# Sandra Bernhard makes rape funny again! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 3, 2008, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254 "2008-10-03T00:18:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **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:** [October 3, 2008, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/21 "2008-10-03T14:52:18Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > If you don’t think Porky Pig raping Elmer Fudd is funny, then I guess you and I have different opinions on that subject. I’d rather see Daffy Duck raping Bugs Bunny (when he’s dressed as a girly bunny). I just go that way. ---
**Author:** ![Peanut\_Gallery](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/838e76/32.png) [@Peanut\_Gallery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanut_Gallery)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/22 "2008-10-03T14:59:01Z")
I’m pissed she made the joke just cuz her ugly mug is all over my homepage now. I’ve had to adblock 3 images of her from google news already. make it stop! ---
**Author:** ![buttonjockey308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@buttonjockey308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buttonjockey308)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/23 "2008-10-03T15:02:56Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Upon further review, she’s not funny. At all. > > Paging Sarah Silverman! Bernhard’s pathetic because she’s not funny, Silverman’s not funny because she’s pathetic. ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/24 "2008-10-03T15:04:07Z")
The taboo against making fun of rape only applies when the victim is female. Lots of people obviously feel it’s perfectly okay to make jokes about getting raped in the prison shower. Apparently the sexual abuse of women matters, but the sexual abuse of men doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/25 "2008-10-03T15:21:19Z")
> [@buttonjockey308](#): > > Bernhard’s pathetic because she’s not funny, Silverman’s not funny because she’s pathetic. At least Silverman’s cute. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/26 "2008-10-03T19:09:38Z")
> [@bacon](#): > > You owe me 1:45 of my life back… No kidding. Drunk-looking woman says “fuck” a lot - call the media! It’s an outrage! ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/27 "2008-10-03T19:18:29Z")
> [@LonesomePolecat](#): > > At least Silverman’s cute. Maybe to you but not to me. I’m just wondering who sold their soul to get Bernhard up on the stage again. It couldn’t have been Bernhard because she had to sell hers to get on stage the first time around. ---
**Author:** ![HongKongFooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c4cdca/32.png) [@HongKongFooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HongKongFooey)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/28 "2008-10-03T19:48:09Z")
> [@Tahssa](#): > > I’m just wondering who sold their soul to get Bernhard up on the stage again. It couldn’t have been Bernhard because she had to sell hers to get on stage the first time around. Now we know what happened to [Madonna](http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2008/07/internet-now-entirely-composed-of-madonna-pictures.php)! ---
**Author:** ![muttrox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a8b319/32.png) [@muttrox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muttrox)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/29 "2008-10-03T20:08:31Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > Total nitpick: Space isn’t cold. It’s not warm either. There is no temperature in space. Nitpick: Nuh-uh. There is a very low temperature. Space \*\*is \*\*cold. [What Is the Temperature in Space? (with pictures)](http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-temperature-in-space.htm), or many other sources. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/30 "2008-10-03T20:16:33Z")
I wasn’t amused by the clip, but actually, there was a time when I got a kick out of Sandra. She looks annoyed, but I heard she’s pretty happy with her adopted (?) child. Not a funny bit, though. ---
**Author:** ![Hogwash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e57/32.png) [@Hogwash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hogwash)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/31 "2008-10-03T23:31:12Z")
I wonder if the people saying rape is never funny would also say the same about murder. If not, do they think that rape is worse than murder? I’m willing to bet that most wouldn’t have much of a problem with a joke about a politician needing to be assassinated, yet substituting rape would be seen as beyond the pale. Could you really see a pit thread along the lines of ‘Sarah Silverman thinks murder is funny again?’. I doubt it. So please, somebody enlighten me, as I find such thinking strange. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/32 "2008-10-03T23:41:51Z")
How can an avowed racist take the “high moral ground” over someone who allegedly made an objectionable rape joke? Or should I stop being too literal? ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/33 "2008-10-03T23:48:18Z")
