# I really want to pit Comedy Central... **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 14, 2006, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663 "2006-04-14T14:53:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/21 "2006-04-15T20:12:25Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > I think all gods look pretty much the same. What about that flying lizard thing? By the way, I love your username! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Gladstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90db22/32.png) [@Gladstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gladstone)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/22 "2006-04-15T20:13:02Z")
> [@An Arky](#): > > You know, I am not easily offended at all, especially regarding religion, etc. And I abhor censorship. But South Park is really pushing the envelope, but not in order to affect positive change or anything. The sort of thing they’re doing is closer to yelling “fire” in a crowded theater; being offensive for offensiveness’ sake. The only purpose behind yelling “fire” in a crowded theater is to take some perverse joy in seeing people panicked and trampled to death. Matt and Trey, on the other hand, were not seeking violent Muslim backlash but merely a confirmation that Comedy Central won’t let the possibility of a violent Muslim backlash prevent them from exercising their constitutional right of free speech. Comedy Central was likely afraid of any boycotts or death threats, thus proving that intimidation works. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/23 "2006-04-15T20:15:00Z")
> [@An Arky](#): > > I really hate censorship, and I think Muslims’ touchiness regarding Muhammed is too intolerant, but the South Park guys simply aren’t worthy of fighting this fight, and I’d rather this issue be worked out in a more reasonable manner by people who know what they’re doing and respectful of cultures/people different from themselves. But you don’t get to choose who fights that fight. The people you’d want to do it are probably the type who wouldn’t want to. The question is, “do you stand behind those people anyway?” Not everybody who stands up for an issue is Rosa Parks, and most people would agree that there comes a point where you cannot quietly tolerate someone else’s demands on you. > [@Gatopescado](#): > > My question is this: How the hell do you know what Big Mo even looks like? It’s irrelevant. > [@](#): > > How do we know that the “second reporter from the left” during the press conference wasn’t actually supposed to be him? If nobody knows it’s supposed to be a depiction, then I would expect it doesn’t matter. This seems kind of irrelevant. > [@Rigamarole](#): > > I think all gods look pretty much the same. You know, sizable beard, flowing robes, and an old/wise demeanor. Except of course they have to be the same race as the people who worship them. Muhammad isn’t a god, although I guess the same statement applies to most prophet-types. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/24 "2006-04-15T20:34:37Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > By the way, I love your username! 😃 Thanks! I like yours too, and I actually get it. _shows off Spanish skillz_ ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/25 "2006-04-15T20:41:55Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > With the notable exception of a Jew being worshipped mostly by non-Jews. Then you just make him look Nordic on all the pictures. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/26 "2006-04-15T21:02:52Z")
> [@Gladstone](#): > > Matt and Trey, on the other hand, were not seeking violent Muslim backlash but merely a confirmation that Comedy Central won’t let the possibility of a violent Muslim backlash prevent them from exercising their constitutional right of free speech. Comedy Central was likely afraid of any boycotts or death threats, thus proving that intimidation works. I don’t think they were looking for confirmation of anything, just doing satire. News organizations wouldn’t run the Muhammad cartoons, so I’m sure they knew South Park didn’t stand much chance. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/27 "2006-04-15T21:21:48Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > What about that flying lizard thing? There is no Godzilla but Godzilla and Rodan is his prophet. ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/28 "2006-04-15T21:25:51Z")
> [@Gladstone](#): > > Matt and Trey, on the other hand, were not seeking violent Muslim backlash but merely a confirmation that Comedy Central won’t let the possibility of a violent Muslim backlash prevent them from exercising their constitutional right of free speech. Wait! Comedy Central was prohibiting Parker and Stone from showing Muhammad in self-published media? I thought they were asserting control over a show and network that they owned, which is, in part, their right to free speech, but if they’ve started sending goon squads door to door, then it’s another thing entirely. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/29 "2006-04-15T22:24:37Z")
Fuck, did I miss **Gladstone** saying that? Parker and Stone’s Constitutional rights have nothing to do with this situation unless the government prohibited them from showing Muhammad in that episode. The First Amendment really isn’t part of this issue at all, the way I see it. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/30 "2006-04-15T22:24:05Z")
Fuck, did I miss **Gladstone** saying that? Parker and Stone’s Constitutional rights have nothing to do with this situation unless the government prohibited them from showing Muhammad in that episode. The First Amendment really isn’t part of this issue at all, the way I see it. ---
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/31 "2006-04-15T22:51:20Z")
Nope. Nothing but pure cowardice to see here folks. I personally loved the episodes, and events conspired to make the censorship of the Prophet’s image funnier than if they’d actually shown it. ---
