# Michelle Shocked SHOCKED to find that GAYmbling is going on in here! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 19, 2013, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327 "2013-03-19T03:17:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/101 "2013-03-21T14:09:12Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I’m not fully awake yet. What is the relevance of this? 😕 It’s called “music appreciation.” ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/102 "2013-03-21T14:15:13Z")
> [@stpauler](#): > > It looks like all of the US dates are getting cancelled. Her last tweet on Sunday said _“Truth is leading to painful confrontation #shortsharpshocked”._ > > I just love that the retribution is so swift to this kind of behavior. And her hashtag is an album from 25 years ago. Damn. A very good album, I’ll grant you, but I can’t see Keith Richards tagging #exileonmainstreet for general purpose stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/103 "2013-03-21T14:17:42Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > **Krokodil** believes that a black musician’s involvement is supposed to cancel out any uncomfortable feelings you may have listening to the song. Yeah, and she did not omit from her apologia “I go to an African-American church (so cut me some slack)”. Matter of fact, the white-controlled religious right anti-gay crusade uses black clergy for P.R. tokenism. Puts them out in front of the media for show, to disguise where they’re really coming from. [Pam Spaulding](http://www.pamshouseblend.com/) extensively documents that practice. ---
**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:** [March 21, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/104 "2013-03-21T14:33:39Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > **Krokodil** believes that a black musician’s involvement is supposed to cancel out any uncomfortable feelings you may have listening to the song. It’s been 20 years since I’ve read the liner notes, but the way I remember them is this: Much of American music has its roots in the 19th Century, when minstrel shows were popular. Rather than go back the earlier origins – the songs that slaves sung, which has been done – she explored the transitional songs between the slave songs and popular music. Minstrel shows used racial stereotypes. I recall in the liner notes that she said something about people looking at the stereotypes instead of the progression of American music. _Jump Jim Crow_ in particular uses the stereotypes; and, as I said, uses the word ‘jigaboo’. Someone who did not understand the point she was trying to make, or who just hears the word instead of the context in which it’s used, might conclude that she was being a racist. That is, they miss her point. They miss that Taj Mahal played on the track. What makes me uncomfortable is not the song, or that a White woman is performing in black face, as it were. What makes me uncomfortable is the thought that the context would be misconstrued. It’s like, ‘I see what you’re doing, and I understand why you’re going it; but given that that particular song has such potential for misunderstanding, is it really a good move to include it?’ I think art should challenge people, but in the context of her body of work _Jump Jim Crow_ doesn’t quite fit in. I imagine someone who hears the song without knowing what it’s about. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/105 "2013-03-21T14:35:16Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It was also used by the Thatcher administration in Great Britain starting around 1979 in reference to treatment for youth offenders. That may have been the starting point for the use by Punk bands. I’m remembering it from the rather authoritarian last days of British colonial rule in Kenya, which would have jibed with the image of her being choked on the album cover. Then again, the punk geneology of the term would apply to this as well–rather better, actually. Thanks, **Telemark**. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/106 "2013-03-21T15:03:17Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > A couple years ago, I bought a CD of **Mercury Poise** for my (gay) niece. I’d previously given her her first Ani DiFranco and Seater-Kinney albums, which she liked enough. This one, she discreetly re-gifted to another relative, who discreetly re-gifted it to me. I love Michelle, but her stock has been dropping for a while now. Perhaps your niece would like [Phranc](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phranc). ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/107 "2013-03-21T15:11:24Z")
> [@Lute Skywatcher](#): > > Perhaps your niece would like [Phranc](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phranc). Last I checked most of her stuff was out of print and she hadn’t recorded for years. Is her music easily downloadable? It certainly was good stuff back in the day. ---
**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:** [March 21, 2013, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/108 "2013-03-21T15:21:57Z")
> [@Lute Skywatcher](#): > > Perhaps your niece would like [Phranc](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phranc). Heh. I am not a ‘Gay Music fan’ (in any sense you choose to read that), but I have _Folksinger_. I haven’t listened to it in ages, since I don’t have a digital copy. One of these days I should get a USB turntable and make a copy. _One Of The Girls_ got a lot of airplay on KXLU. I liked the way it sounded. So I bought the album. _Noguchi_ was relevant at the time. To this day, I cannot hear a reference to _The Washington Post_ without thinking of _Liar, Liar_: _[Something, something]_ The Washington Post _The paper people look up to the most Liar, liar, pants on fire! You can’t believe what you read_. _Lifelover_ is a song of hope when AIDS was almost as frightening as Reagan with his finger on the trigger. Most of the rest of the songs were good too. You don’t have to be gay to enjoy a good story. (Though in Phranc’s case, I imagine her stories are more relevant to the Gay community than they are to me.) ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/109 "2013-03-21T15:32:57Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Heh. I am not a ‘Gay Music fan’ (in any sense you choose to read that), but I have _Folksinger_. I haven’t listened to it in ages, since I don’t have a digital copy. One of these days I should get a USB turntable and make a copy. _One Of The Girls_ got a lot of airplay on KXLU. I liked the way it sounded. So I bought the album. _Noguchi_ was relevant at the time. To this day, I cannot hear a reference to _The Washington Post_ without thinking of _Liar, Liar_: > > _[Something, something]_ The Washington Post > _The paper people look up to the most > Liar, liar, pants on fire! > You can’t believe what you read_. > > _Lifelover_ is a song of hope when AIDS was almost as frightening as Reagan with his finger on the trigger. Most of the rest of the songs were good too. > > You don’t have to be gay to enjoy a good story. (Though in Phranc’s case, I imagine her stories are more relevant to the Gay community than they are to me.) Her song _Gary_ is really one of the most amazing songs I’ve ever heard. She sings to the person who killed her brother and pleads that he doesn’t get the death penalty. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/110 "2013-03-21T18:55:05Z")