> [@Hogwash](#): > > I’m willing to bet that most wouldn’t have much of a problem with a joke about a politician needing to be assassinated, yet substituting rape would be seen as beyond the pale. Interesting you say that. I certainly get a little bit violently ill whenever people I have to spend time with joke about how Obama is sure to be assassinated, being as he’s black, and everything. OK, I’ll make the joke, as per Bernhard’s. > [@Hypothetical idiot comedian](#): > > Hey, when Obama comes to Texas, some of my buddies are going to get together a great lynching party and beat the hell out him, before stringing him up! Nup, still not seeing the humour. > [@Lobohan](#): > > If you don’t think Porky Pig raping Elmer Fudd is funny, then I guess you and I have different opinions on that subject. I guess we do. Carlin’s really being lazy in that clip. If you follow it, he really only tells one joke (which isn’t even a joke, it’s just a silly mental image). The rest of it is either standing up for his right to joke about anything he likes (which is fine, so long as it’s at least FUNNY), or making these faux-poignant links between his non-joke and the real life situation of men thinking women are ‘asking for it’. There’s much better examples of Carlin out there. ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/34 "2008-10-03T23:55:10Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > How can an avowed racist take the “high moral ground” over someone who allegedly made an objectionable rape joke? Or should I stop being too literal? Sorry for the double post, but this came through while I was writing the other one. Anyway, that was my point - that a piece of human garbage like DD can claim (probably a better word to use than ‘take’) the high moral ground says something about how classy Berhard is at this point. I just wish she wouldn’t bring the Jews into it. Having said that, I’ll admit that I’m an outsider, and seem to miss the essential hatred that each side in US politics has for each other, that can make this sort of joke seem reasonable or funny or appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![Hogwash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e57/32.png) [@Hogwash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hogwash)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/35 "2008-10-04T00:10:48Z")
> [@Junior\_Spaceman](#): > > OK, I’ll make the joke, as per Bernhard’s. > > Nup, still not seeing the humour. That’s because it’s not funny. The original joke about gang rape is not funny either, but that’s because it lacks humour, not because it involves rape. I was more musing on the perceived notion that rape can never be funny because it is ‘serious business’. If you subscribe to that viewpoint, then I believe that you either have to (a) think murder is also off the table or (b) think rape is worse than murder if (a) is false, or your position is untenable. If there is an option (c) that I am missing, I’d like to hear it. So, judging by your response, it appears that you favour (a): jokes wherein the subject is killed can not be funny, just as jokes wherein the subject is raped are also not funny. Is this a reasonable assessment? ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/36 "2008-10-04T00:29:50Z")
Bernhard has unfortunately followed the path of fellow comics who became less funny the more they veered into angry political tirades (cf. David Cross, Janeane Garofalo, Dennis Miller). Fortunately for Sandra, she was never that funny to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/37 "2008-10-04T00:53:41Z")
> [@Hogwash](#): > > That’s because it’s not funny. The original joke about gang rape is not funny either, but that’s because it lacks humour, not because it involves rape. Hang on - was my ‘joke’ not funny because it lacked humour, or because it was about murder? Or just because I’m not a very good comedian? > [@](#): > > So, judging by your response, it appears that you favour (a): jokes wherein the subject is killed can not be funny, just as jokes wherein the subject is raped are also not funny. Is this a reasonable assessment? Sort of, with the exception that I haven’t ruled out any jokes about the rape or murder of a particular person ever being funny, just that I haven’t really come across any yet that I can think of. If someone stepped up with a good rape joke, I’d laugh, but making a statement (as Bernhard did), or saying something as lame as ‘You raped an 80 year old woman! Get some better taste!’ (as you could paraphrase Carlin - I had to listen again to the clip to realise this was meant to be a joke too, and not part of his ‘serious’ rant), is just lazy, and was only clapped because it was about a political enemy (as per the thigh slapping I referred to before wrt Obama’s assassination). Here’s a list of _some_ of the topics that I think everyone can make jokes about (not that my opinion counts for anything, but in case you’re interested), but the jokes should at least be in some way funny, rather than just mentioning them, and thinking that simply touching on a taboo subject should bring screams of laughter: [ul] [li]Rape[/li][li]Murder[/li][li]Overdose[/li][li]Car crashes[/li][li]Violent assault[/li][li]AIDS[/li][li]Genocide[/li][li]Racism[/li][li]Disability[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/38 "2008-10-04T02:55:33Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > Total nitpick: Space isn’t cold. It’s not warm either. There is no temperature in space. Oh dear. What would a thermometer read in outer space ? ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/39 "2008-10-04T03:40:32Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > Oh dear. What would a thermometer read in outer space ? A space age science fiction novel? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2008, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254/40 "2008-10-04T05:29:00Z")
[Bernhardt denies that she said it](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/02/sandra-bernhard-denies-re_n_131326.html). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandra-bernhard-makes-rape-funny-again/466254.md?page=3)