**Author:** ![Gladstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90db22/32.png) [@Gladstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gladstone)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/32 "2006-04-16T01:45:07Z")
> [@Menocchio](#): > > Wait! Comedy Central was prohibiting Parker and Stone from showing Muhammad in self-published media? > > I thought they were asserting control over a show and network that they owned, which is, in part, their right to free speech, but if they’ve started sending goon squads door to door, then it’s another thing entirely. You’re absolutely right that Comedy Central owns the network and the show and it is ultimately their perogative as to what gets shown and what doesn’t. > [@Marley23](#): > > Parker and Stone’s Constitutional rights have nothing to do with this situation unless the government prohibited them from showing Muhammad in that episode. The First Amendment really isn’t part of this issue at all, the way I see it. The First Amendment isn’t directly impinged. But certainly the colloquial name for one of the rights it does include - free speech - isn’t worth that much if private actors which help enable and amplify such speech are intimidated by threats of violence. South Park lampooned both Comedy Central for their unwillingness to show Mohammed, as well as the U.S. government (albeit indirectly with the head-in-the-sand gag) for its condemnation of the Danish cartoons in an attempt to appease angry Muslims. It’s not a television network’s place to champion free speech or any other principle or value Westerners hold dear. To declare certain things off-limits, however, not because they offend the sensibilities of their intended audience, but because a radical fringe threatens violence is a dangerous precedent. Not to get on the ol’ slippery slope, but this is exactly the point that Cartman was (jokingly) making. Will other groups be able to intimidate Comedy Central or other networks into further narrowing what they will and will not show? CC already pulled the “Virgin Mary statue having a period” episode and the Scientology episode has also been reportedly pulled from re-broadcast. While the latter two were not pulled because of violent threats, they at least appeared to be decisions based on financial considerations rather than fear of physical harm. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/33 "2006-04-16T04:05:57Z")
Did Comedy Central have a right to wuss out? Sure. Did they have a right to decide “Showing Jesus shitting on the President is okay, but we can’t risk showing Muhammad doing anything at all”? Sure- it’s their station ,and they can decide what they want to show. I just don’t EVER want to see Jon Stewart or ANYONE else at Comedy Central acting like he’s a hip, cutting edge, irreverent, daring guy. It’s pretty clear that self-styled provocateurs are only willing to take on “sacred cows” they know can’t or won’t fight back. It’s incredibly safe to mock Christians. It can be risky to mock Muslims. Not surprisingly, the wimps at Comedy Central choose to stick to the former. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/34 "2006-04-16T04:39:52Z")
> [@Gladstone](#): > > The First Amendment isn’t directly impinged. But certainly the colloquial name for one of the rights it does include - free speech - isn’t worth that much if private actors which help enable and amplify such speech are intimidated by threats of violence. True, and we’ve done that thread a couple of times around here. 😉 > [@astorian](#): > > I just don’t EVER want to see Jon Stewart or ANYONE else at Comedy Central acting like he’s a hip, cutting edge, irreverent, daring guy. It’s pretty clear that self-styled provocateurs are only willing to take on “sacred cows” they know can’t or won’t fight back. > > It’s incredibly safe to mock Christians. It can be risky to mock Muslims. Not surprisingly, the wimps at Comedy Central choose to stick to the former. So you don’t watch the Daily Show, I guess. They’ve been mocking the Muslim rioters since this crap started - in fact, they’ve done at least a couple of “here, let me show you these drawings I made of the prophet Muhammad” jokes. So has the Colbert Report. They just haven’t tried to do the really inflammatory thing and show him. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/35 "2006-04-16T14:41:53Z")
To hell with William Donahue. He wants generally to censor things, and tries t get things taken off the air (includign South Park - he had fits over the Bloody Mary episode). Now he says, the South Park guys should quit to protest censorship? Talking out of both sides of his mouth. He needs to shut the fuck up. As to the big black “censorship” box over Mohammed - I thought that was part of the joke. I thought it had been put there by the writers, and not by Comedy Central. I don’t want some religious group - Catholic League, Muslim extremists, Puritans, Protestants Protecting Us From Practically Everything, or anyone else dictating what I can see, listen to (or read or say or think). I don’t care if it upsets or offends them at this point. They can all get over it. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Universe_Lashes_Out)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2006, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/36 "2006-04-17T07:52:34Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > It’s incredibly safe to mock Christians. It can be risky to mock Muslims. Not surprisingly, the wimps at Comedy Central choose to stick to the former. Is that why I keep seeing them rerun the episode about the Virgin Mary bleeding out her vagina? Oh, wait, Comedy Central bent over for the Christians too. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2006, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663/37 "2006-04-20T09:25:11Z")
> [@HowieReynolds](#): > > Is that why I keep seeing them rerun the episode about the Virgin Mary bleeding out her vagina? Oh, wait, Comedy Central bent over for the Christians too. You don’t know what Opus Dei is capable of. How do you think that big, ugly penguin keeps getting work? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-really-want-to-pit-comedy-central/352663.md?page=1)