# Wife Swap, February 9 **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 10, 2005, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349 "2005-02-10T04:25:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/61 "2005-02-13T17:14:29Z")
I think they tend to go for the stereotypes. The bitchy, anal retentive Christian is a staple, as is the repressed and enlightened minority. There is also the Yankee foul mouth snob, and the noble country bumpkin. The pushy new age Californian, and the lazy inarticulate Cajun. And so on. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/62 "2005-02-13T19:35:16Z")
The cool part of their match-ups is that these people don’t always live up or down to their stereotypes. One of the rich pampered woman was truly a selfish bitch, but another one turned out to be a nice person who ended up spending more time with her kids. (Her husband was a jerk though.) Sometimes the controlling mom who makes her kids do their homework before they watch TV teaches something to the no-rules mom who just wants to be friends with her kids. The show has some value, I think. As reality shows. go. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/63 "2005-02-14T01:14:43Z")
> [@John Carter of Mars](#): > > So assume the women are real, and as depicted. All that indicates is that the show’s producers went out and found a cool lesbian mom and a total bitch for a christian mom and made their show based on those individuals. > > Maybe next week you’ll see the episode with the cool christian mom and the total bitch lesbian mom. Or not. That’s a good point. We saw what they wanted us to see, and most of us were already primed to side with the lesbian moms and see the hateful, republican hypocritical black woman as, well… _that._ I wonder if they didn’t do more harm than good. Anyone watching with the same beliefs as HRHBW probably got pissed off and vowed to vote for even more anti-gay laws. Anyone remember the episode that swapped the Buddhist, barefoot, guitar playing at peace with the universe but kind of a door-mat wife with the big 'ol southern grab life by the ass & give it a great big hug black woman? See, I think they could have swapped either of those two women and we could have gotten some laughs, and they could have _snuck_ the “accept diversity” message in without being walloped over the head with the “mean people suck” stick. ---
**Author:** ![kung\_fu\_lola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f4b2a3/32.png) [@kung\_fu\_lola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kung_fu_lola)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/64 "2005-02-14T05:07:32Z")
**John Carter** , I don’t see how general “being a bitch” and “being a homophobe” are equal. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/65 "2005-02-14T12:47:04Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > Hmm. Now I don’t want to imply that antigay sentiment isn’t real or a pernicious curse on society. Because it is. But the above message isn’t too different from that sent to (or received by) your typical shy, beta-male hetero. And nobody says _that’s_ unjust or wrong, I guess because a) he’s not a member of a persecuted minority group and b) no one is shrilly thumping Bibles at him or attmepting to pass legislation. 🙂 Preach it, brother. But the analogy doesn’t _quite_ hold up. Bear in mind that I am a) no gay apologist and b) a shy, beta-male hetero who have slept alone for too much of my adult life and spent a fair bit of the rest of it looking for love in all the wrong places… but while I well know the pain of never troubling the scorer, my woes aren’t comparable with those I’d have if it was being argued that I shouldn’t even be given the ball. The above sounded more profound when it was in my head. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![Nutty\_Bunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d07c76/32.png) [@Nutty\_Bunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nutty_Bunny)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/66 "2005-02-14T16:44:50Z")
> [@John Carter of Mars](#): > > So assume the women are real, and as depicted. All that indicates is that the show’s producers went out and found a cool lesbian mom and a total bitch for a christian mom and made their show based on those individuals. You’ve just described the premise of the show. They put two people of opposing lifestyles/political or religious ideologies/cleanliness habits/financial status in the ring and let them go at it. What’s the problem? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Lao](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Dr.Lao](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Lao)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/67 "2005-02-14T22:40:38Z")
I think **John Carter’s** point is that they could’ve found a lesbian who constantly made hostile comments about Christianity and Christians or they could’ve found a Christian who, while believing homosexual acts were sinful, nonetheless treated everyone with respect and dignity. But they didn’t. They went for the stereotypes. The stereotypes that cast Christians in the worst possible light. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2005, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/68 "2005-02-15T02:26:24Z")
> [@kung fu lola](#): > > **John Carter** , I don’t see how general “being a bitch” and “being a homophobe” are equal. Point taken. I’ve replaced the words “total bitch” in my prior post with “bigot” (below). Originally Posted by **John Carter of Mars** \*So assume the women are real, and as depicted. All that indicates is that the show’s producers went out and found a cool lesbian mom and a bigot for a christian mom and made their show based on those individuals. Maybe next week you’ll see the episode with the cool christian mom and the bigot lesbian mom. Or not.\* Hope that explains it better. And big thanks, **Dr. Lao**! You nailed my point exactly. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2005, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/69 "2005-02-15T14:41:01Z")
> [@Dr. Lao](#): > > I think **John Carter’s** point is that they could’ve found a lesbian who constantly made hostile comments about Christianity and Christians or they could’ve found a Christian who, while believing homosexual acts were sinful, nonetheless treated everyone with respect and dignity. But they didn’t. They went for the stereotypes. The stereotypes that cast Christians in the worst possible light. That’s part of that persecution of the majority going on in the U.S., right? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2005, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/70 "2005-02-15T15:00:02Z")
And I hope the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion get what they want from the Wizard, too. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Kaitlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/73ab20/32.png) [@Kaitlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaitlyn)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/71 "2005-02-16T16:35:10Z")
> [@](#): > > That’s a good point. We saw what they wanted us to see, and most of us were already primed to side with the lesbian moms and see the hateful, republican hypocritical black woman as, well… that. _Here_ we may be predisposed to side with the lesbian couple, but there’s no way that’s true of the general populace. If my recent apartment hunting experiences are any indication, there are a whole lot of people who find openly dismissing lesbians as deviants normal and desirable. I’d be willing to bet that there were as many people agreeing with the rich mom’s viewpoint as there were who sympathized with the lesbian moms. ---
**Author:** ![kung\_fu\_lola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f4b2a3/32.png) [@kung\_fu\_lola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kung_fu_lola)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349/72 "2005-02-16T18:00:36Z")
Exactly. That’s what makes it doubly offensive: not only is this crazy-ass bitch being given a public forum in which to spew her rank garbage, the producers are doing it because _they know this is what people want to see_. It’s exciting to watch someone say things you feel, but are too cowardly or whatever to say (see: _Eminem’s album sales_; _South Park, success of_). The producers were _pandering_, and, no matter that it’s inevitable and happens fifteen million times a day multiplied by the times that Jerry Springer opens his mouth, that’s just reprehensible. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wife-swap-february-9/289349.md?page=3)