Jim Jefferies cross the line?

[IVPITER]

I don't think this has been discussed here.
Jim Jefferies on Friday night was funny but one joke has been on my mind the last few days. As far as I can recall the joke went along with Jim saying, it would be easier if he was gay, he is a man's man, he gets along with men, but women hate him and he hates women but the reason he could never fuck a man is because he respects them too much.

The more I think about the more I think the joke is simply sexist.

[Voltairine]

Can't agree there. He wasn't being literal, comedians exaggerate things, switcharoo things for the punchline. But then I'm a woman, perhaps a homosexual male would see it differently.

[Keith_W]

I had no doubt it was sexist the moment I heard it. And so did a few women I spoke to.

[heresy]

proves a good point thought.

An atheist can be anything: a humanist, misogynist, nihilist, anarchist, Stalinist, communist, conspiracy theorist, and could even be a vegan!

George Carlin addressed the issue. He's an atheist I respect.

[IVPITER]

I'm a fan of Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The characters are jerks, idiots and at times sexist. When a joke that is sexist on that show is told, it is clear to me that sexism is not endorsed nor are the characters at all portrayed as someone to look up to. It wasn't clear to me Jim was putting forward a view, however exaggerated, that he disagrees with.

[starr]

I was laughing so much at Jim Jefferies' act that I had to keep wiping away tears.

I don't think I laughed at that particular joke however. I remember feeling a bit shocked like 'did he really go there?'

It was a sexist joke and therefore I don't think it was an appropriate joke for the GAC.

He told the joke within a context of satirising a sexist and homophobic male. I imagine the purpose of this was to distance himself from the content as in 'it's not what I think...it's what sexist and homophobic men think'.

Such an approach gave the joke a thin veneer of acceptability. The veneer was very thin however.

The next day Marion Maddox made a comment during the panel discussion about the sexist content of the comedy. I was disappointed to hear a couple of audience members yell out 'it was just a joke' and 'you're not very pretty either'.

[Martin_Madej]

If your offended by that joke you obviously dont know Jim Jefferies or his work
He is a prick a sexist and womanising dick in his shows. he is satirising the social norms of past decades which is what makes it funny because if that shit happened now days the person involved would get his head bashed in.

im not saying that is doesn't happen there are a few laggards that still think that way.

To show my point which i have forgotten already here is a video of one of his shows


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jaiMzLhliA

[mophosophical]

I think his act was victim to a kind of Poe's law http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Poe%27s_Law

Another bloke and I were discussing this very subject at the dinner, and seemed to both come to the conclusion that it was ok. Soon after, the lovely lady that was sitting between us returned, and we asked her what she thought. As she paused a moment and started to inhale, in a manner one does when about to deliver a condemning rant, the other bloke and I exchanged a glance, silently communicating to each other "oh shit what have we got ourselves into" But then she only said something approximately like "Well he did seem a bit racist I know but I thought it was quite funny"

Confused by our chuckle, we explained we thought it was the sexism she would have been most offended by, but she said something like "Oh nah I didn't take that seriously"

I don't think Jim Jefferies truly believes that stuff. Like starr and Martin Madej say, it's just a parody of a stereotype. The veneer was so thin because he so convincingly performed it.

[starr]

We could examine the appropriateness of the joke for the GAC by asking what effect it would be likely to have on a group of men at a pub.

1. Some groups of men may have a discussion about whether or not it was OK to find the joke funny because they want to completely disassociate themselves from the sexist sentiment expressed.

2. Some other groups of men may use the joke to 'laugh at' the 'sexist man' portrayed in the joke. They may continue the 'satire' by expressing further sexist sentiments and 'play acting' that they think in the same sexist way.

3. Some other groups of men may fully embrace the sexist sentiments expressed in the joke and continue the 'joke' by expressing further sexist sentiments.

I don't think anyone would have a problem with the first scenario.

Perhaps most of us would have a problem with the third scenario.

The second scenario may be a grey area. Personally, I think the second scenario is pretty much as bad as the third. I think that type sexist satire can lead to men feeling like they have permission to 'act like' sexist pricks.

[Logic]

What bothered me was the guy sitting in front of us who clapped waaaay too enthusiastically at the lack of respect for women joke. The danger of those types of jokes is that some nutters apparently take them seriously.


i sent this from my iPad