WTF: Spielberg Should Be Protected From Satire Because He’s Jewish?

Posted by Kevin Carr (kevin@filmschoolrejects.com) on October 15, 2008

I am a fan of both Indiana Jones and South Park, and last week’s mid-season premier of the Comedy Central hit didn’t bother me in the least. For a strange reason, I felt no remorse, and I sat idly by and watched George Lucas and Steven Spielberg rape Indiana Jones again… and again… and again…

And then there was that poor Stormtrooper. Oh, the humanity!

Even though I loved this summer’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, I can respect Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s grief in watching what they consider their childhood hero get pounded in the ass by two of the most powerful movie moguls alive. I even give them credit for including Steven Spielberg in the blame and not just George Lucas (who is an easy target for fanboys the world over).

South Park has a rich history of offending people. I was waiting for some fallout from this episode pissing off somebody… the National Organization of Women protesting a cavalier attitude towards rape… Paramount Pictures mad at one of their own networks for airing the show on the week before the Indy 4 DVD release… the Organization of Chinese Americans fighting back against Eric Cartman’s racist diatribes (the episode was called “The China Problem,” after all)… I’d even buy the 501st Legion standing up in support of their own.

But the Anti-Defamation League? Apparently so. Earlier this week, Anti-Defamation League spokesperson Myrna Shinbaum told the New York Daily News, “South Park has been offensive and has had very anti-Jewish pieces in the past. We understand that the show is trying to satirize, but it may get lost on those who are haters.”

Lucas and Spielberg Rape Indiana Jones

What the fornication?

Is there anyone out there besides this nutjob that saw this episode as antisemitic? I can’t say that South Park hasn’t given the ADL plenty of problems in the past, but there was nothing in this episode at all that even acknowledged Spielberg’s religion.

Is the ADL saying that anyone of the Jewish faith should be protected from biting satire, even if it is entirely appropriate and has nothing to do with their religion? Did they think that South Park’s railing of Mel Gibson in the famous episode “The Passion of the Jew” was inappropriate for Christians or whack-job celebrities? I doubt it.

Sure, there’s plenty of antisemitic material thrown around in the South Park universe, but it usually comes from Eric Cartman… a hilarious character but hardly a role model. In fact, Cartman often serves as the strawman of racism, sexism and antisemitism to make the satire work. But this episode had nothing to do with Judaism. Parker and Stone were venting their frustrations over the fourth Indiana Jones movie, plain and simple.

Normally, this sort of thing wouldn’t bother me, but according to WENN News via IMDb, “bosses at Paramount Pictures have scheduled a meeting with executives at its parent company, which produces the Comedy Central series.” This is pretty vague, but I’m bothered by this mysterious meeting, and this is why…

The day after I read this story, my DVR recorded a rerun of South Park. According to the listing, it was to be a replay of “The China Problem,” the episode in question. However, when I watched it, it saw a rerun of “My Future Self n’ Me,” featuring the more benign storyline of Stan and Butters’ future selves warning them against drug use while Eric Cartman opened a revenge business.

Coincidence? Maybe.

The bottom line is that I’m just sick of people getting offending over television and movies. You’ve got families of the mentally challenged offended at Tropic Thunder. You’ve got Hindus offended at The Love Guru. You’ve got blind people offended at Blindness.

What’s next? The League of Buddhist Methodists getting offended over George Lucas raping a Stormtrooper?

Suck it up, people. It’s called satire, and it’s protected under the First Amendment.

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TL

I read the ADL was angry becasue the epsiode was aired during a Jewish holiday.
Yeah, that makes no sense either.

Sam

Part of the problem is that groups / people like this are looking for any ridiculous way to support their claims. There was recently a 4chan joke taken into the real world, which involved a picture of a black dude with his arms crossed that says "pools closed", which is from one of 4chan habbo hotel things. these kids (i'm guessing) put this sign at the local pool for their own amusement. Some grandmother of two mulatto kids said that the sign was racist, and clearly these people did not want her half black kids in the pool.

