# Why does Matt Groening have something against bag boys? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 17, 2002, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280 "2002-12-17T07:18:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gitfiddle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/898d66/32.png) [@gitfiddle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gitfiddle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/1 "2002-12-17T07:18:43Z")
I was just watching a syndicated episode of the Simpsons today, and it left me wondering what Matt Groening has against bag boys. It was the Simpsons Safari Episode where a bag boy strike inadvertently leads the Simpsons to Africa. At the end there is a caption that says, “Dedicated to the hardworking bag boys of America …whose ineptness and greed were the inspiration for the episode.” What is that for? Did something happen in the bag boy world that I didn’t hear about (not that I should; I’m not a bag boy)? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/2 "2002-12-17T07:25:42Z")
Naw, it’s just plain fun, like the dedication to the Steelworkers of America that carried on the conceit that they were by-and-large gay, in that episode with John Waters. Bag-boys, obviously, wouldn’t have a seperate union. That’d be silly. The Simpsons folks just have a habit of carrying a joke past the end of the episode. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/3 "2002-12-17T07:42:45Z")
Oh, that Steelworkers dedication, by the way, was “Dedicated to the Steelworkers of America – Keep reaching for that rainbow!” Also, if you want to impress your friends, or merely convince them that you need to get out more, you can casually mention that this sort of thing is called _paratextuality_ – a spilling over of a diagetic world of a work of fiction into areas directly associated with it, but not actually part of the story-- like if you had an H.P. Lovecraft book with a jacket-design which suggested it came off the shelves of Miskatonic University… ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/4 "2002-12-17T13:35:46Z")
It wasn’t Matt Groening; it was the person who wrote the show (Groening isn’t involved in that except in a general way). ---
**Author:** ![Beastal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Beastal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beastal)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/5 "2002-12-17T14:12:25Z")
Are you a bag boy, **gitfiddle**? ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/6 "2002-12-17T14:36:33Z")
Umm… what’s a bag boy? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/7 "2002-12-17T14:38:22Z")
Bag person? Doesn’t sound right. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/8 "2002-12-17T14:45:13Z")
The boy who bags your groceries at the market. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/9 "2002-12-17T14:46:17Z")
Way to read that OP all the way to the end, **Beastal**. 🙂 **stuyguy** , a bag boy is the person at the grocery store who puts your purchases into a bag. Preference in hiring is given to those who have absolutely no concept of weight distribution, stress tolerance of bagging materials, and spatial orientation. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2002, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/10 "2002-12-17T19:03:17Z")
Groening can insult bag boys all he wants, but once he slights bag men, he’s in for a world of hurt. And if he gets rough with bag ladies, we may never head from him again. (Isn’t English a bizarre language? :D) ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/11 "2002-12-18T01:09:56Z")
i head you, derleth! ---
**Author:** ![Xavier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2bfe46/32.png) [@Xavier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xavier)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/12 "2002-12-18T01:42:09Z")
Should this not be in \*\* Le Cafe du Societies?\*\* Off you go (waitamminute! I’m not a moderator!) ---
**Author:** ![Beastal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Beastal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beastal)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-matt-groening-have-something-against-bag-boys/143280/13 "2002-12-18T05:49:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KneadToKnow \* > \*\*Way to read that OP all the way to the end, **Beastal**. 🙂 > \*\* [sub]D’oh![/sub]