Patterico's Pontifications

11/10/2021

Doing It Before Someone Else Does It For You…Because You Know They Will

Filed under: General — Dana @ 5:00 pm



[guest post by Dana]

Blacklist yourself before others do it for you, I guess:

From the report:

The British comedy icon, 82, announced Tuesday that he is pulling out of a planned appearance at Cambridge University after a fellow attendee was “blacklisted” by “woke” staff and students.

Cleese — who is an alumnus of Cambridge — took to Twitter, saying: “I was looking forward to talking to students at the Cambridge Union this Friday, but I hear that someone there has been blacklisted for doing an impersonation of Hitler.

“I regret that I did the same on a Monty Python show, so I am blacklisting myself before someone else does.”

The funnyman followed up with a second tweet, telling his 5.6 million followers: “I apologize to anyone at Cambridge who was hoping to talk with me, but perhaps some of you can find a venue where woke rules do not apply.”

The BAFTA winner’s announcement comes after art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon was banned from speaking at the Cambridge Union event.

Graham-Dixon last week “performed a mock-Hitlerian rant” during an academic debate to “caricature Hitler and his views,” the Times reported. He has since apologized and said his intention was to highlight “the utterly evil nature of the Nazis.”

This brouhaha reminds me of the recent, multi-award-winning and utterly charming film called JoJo Rabbit: Jojo is a lonely German boy who discovers that his single mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their attic. Aided only by his imaginary friend — Adolf Hitler — Jojo must confront his blind nationalism as World War II continues to rage on:

I just can’t wait for a massive come to Jesus moment when the people in the West begin to make utterly relentless demands for MORE SPEECH! You snort in derision? That’s fine. I choose to remain hopeful.

(My own pre-emptive strike: Yes, I know that Britain doesn’t have a First Amendment…)

–Dana

30 Responses to “Doing It Before Someone Else Does It For You…Because You Know They Will”

  1. Hello.

    Dana (174549)

  2. “He’s right, you know.”

    nk (1d9030)

  3. If any people have right to lampoon Adolf in any way, shape or form, it’s the Brits. Recall seeing Cleese as “Mr. Hilter” w/t Pythons in their ‘Minehead by-election’ sketch back in the day when first run on the BBC. It was then-and still is- hilarious. Especially if you understand how British by-elections are held. Suggest a youtube search for the skit.

    ________________

    OT- SpaceX launching Americans to the ISS tonight-

    https://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html#public

    Godspeed.

    DCSCA (f4c5e5)

  4. Good for Cleese, I guess he’s come to his senses since his deranged conspiracy theories, Bush hate and Obama adoration.

    https://youtu.be/BIz4KrZottM

    Obudman (ff876c)

  5. So, why are some people allowed to lampoon Hitler and even win accolades and prestigious awards for it, and yet others aren’t so lucky. Clearly defined rules and the consistent application of them is important. Otherwise, too many end up looking like simpering fools.

    Dana (174549)

  6. Cleese has said some really un-woke things in the past, so it’s pretty certain they would have banned him anyway. Things like “London is no longer an English city.”

    https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-48451384

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  7. If I were on the AITA subreddit, I would rate this EITA.

    Nic (896fdf)

  8. BTW, Cleese is a good friend of a good friend of mine, although we’ve only met in passing.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  9. So, why are some people allowed to lampoon Hitler

    Just look on the Interwebs at all the times W dressed up as Hitler.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  10. If any people have right to lampoon Adolf in any way, shape or form, it’s the Brits

    Especially Brits who lived through WW2 like Cleese (born 1939).

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  11. Never, ever apologize to the Red Guards. Instead, talk about being impressed by people like Rittenhouse and Goetz.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  12. Also, Cleese is correct, the word is “blacklisted” not “cancelled.”

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  13. This is indeed unfortunate. If somewhat funny, which is what I expect he intended.

    I admit I would feel worse about this if Cleese had not demonstrated a sharply-defined double standard over the years about what was, and what was not, acceptable public discourse…usually based, as far as I can see, on what he did or did not like. But then, I suppose that’s true for most of us. I have certainly been guilty of it myself.

    Demosthenes (3fd56e)

  14. It’s Airstrip One. For all we know, Cambridge staff and students blacklisted the art historian for the lampooning of Der Fuhrer and for highlighting the evil nature of the Nazis.

    nk (1d9030)

  15. The Ministry of Serious Thoughts has caused the Minister of Silly Walks to resign. As Donald Duck once said, “Awwwww Heil”.

    Appalled (1a17de)

  16. Bret Stephens wrote about the subject yesterday. I was going to excerpt the better bits, but it’s all good.

    Paul Montagu (5de684)

  17. “For all we know, Cambridge staff and students blacklisted the art historian for the lampooning of Der Fuhrer and for highlighting the evil nature of the Nazis.”

    Anyone who decides that the antidote to facism has to be a giant stinking dollop of facism is an idiot or a facist or both

    steveg (e81d76)

  18. Wenn ist das Nunstück git und Slotermeyer?
    Ja! Beiherhund das Oder die Flipperwaldt gersput!

    Watch the whole thing.

    nk (1d9030)

  19. The proper response to poor speech is better speech. Those who censor instead admit an incapacity for better speech.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  20. @9. BTW, Cleese is a good friend of a good friend of mine, although we’ve only met in passing.

    Best Britcom ever quilled- his ‘Fawlty Towers’ w/then flame, Connie Booth. And he lampoons Hitler in an episode of that as well, titled ‘The Germans.’

    DCSCA (f4c5e5)

  21. nk (1d9030) — 11/10/2021 @ 7:49 pm

    Good grief, what are you doing?! Are you TRYING to kill people?

    :::wink:::

    Demosthenes (3fd56e)

  22. Paging Jeffrey Toobin.

    mg (8cbc69)

  23. — Mein Hund hat keine Nase.
    — Wie riecht es?
    — Schrecklich!

    nk (1d9030)

  24. I don’t really know the details, but people of stature rejecting institutions based on their censorious habits seems pretty positive to me right now.

    Time123 (9f42ee)

  25. Good for Cleese, I guess he’s come to his senses since his deranged conspiracy theories, Bush hate and Obama adoration.

    https://youtu.be/BIz4KrZottM

    Obudman (ff876c) — 11/10/2021 @ 5:59 pm

    You’re being too binary. Not everyone that agrees with you on an issue or about a situation has decided to join your tribe.

    Time123 (9f42ee)

  26. Not everyone that agrees with you on an issue or about a situation has decided to join your tribe.

    Worse, they might agree on a lot of things but won’t join a tribe with an ignorant, crass and venal chief.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  27. Back in 2013, I told my alma mater that I would not be contributing any longer after they invited Eduardo Bonilla-Silva (a Duke Sociology professor) to lecture students about their inherent racism.

    He was, among other things, an unrepentant member of the “Group of 88” who libeled the lacrosse team and forced several members out of the university, over a falsely-reported rape. See Nifong. Duke reportedly spent 8-figure money paying damages.

    Kevin M (ab1c11)

  28. @28 I remember that cluster f@)(.

    I think Nifong got off too easy

    Time123 (9f42ee)

  29. Peggy Noonan calls on Democrats to drive the Wokesters out of their party, or else. She points out that McCaullife’s denials regarding CRT fell flat because many parents had seen those lessons over Zoom.

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/democrats-face-the-woke-elections-socialists-critical-race-theory-schools-aoc-virginia-11636669165?mod=followpeggynoonan

    Kevin M (ab1c11)


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