Ok, so I listened to the webcast, with a lot of fast forwarding since Michelle is mostly a no show, and I think some kind of mental breakdown is the deal. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole Falling Hard for Fundamentalism was the beginning of that. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2013, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/111 "2013-03-21T23:48:34Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > **Krokodil** believes that a black musician’s involvement is supposed to cancel out any uncomfortable feelings you may have listening to the song. More specifically, I believe that the involvement of a black musician of his stature is more significant than any uncomfortable feelings you may have listening to the song. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/112 "2013-03-22T00:06:45Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > More specifically, I believe that the involvement of a black musician of his stature is more significant than any uncomfortable feelings you may have listening to the song. Yeah, say what you will about her perplexing adoption of bible literalism, there is no way she is a racist. It’s more apt to say that she is defiantly politically incorrect. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/113 "2013-03-22T00:08:03Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Ok, so I listened to the webcast, with a lot of fast forwarding since Michelle is mostly a no show, and I think some kind of mental breakdown is the deal. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole Falling Hard for Fundamentalism was the beginning of that. Agreed. It makes me sad. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/114 "2013-03-22T00:08:17Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Ok, so I listened to the webcast, with a lot of fast forwarding since Michelle is mostly a no show, and I think some kind of mental breakdown is the deal. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole Falling Hard for Fundamentalism was the beginning of that. Care to summarize for us? What did she say? ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/115 "2013-03-22T00:31:45Z")
I’ve just been reading the [Washington Post](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/reliable-source/wp/2013/03/21/michelle-shockeds-bizarre-cut-off-radio-interview/) article. Basically, she didn’t pick up the phone for a while; when she did she was listening to the podcast online, causing interference; she read her statement without answering questions; she got into an argument over the 5-second delay; and finally told the host that she would see her on Twitter and hung up. I had the exact same thought as **outlierrn** : this sounds like a mental breakdown happening live and in public. Very sad. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/116 "2013-03-22T00:32:40Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Care to summarize for us? What did she say? After repeated attempts of the interviewer, Nicole Sandler to call her (resulting in voicemail), she finally picked up. Sandler started asking questions, but it was derailed a bit by Shocked having her computer on in the background, which was playing the show she was calling into, except with the 10-second delay that it takes to get through the inter webs). Sandler kept telling her to turn off the computer (so it wouldn’t interfere with the audio), but Shocked was non-responsive. Over (what seemed to be about) the 5-minute exchange, her only utterance was what sounded like a prepared statement to the effect of “I do not hate homosexuals.” (I’m sorry – I can’ t remember the exact words and the [radioornot.com](http://radioornot.com) site is down (overloaded by the curious?). The whole time the interviewer was trying to get her to engage, but eventually, Shocked just hung up. A little later, she apparently called back into the show, but seemed preoccupied with the 10-second delay of the broadcast — she then just counted off the seconds of the delay before hanging up again. Sandler — an old acquaintance of Shocked — became progressively (pardon the pun) frustrated at the non-interview she believed Shocked had agreed to the night before and filled the Shocked-free airtime with agitated rants about the events of the last few days. In my opinion, Sandler kind of lost her shit and made for a hostile environment which didn’t help the situation. ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/117 "2013-03-22T00:46:46Z")
[Watch it here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0RunY2qiys). The second half is the Shocked portion. Shocked finally calls in around 1:35:00. Her statement was: > [@](#): > > I believe in a God who loves everyone and my faith tells me to do my best to also love everyone, everyone. Gay or straight, stridently gay, self-righteously faithful, left or right, far-left, far-right, good, bad, or indifferent. That’s the law. Everyone. I may disagree with someone’s most fervently-held belief. But I will not hate them. > > [Pause, Sandler interjects] > > And in this controversy, that means speaking for Christians with opinions I in no way share about homosexuality. Will I endorse them? Never. Will I disavow them? Never. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/118 "2013-03-22T00:52:29Z")
Mental illness and religion is a dangerous combination. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/119 "2013-03-22T01:40:15Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > Wow. I never would have thought there’d be a “clarification” message that I would actually buy, but those statements do read as sincere and I find them entirely plausible. It’s a little harder to buy the clarification when you hear the [original audio from the San Francisco show](http://youtu.be/fYm4teuAcm0). ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327/120 "2013-03-22T01:51:31Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > It’s a little harder to buy the clarification when you hear the [original audio from the San Francisco show](http://youtu.be/fYm4teuAcm0). Yea, she explicitly includes herself in the group of people that fear priests will be forced to perform homosexual marriages at gunpoint. It doesn’t really sync with her explanation. I think she’s just attached herself to a religion that’s a lot more Conservative then she is, and is having trouble reconciling her views (coming from a family of liberal Catholics, I can sympathize). In the clip, you can actually hear her equivocate over whether or not to include herself in the group of people that holds anti-gay views, before stressing that she is part of that group. (thanks for the summary **B. Serum**. Sounds like that interview is unlikely to be included in a listing of great moments in Celebrity Damage Control) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michelle-shocked-shocked-to-find-that-gaymbling-is-going-on-in-here/653327.md?page=7)