Cheese-rolling’s a violation of human dignity too!
Sure, but “centrist” outside of the United States means “liberal” relative to the Republican party, so I’m sure december can find plenty of things to dislike about 'em. 
[Gimli]Nobody tosses a dwarf![/Gimli]
Seriously, these are adults who have a right to do with their bodies as they wish. Dwarf tossing does nothing for me, personally, though.
You’re operating on the assumption that the Liberals care about those things, which of course they do not. You’ll note that did not actually support any of those things - the first two were forced upon them by the courts, the third was inherited, and the fourth was forced upon them by the pressures of the opposing parties.
Like all professional politicians, they care about getting elected. Period. Having assumed a spot on the political continuum, they’ll take up whatever the relevant causes are. Transplant the very same people to the United States, put them in Congress, and they’ll be slightly to the right of the Democrats in about ten days. If you moved the Democrats up here they would almost immediately take over a very slightly left of the Liberal Party position.
That’s why this whole argument’s so sad; it’s absolutely outrageous that any politician would consider banning such a thing. But if the public sentiment is for a ban, by God, this law might actually see the light of day.
If this passed, would they have to edit the film The Two Towers? Or simply label it objectionable?
No, none shall pass.
Of course the word toss has a another meaning here in the UK. Adds a whole new light to this debate…
Really? Could I have a link please?
http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/09/27/dwarf.throwing/
I still have to say Cheese Rolling is much more of an afront to human dignity though:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gloucestershire/features/cheeserolling.shtml
[Gimli]Toss me… but don’t tell the elf[/Gimli]
You really shouldn’t take lines like that out of context Waenara
This was addressed on L.A. Law years ago, which I remember because Jimy Smits (my first TV star crush … sigh) said something like
“What’s next - spic bowling?”
And while I generally agree with him and with the UN re: dignity and being amused at the expense of others and so on, it is important to remember that there aren’t a lot of employment opportunities for little people so they often want to do it because it may be the best/only way to make money.
Umm, I don’t think we want people who prefer dwarf tossing to marijuana. YMMV.
LC
cowgirl, jobs for dwarfs are hard to come by because this sort of thing is seen as acceptable by so many people. It’s damn hard to be taken seriously if people laugh when they see you and start joking about tossing you. Never mind if you’re a teacher or a professional computer geek or whatever.
It’s hard to take people seriously when all you know about them is demeaning portrayals or activities. Yes, the folks being tossed gotta eat. I bet this wouldn’t be controversial if it was nigger-tossing, though. Midget jokes are still acceptable…
And this was actually turning out to be an interesting discussion…
Now that we got that out of our system, let me finishing adding my two cents.
I think it’s all a pretty stupid catch-22: little people can’t get jobs, but they have to eat so they participate in carnivals/circuses/dwarf tossing. Then they can’t get respect because they do these things, so they can’t get regular jobs. And when they become offended at dwarf-tossing jokes, they’re labelled as hypersensitive.
So while I agree it’s all between consenting adults, it’s still a piss-poor thing to do to someone/feel you have to allow someone to do to you because of an accident of birth. Also, don’t most of the conditions that cause dwarfism contribute to other significant health problems? You’ve got drunken bar patrons tossing people who are medically fragile already- a recipie for disaster.
I’m off to check google for stats on dwarf-tossing injuries…
It’s a really vicious circle, isn’t it?
And yes, there are a whole host of orthopedic problems that being tossed could easily exacerbate, depending on what condition you have.
And there are a lot more little people out trying to make it in the real world – as opposed to entertainment – than you might think. The vast majority are not entertainers, but there are few enough scattered around that that’s the only sort of job a lot of people see them has having. There is nothing inherently wrong with entertainment, but many or even most of the roles open to little people are questionable at best, which isn’t helpful. (See Jimmy Kimmel.)
The jokes would be fine if that wasn’t all that people know, is how I see it. You see comedians constantly slamming white/Asian/black/etc. people, but it’s mostly accepted that that sort of thing is a JOKE. To a noticeable number of people – not all! – a dwarf is viewed pretty much as a walking joke. That’s not exactly an enlightened attitude.
Let’s not forget that for a certain segment of pro-dwarf-tossing fans, they manage to carry over their thrill of dwarf-tossing to actually (and yes, I know people this has happened to) going up to a strange dwarf in a public place (not a dwarf-tossing bar) and picking them up and tossing them.
We’re talking about NON-consenting adults here, people.
When an activity so dehumanizes a segment of the population that others view that segment as a mere object to be physically manhandled whenever the mood strikes them, it strikes me as a rather appalling infringement of personal dignity.
Not to mention the personal injury involved to people who suddenly find themselves picked up and hurled because someone else thinks that ALL dwarves are made for tossing.