex in a magazine is not a sign of a crumbling society. They are signs of an open society, where people can be free, and honest, and real dialogue can exist and art can be a representation of reality and have something important to say. "Fuck" is just a word. A breast is just another body part. And hip-hop is just another form of expression.

People who take the bible literally, or worse who interpret it to justify their disapproval of other people's choices, now that's dangerous.