# "Blame Canada": the song. It's not even funny in the least. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 28, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812 "2014-09-28T23:32:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/1 "2014-09-28T23:32:58Z")
OK, so I don’t watch South Park because it’s just not funny. But I have heard of the glorious Oscar nominated song “Blame Canada.” Curiosity got the better of me (due to the Baker’s Dozen thread) and I just listened to the, what minute and a half long song. It’s about as funny as Paul McCartney’s “Her Majesty” from the Abbey Road album. In other words, it’s a short little nondescript song about nothing. Why is this famous, and why was it Oscar-nominated? Really? What am I missing. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2014, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/2 "2014-09-28T23:50:58Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > OK, so I don’t watch South Park because it’s just not funny. I take it you did not see _South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut_, the film in which the song appeared. First, you need to know how [Canadians are portrayed](http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140428024002/spsot/images/8/8d/Lyfzza5zoco30wd5ogbr.png). When they talk, the whole top of their heads move; hence the ‘flapping heads’ reference. Nest, you need to know why they’re blaming Canada. A popular show the kids watch is _Terrence & Phillip_. Their schtick is farting on each other and other people, and using foul language. The kids go to see T&P’s R-rated movie, and come out cursing like T&P. This upsets their mothers, who blame Canada for corrupting their kids. This leads to war between the U.S. and Canada. Finally, you have to ‘get’ that _South Park_ uses satire to make its point. The film is not making fun of Canada; it’s making fun of us U.S. Americans. The kids’ cursing has nothing to do with Canada, and has everything to do with the way their (American) parents raised them. That’s why it’s funny. ---
**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/3 "2014-09-29T00:22:49Z")
The song got nominated because it’s the only song from the film that could’ve remotely been performed on the Oscars. The rest were far too vulgar. As for why was _any_ song from the film was up for an Oscar at all? It’s not only a really funny film, it’s both a great parody of movie musicals and a great movie musical in its own right. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/4 "2014-09-29T00:23:57Z")
I can see why it would resonate with Academy members - a number of them are Canadian and what is far more, the theme of the song is parents blaming entertainers rather than themselves for the unruliness of their children. Surely that would be amusing to them. Similarly, _Shakespeare in Love_ had an edge over _Saving Private Ryan_ when it came to Academy voting because the former was about writers, producers and actors, i.e. proto-Hollywood. In any case, I think the correct call was made. ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/5 "2014-09-29T00:26:19Z")
Wow…this is a little late. Like 15 years late. BTW,OP, did you know that there was a plane crash at the World Trade Center? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/6 "2014-09-29T00:36:29Z")
Some people blame Canada for that. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/7 "2014-09-29T00:37:44Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > Wow…this is a little late. > Like 15 years late. > BTW,OP, did you know that there was a plane crash at the World Trade Center? I hadn’t heard it before. I know you’re not equating a trivial cartoon song with a detestable world-changing event, but use some discretion please. I missed the cartoon. I know what’s going on in the world. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/8 "2014-09-29T01:22:24Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > Wow…this is a little late. > Like 15 years late. > BTW,OP, did you know that there was a plane crash at the World Trade Center? What’s the cutoff for discussing media on the internet? I notice some people discussing movies even older than that. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/9 "2014-09-29T01:30:39Z")
_“And when Brian Boitano built the pyramids, he beat up Kublai Khan 'Cause Brian Boitano doesn’t take shit from anybody!”_ South Park is satire. They mock everyone equally. In this particular case, they’re mocking America’s kneejerk reaction to find a scapegoat for domestic problems, be it black trenchcoats causing school shootings, or inventing some phony _casus belli_ to wage war on another nation. (Like WMD’s in Iraq, which hadn’t even happened yet – the movie came out in 1999.) Most commonly, though, South Park mocks old fuddy-duddies who merely can’t take the joke. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/10 "2014-09-29T01:34:23Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > What’s the cutoff for discussing media on the internet? I notice some people discussing movies even older than that. No cutoff. Expressing outrage at a 15 year old song being nominated for an Academy Award seems to be misplaced concern. “_ **It’s Hard Out Here for A Pimp** _” won the Academy Award in 2006. Now that should have engendered some outrage. And it was more recent. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/11 "2014-09-29T01:47:01Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > No cutoff. > Expressing outrage at a 15 year old song being nominated for an Academy Award seems to be misplaced concern… Outrage? I was asking a question? ETA: I’m quite familiar with satire. Perhaps if I watched the entire episode in question I could have put things in perspective; but I didn’t watch the entire episode and am asking for explanations. Johnny L.A. provided a very good contextual explanation. You, on the other hand, are not useful at all and should just stay away from this thread. And me in general, really. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/12 "2014-09-29T01:58:16Z")
It’s from a movie not a tv episode. Hence Oscars and not Emmys. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/13 "2014-09-29T02:01:23Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > OK, so I don’t watch South Park because it’s just not funny. Thanks Lieutenant Hauk. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/14 "2014-09-29T02:04:52Z")
you’re just ashamed because the best your country can produce is Terrance and Phillip with fart jokes. ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/15 "2014-09-29T02:07:23Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Outrage? > > I was asking a question? > > ETA: I’m quite familiar with satire. Perhaps if I watched the entire episode in question I could have put things in perspective; but I didn’t watch the entire episode and am asking for explanations. Johnny L.A. provided a very good contextual explanation. You, on the other hand, are not useful at all and should just stay away from this thread. And me in general, really. Apparently you are not “familiar with satire.” Sorry, but it was a rather silly question. Perhaps you thought it wasn’t…but it was, And I was unaware that I needed your permission to respond to threads. I missed that at the meeting, ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/16 "2014-09-29T02:25:45Z")
I thought the best song was “Uncle Fucka,” but it would never have gotten an Oscar nomination. By the way, just to poke fun at the way people take things seriously, Trey Parker and Matt Stone showed up at the awards ceremonies in drag. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/17 "2014-09-29T02:26:03Z")
Speaking of useful: this isn’t useful. **Leaffan** , **nevadaexile** - stop it, both of you. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/18 "2014-09-29T02:31:08Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Johnny L.A. provided a very good contextual explanation. I was concerned I may have come off as snarky. That was not my intention, and I’m glad you didn’t read it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/19 "2014-09-29T02:52:31Z")
BTW, [Stephen Sondheim](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Sondheim), winner of more Tony Awards than any other composer, [loved the movie](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/stephen-sondheim-rips-all-the-dead-lyricists-but-only-one-live-one---himself/article1215684/): > [@](#): > > “Oh, yes, I think South Park Uncut is just terrific, and the numbers in it are wonderful,” Sondheim says. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812/20 "2014-09-29T02:57:45Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Some people blame Canada for that. Well it’s not even a real country anyway. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blame-canada-the-song-its-not-even-funny-in-the-least/699812.md?page=2)