There is no correlation between the two issues except for someone who is looking for them. The dude in the picture (who was smiling) was black! These people must hate black people! Spielberg is Jewish! This episode is antisemitic! I don't even think there was a single jew joke in the whole epsiode. Someone should sue the guy from ADL for something equally ridiculous.

Will C

People, on a whole, have become hyper-sensitive to anything that can be construed as vaguely offensive to anyone. This basically causes people to tip toe around subjects that are considrered taboo. I have personally viewed this episode of South Park, and found nothing antisemtic in it whatsoever.

The lack of an outcry from Chinese people (Who were heavily satired) is funny, they don't seem to take offense to this, perhaps they understand a joke? I guess the Lucas/Spielburg team didn't want bad publicity for their lackluster film so close to the release date. Well I saw the film, it was lackluster, but I'm still going to buy it. I mean it's Indiana Jones for cripes sake! I also saw the South Park episode and found it hilarious. Yeah I can see how they were right, poor Indy was raped for profit, but it wont deter my purchasing of the film.

As for the ADL getting upset, honestly, this episode shouldn't be the one that causes them to freak out. There are much worse episodes that are anti-semtic out there.

Mathieu Lalonde

The real problem is that networks and creators, hungry for their advertisers' money, will bend to ANY pressure from ANYONE!

And this just feeds this vicious cycle of creating precedents and indulging in self-censorship because of the fear that somewhere, somehow, three amish people will be offended by a joke about a toaster oven or whatever...!

Inch by inch, speech in the media is becoming less and less free.

Trace

@ Kevin

I believe Comedy Central DID reair the episode the night following it's premiere, (Wednesday, right?). I remember catching it that first night, telling everybody at work about it the next day, getting home late and catching it again. I still laughed and cringed as much as I did the night before.

About the case in general, all kinds of people are getting all sorts of butt-hurt over everything. It's difficult to tell people to take a joke, but you can't - not in a day and age where you can't poke a little fun at Mohammed because you're risking 9/11 times 1,000.

I'm a white, christian man and I always thought how Jesus was portrayed was hilarity, and his roles on the show were great - especially the episode where he literally comes out guns blazing and gets shot while trying to rescue Santa.

These bored assholes need to take some Xanax or get a blow job - at least from somebody else. Those of us who appreciate South Park's humor and movies that use the word "retard" are tired of cradling your balls.

So what, should we take 'Memento' off shelves cuz it might portray anterograde amnesia wrong? Should Harry Potter be black-listed cuz it possibly misportrays adolescents with magic powers? SHOULD POWER RANGERS DISAPPEAR INTO THE SANDS OF TIME BECAUSE MEGAZORDS ARE MISREPRESENTED AS GENDERLESS?!

Kevin Carr

@Trace...

You're right. They did re-air the episode after its premiere. It was after I read this article (Monday this week) that the Future Self episode ran in place of The China Problem, which was schedule according to my cable provider. It could have been a mistake, but I like to stir up trouble whenever I can.

:-)

790

(True story)
I was watching the Conan O Brian show, a few weeks ago Conan started to tell a joke. Out of nowhere the NBC LA News broke into the show....
The "news woman" said that Conan was about to tell a train wreck joke, and that NBC would rejoin the broadcast when he was done.... (She went on to do a weather report). La laaa laaaaaa.

LA had just seen the worst train wreck a few days earlier, but to step on a joke that was told on the East Coast about trains wrecking ??? Wtf ppl.

The media has nothing to do with freedom of speech.... The media is corrupt.
I was more offended by that, then some cartoons raping a cartoon Indiana Jones.

Trace

@ Kevin

Then you and the South Park guys have a lot in common. Granted, I'm certain that Parker and Stone only want to speak for the majority of people (or even the minority) and visually depict what it is that pisses off/annoys/confounds the average individual, they're probably well aware that in their quest, they push the metaphorical envelope.

Props, I say. Props to those guys for doing what needed to be done. Yeah, they stir up a little trouble and consequently get their show banned in some countries, but hey - that's show biz.

D Train

Props indeed. Shake it up gentleman.

Kevin Carr

It is my personal goal to be banned somewhere. Hoping for an entire country. Keep your fingers crossed.

WTF: Spielberg Should Be Protected From Satire Because He’s Jewish?

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