Coming soon from the people who brought you: The Sopranos, The Dead Zone, and the O'Reilly Factor. A new show for the masses to absorb! Everybody Hates Jew Boy ! Season Premier this Thursday. Don't Miss It!
They sweep our nation like a electronic plague. Almost none of you are safe from the evil it spews into the air of its habitat. Can you divert your eyes? I think not. They lure even the most intelligible of people to their doom like the deathly sirens of Odysseus’s travels. You can’t escape them. They’ve already invaded your home. What is this madness of which I speak? The culprit is none other tha…Oh no! No! It’s got me! Hel! Ooh! My favorite antisemetic show is on.
All right! Class has begun so sit down and pay attention. Who can tell me what antisemitism is? *looks around* No one? This is really sad. Looks like some re-education is in order. Antisemitism is, it's simplest terms, a general prejudice or hatred aimed toward people of the Jewish faith. Where does it come from you might ask? There are many sources. In this blog, I shall attempt to tackle a single perpetrator. The television and its antisemetic influences upon the youth of society. So sit back, relax and whatever you do…don’t touch that dial.
Now this is something that really irks me. Undereducated youths who watch garbage on television. The largest source of all antisemitism is plain, old ignorance. Remember the saying, "don’t believe everything you hear?" Indeed it one of the many familiar phrases and clichés that I use to make my points. Don’t get me wrong though. I like television. Just not what it does to certain people who watch the worst substance available in HD. When an ignorant person watches a program aimed at their general level, they often take fiction for fact. It’s almost as bad as the people who think the Daily Show is a real news show comparable to CNN. Calling someone a "stupid Jew" is not alright. Whether it's toward someone of the Jewish faith or not, it’s still a religious insult. If feel the degrading need to tell someone they’re not smart, do it without referencing Judaism.
Let's put the spotlight on a television series aired on Comedy Central. Most of you reading this already know what show I'm talking about. The animated horror known as South Park. I won't go into details since I don't watch the show and have only seen about two or three episodes, but from what I've seen, it's half an hour of broadcast-nation garbage. People are mocked for religion, sex, color, and race on a constant basis. Mainly the people who watch this sort of show are not your best and brightest. They are young adults who soak up what they see as decent comedy. If a character is killed, they laugh. If Jewish character is killed, they would still laugh. Am I wrong? I really don't think so. As I've heard several times, each show has a resolution at the end with a "good" moral. This is also the part that no one really cares about. What does the viewer remember better? A two minute ending with a half-baked moral or the violence and sick humor? I think I;ve made my point.
The government says it tires to combat antisemitism but if this is really true, why doesn’t the FCC step in? Why don’t they censor or force large disclaimers to be shown before each show. Even better yet, why not have the FCC work with congressional committees to create educational programming which specifically combats antisemitism and racism in general. Public high schools are an even bigger laugh. To my knowledge, there is no curriculum in any public high school that includes anti-religious hate as part of the studies. Further more, we have a Black History Month. What about a Jewish History Month? I feel it would be a great thing to teach young minds while they can still be molded. Television has almost too much broadcast freedom. Since that can’t be stopped. Let’s have the schools combat it with positive reinforcement and re-education.
My friends…in the case of religious hate, ignorance will never be bliss.
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This is well thought out. I have to admit I've never thought of having the FCC control the problem.
the truth is that the FCC can't control it as well as they should be able to because they would have to violate the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. As we all know that "never" happens. Schools and other various institutions need to become much more active.
But I have to wonder if you've actually watched the show, and especially the episode you mention here. In the episode titled "Pinkeye," Cartman dresses up as Hitler for Halloween, which of course angers one of the shows major jewish characters, Kyle. In South Park, the character of Cartman is often used to charicature of ultra-conservatives. But, Cartman is rarely potrayed as a sympathetic character. Instead, he is used as a foil against which the other, more sympathetic characters react. South Park is pretty unforgiving of extremism of any type, and Cartman is certainly the main "villain" of the show. South Park often conceals an extremely deep message of the behind its abrasive, low-brow humor.
One of the show's creators, Matt Stone, is ethnicallly jewish (though religiously agnostic), and the Broflovski's are based at least loosely on his own family (for example, his real life parents are named Gerald and Sheila, the same as Kyle's parents). As a long time fan, I have always been impressed with the underlying message of rationality and tolerance from the show's writers and animators. Yes, Cartman dressed up as Hitler, but the point of that episode was (in part) to show how hateful and intolerant people sometimes are to jewish people, and to each other in general.
percivale
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Check out Progressive PRIDE, a Gay-Straight Alliance for the Progressive U community.
yours views that the show may have underlying morals and so on. I'm sure that there are some episodes that aren't as bad as I think.(Aside from the fact that I don't care for the artwork of the show) It's simply that there are many people that take what they see and hear and apply it to real life. As I said above,
"The largest source of all antisemitism is plain, old ignorance."
People need to realize that it's not okay to call someone a "stupid Jew" whether it be to someone of the Jewish faith or not.
Have you actually seen the episode you talked about above? I think their tactic of drawing ridicule to hateful opinions is a very effective way of combating the very ignorance of which you speak.
percivale
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Check out Progressive PRIDE, a Gay-Straight Alliance for the Progressive U community.
I've seen bits while changing the channel. I don't think making light of horid situations is an effective way to combat ignorance. If they show a man being beat up, will that teach viewers that violence is wrong. I don't see how.
Please use the reply link at the bottom of a comment to respond to it. It keeps the conversations clear and easier to follow (especially once more and more comments start hitting the thread).
Also, you can't really criticize something unless you understand it. For a TV show, that means you have to watch it before you can criticize it properly. Could you pick up a book, read the title, synopsis, and three pages here and there and be able to explain to someone the moral of the story?
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
Thanks, mvenus929.
perci
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Check out Progressive PRIDE, a Gay-Straight Alliance for the Progressive U community.
You make a good point. Perhaps some of my bias toward the show comes from seeing bits and pieces of that episode. All I remember seeing is a Nazi rally / marching thing. That's what I came away with as I'm sure countless others have. Perhaps there's come meaningful moral at the end, but honestly, is a person is watching a show or movie...what will they remember, things like nazi marches and swastikas or a moral at the end? Action or logic? Most people remember action. I personally have no wish to watch the show and therefor will rewrite that segments to not include that which I don't fully know about.
Now that I think about it. I have every right to talk about South Park and how shows similar to it are ruining Americans. I've seen a few episodes. It's dreadful. People get beaten up, shot, killed, harassed and cursed at. There is a heavy layer of racism that permeates from people's television sets when they tune in. I've realized that the majority of people are incredibly susceptible to the kind of trash shown on tv everyday. Besides bad parenting or a lack thereof, television influences children and young adults as nothing else can.
I'll say it again...when people watch shows like South Park, they watch for the action...not the innocent moral at the end that's supposed to justify the use of violence and make up for it.
I think another blog is on the way.
~Astroaction149
It's called satire, get a sense of humor.
...when the people it makes fun of don't get the joke.
rofl
TTFN,
Blackout
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Yes, I've changed my username from "percivale" to "Blackout." Go here if you want to know why.
I don't really think that you can comment on a show that you don't watch. I do watch South Park and am somewhat offended that you have categorized me as not the "best and brightest," but that is not my main point. What I like about South Park is that they are equal opportunity offenders, they make fun of everyone, not just Jews. I also think that it is a great social commentary about what is going in the world. Its message is more love than hate. If we would all realize how much we are the same, and accept one another's differences, the world would be a better place. social commentary