# Samantha Bee's "Feckless Cunt" comment. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 31, 2018, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214 "2018-05-31T19:08:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/21 "2018-05-31T20:50:36Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Eh, IDK, I hesitant to push back on this too much because I’m pretty much of the same opinion you are. But that’s the thing that kind of bothers me. Republicans are claiming: “See, you’re a hypocrite! you only get outraged when it’s a conservative that crosses the line!!” > > I’m just concerned that maybe there is a modicum of truth to that. Remember too that it wasn’t just “feckless c–t” but also “put on something tight and low-cut.” It’s not just the vulgar name but the sexist implication that she’s only valuable for her appearance, despite the fact that (as someone noted earlier as to Jarrett) her politics and her looks have nothing to do with one another. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/22 "2018-05-31T20:51:38Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > The ape comparison draws on a long history of racism including ape comparisons. It is insulting to all black people due to its history. It attacks Jarrett on the basis of her looks and heritage because Barr didn’t like her politics, despite the fact that her politics and looks have nothing to do with one another. > > Bee was calling Trump an asshole in extremely harsh terms but the implications don’t extend beyond Trump. You don’t think “Well, Bee must think ALL women are cunts!”. Bee was also calling Trump that as a direct attack on Trump’s job as Assistant to The President where she has failed to make any meaningful impact on the president regarding taking immigrant children away from their parents (and then apparently losing track of them). > > One can be insulted by both but I don’t think both are really in the same sphere. This is an excellent analysis **Jophiel**. ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/23 "2018-05-31T20:54:44Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Remember too that it wasn’t just “feckless c–t” but also “put on something tight and low-cut.” It’s not just the vulgar name but the sexist implication that she’s only valuable for her appearance, despite the fact that (as someone noted earlier as to Jarrett) her politics and her looks have nothing to do with one another. That wasn’t a joke about her appearance it was a joke about how her dad wants to fuck her. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/24 "2018-05-31T20:56:36Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Remember too that it wasn’t just “feckless c–t” but also “put on something tight and low-cut.” It’s not just the vulgar name but the sexist implication that she’s only valuable for her appearance, despite the fact that (as someone noted earlier as to Jarrett) her politics and her looks have nothing to do with one another. Um, no. > [@Airbeck](#): > > That wasn’t a joke about her appearance it was a joke about how her dad wants to fuck her. Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/25 "2018-05-31T20:59:01Z")
there are a lot of people who don’t get upset about what she said. Those people are called Democrats. 🙂 She already apologized. > **[Samantha Bee apologizes for vulgar remark about Ivanka Trump: 'I crossed a line'](https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/31/media/samantha-bee-apologizes-ivanka-trump/index.html)** > > Samantha Bee has apologized for calling White House senior adviser and first daughter Ivanka Trump a "feckless c\*\*\*\*" on her TBS show Thursday. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/26 "2018-05-31T21:01:21Z")
I don’t think calling someone a ‘cunt’ is significantly different than calling them a ‘dick’ or a ‘prick’. While ‘cunt’ is more charged in the US, it’s just a swear word based on a body part, there’s not a history with it the way that there is with asserting a connection between black people and monkeys. I’m probably biased because I know a number of women and vagina-posessing genderqueer people who prefer the term ‘cunt’ over ones like ‘pussy,’ ‘vag’, or ‘lady bits.’ I’m pretty sure that, ‘cunt’ is on it’s way to being dethroned as the super-swear word in the US in the next decade or two, it’s already a friendly term of endearment in Australia. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/27 "2018-05-31T21:01:33Z")
Dang, I thought Bee had integrity. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/28 "2018-05-31T21:01:41Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Republicans are claiming: “See, you’re a hypocrite! you only get outraged when it’s a conservative that crosses the line!!” Ask them if they happen to have heard of Al Franken. Or, for that matter, Harvey Weinstein. They probably haven’t heard of former Democratic National Committee member [John Parker](http://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2018/04/05/a-florida-dnc-official-came-under-fire-for-using-the-term-colored-people-then-he-resigned/) whose resignation was demanded due to his calling African-Americans “colored people”, but they can look him up. Likewise, there are numerous instances of Democrats pushing back against Democrats using homophobic and transphobic slurs. You could also remind them, as noted above, of the many instances of Republicans calling Hillary Clinton a “cunt” and not getting fired for it. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/29 "2018-05-31T21:01:54Z")
> [@Airbeck](#): > > That wasn’t a joke about her appearance it was a joke about how her dad wants to fuck her. You’re saying that like you somehow think that makes it less sexist and devaluing, but I’m hard-pressed to see why that’s true or more relevant to her job. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/30 "2018-05-31T21:05:53Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Dang, I thought Bee had integrity. TBS probably “Strongly suggested” she apologize. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/31 "2018-05-31T21:19:19Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > :dubious: None of those seems to have happened to Texas Republican Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller who, as I linked above, tweeted that Hillary Clinton was a “cunt”. > > In fact, Miller’s still going strong with the “provocative” social media posts, [having just posted a “controversial” photo of Whoopi Goldberg that he deleted after learning it was photoshopped](https://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-politics/2018/05/30/sid-miller-shares-deletesdoctored-photo-whoopi-goldberg-wearing-violent-image-trump). Forget it, Kimstu. It’s Texas. Also, even though it was rude and vile, Sid Miller was a public figure insulting another public figure. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/32 "2018-05-31T21:23:03Z")
It was certainly wrong. But it’s not racist. And of course, Bee doesnt have much of a USA presence, not like Barr does. I dont think she has any current shows? Barr, otoh has or had a top network comedy. Also Barr did other stupid crap like her National Anthem travesty. So, yeah. If Bee had a US TV show I’d expect her to be fired or at least punished in some way. Just like Barr was. \*\*But see, this is prime “whataboutism”. \*\*Barr, who is a much bigger personality and has a history of stupid shit, uttered a very nasty _racist_ comment & insult. Bee- who I had to look up to know who she was- uttered a nasty _personal insult_. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/33 "2018-05-31T21:24:33Z")
> [@Inner Stickler](#): > > Dang, I thought Bee had integrity. I don’t see what’s “lacking integrity” about being willing to apologize for an obscene insult, even if I personally don’t find the obscene insult all that big a deal. On the contrary, I think comedians who refuse to apologize when their use of coarse language gives offense generally come across as egotistical assholes. You are not some kind of First Amendment martyr just because you thought it would be funny to say that the Pope or whoever is a drippy cumstain and a lot of folks got outraged about it. Now, if Bee had recanted some reasonable statement of fact or opinion because of popular pressure, I **would** be disappointed. But outrage about the foulness of one’s language is different from outrage about the content of one’s meaning, at least as far as the ethics of public discourse are concerned. (I recognize that on a strict civil-liberties basis, obscene language can be just as deserving of protection as unpopular opinion, but that’s not the context we’re talking about here.) She called somebody a “cunt”, a lot of people thought it was inappropriate for her to call somebody a “cunt” even on a trash-talking comedy show, so she said sorry for using the word “cunt”. I don’t have a problem with that. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/34 "2018-05-31T21:26:23Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > Also, even though it was rude and vile, Sid Miller was a public figure insulting another public figure. True, and also applicable to Samantha Bee and Ivanka Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/35 "2018-05-31T21:38:34Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Eh, IDK, I hesitant to push back on this too much because I’m pretty much of the same opinion you are. But that’s the thing that kind of bothers me. Republicans are claiming: “See, you’re a hypocrite! you only get outraged when it’s a conservative that crosses the line!!” > > I’m just concerned that maybe there is a modicum of truth to that. Hey, push back. However: I’m not a Democrat/liberal. I used to _be_ Republican. I never voted for Obama and my first time voting Democratic was Hillary Clinton(due to Trump, obviously). Even as someone who voted for Bob Dole in '96 and George W. Bush in 2000(and would have voted for some Republicans in 2016\*), it’s no comparison between Roseanne and Samantha Bee. \*Trump - never. Ted Cruz - never. Other Repubs vs Clinton? Quite likely. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/36 "2018-05-31T21:39:47Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > It was certainly wrong. But it’s not racist. And of course, Bee doesnt have much of a USA presence, not like Barr does. I dont think she has any current shows? Barr, otoh has or had a top network comedy. Wait. I thought Samantha Bee has Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/37 "2018-05-31T21:47:46Z")
I don’t have a problem with “feckless cunt”. Ivanka’s earned it. I do have a problem with jokes about her dressing up for daddy. We can and should be better than that. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/38 "2018-05-31T21:49:21Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Wait. I thought Samantha Bee has Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. HUH? Yep, right, a mostly unwatched late nite show on TBS. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/39 "2018-05-31T21:54:10Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > I don’t see what’s “lacking integrity” about being willing to apologize for an obscene insult, even if I personally don’t find the obscene insult all that big a deal. I’m just saying, Michelle Wolf wouldn’t have apologized. I watch Full Frontal because she has not been afraid to be abrasive and insulting about shitty politicians. Of course, I don’t know what goes on behind the scenes and what truly disgusting jokes have been censorbait in the past. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2018, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214/40 "2018-05-31T22:01:21Z")
Again, pure 'whataboutism". :rolleyes:Look, certainly one can castigate Bee for that comment. But that wasnt the purpose here. It was to show that the left are all full of hypocrites because they didn’t castigate Bee- even tho the circumstances are vastly different. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/samantha-bees-feckless-cunt-comment/815214.md?page=3)