South park

[(V)]

The new episode of South park was funny, this is the first time i have ever realy wanted to see the next episode.

[JOJO]

Care to tell us what the latest South Park episode was about?

[Blue Audio]

I stopped watching South Park after the Warcraft Episode because everything will go downhill from there.

[Illjwamh]

In a nutshell, it's about evolution being taught in schools, religion vs. atheism, and Cartman waiting for the Nintendo Wii. All in all, a winning combination, I thought. Very amusing.

[Risen Hell Fire]

Werid but bloody funny episode, much like Make love not Warcraft episode. What will happen next? Though I though talkign abotu Evolution was a stupid idea.

[Illjwamh]

How was it stupid? It's hardly the most controversial topic they've ever tackled, nor is it as potentially offensive as some of their topics. Really, it was almost tame for them, and I'm honestly surprised they haven't used it before.

[Risen Hell Fire]

Well I'm just tired of hearing people complain about it on the news and stuff. Sorry just hearing about the same thign over and over really ticks me off. Yeah stupid reason.

[(V)]

In a nutshell, it's about evolution being taught in schools, religion vs. atheism, and Cartman waiting for the Nintendo Wii. All in all, a winning combination, I thought. Very amusing.
But remember how the two atheist groups were fighting, Alot of south park teaches good lessons. I just hope they will go farther into the reason they are fighting I hope it just gets stupider. Im still shocked that Mr.Garason got a sex change and they are going with it for now on, i thought it would be like a kenny getting killed thing, where he almost always comes back. Well we will just have to wait.
How was it stupid? It's hardly the most controversial topic they've ever tackled, nor is it as potentially offensive as some of their topics. Really, it was almost tame for them, and I'm honestly surprised they haven't used it before.

I think they have... or i might just be thinking about the Butt buddy episode.XD one of the best south parks ever.

[laborpilot86]

Although South Park is not my cup of tea, it is a good social satire, which is something this country desparatly needs

[Javer]

Although South Park is not my cup of tea, it is a good social satire, which is something this country desparatly needs

Maybe so, but a good message is useless if no one remembers it. And honestly, how many South Park fans do you know who go around mimicking those rare words of wisdom instead of Cartman's many catchphrases?

[(V)]

Cartman's many catchphrases... I dont recall him having catchphrases.

[Illjwamh]

Maybe so, but a good message is useless if no one remembers it. And honestly, how many South Park fans do you know who go around mimicking those rare words of wisdom instead of Cartman's many catchphrases?
*raises hand*

Me. I watch it for the satire. I've long said it's the smartest show on television, and I stand by that statement to this day.


The poop jokes are just a bonus.

[f1rst children]

Maybe so, but a good message is useless if no one remembers it. And honestly, how many South Park fans do you know who go around mimicking those rare words of wisdom instead of Cartman's many catchphrases?

My favorite exchange from South Park:

Gerald: You see, Kyle, we live in a liberal democratic society. And Democrats make sexual harassment laws. These laws tell us what we can and can't say in the workplace and what we can and can't do in the workplace.

Kyle: Isn't that fascism?

Gerald: No, because we don't call it fascism. Do you understand?

Kyle: Do you?

Also, from the "Death Camp of Tolerance": Here, intolerance will not be tolerated.

[Lightningfire]

South Park is used for its satire and how it shows whats wrong wtih our world and honestly everyone knows cartmons statements like "Screaw you guys, Im going home" but not everyone remembers the important things that go on in south park but hey even if only 1 out of 10 people pay attention isnt that enough?

[Javer]

South Park is used for its satire and how it shows whats wrong wtih our world and honestly everyone knows cartmons statements like "Screaw you guys, Im going home" but not everyone remembers the important things that go on in south park but hey even if only 1 out of 10 people pay attention isnt that enough?

A resounding "hell, no".

[f1rst children]

Yet more words of wisdom:

Look, maybe us Mormons do believe in crazy stories that make absolutely no sense, and maybe Joseph Smith did make it all up, but I have a great life. and a great family, and I have the Book of Mormon to thank for that. The truth is, I don't care if Joseph Smith made it all up, because what the church teaches now is loving your family, being nice and helping people. And even though people in this town might think that's stupid, I still choose to believe in it. All I ever did was try to be your friend, Stan, but you're so high and mighty you couldn't look past my religion and just be my friend back. You've got a lot of growing up to do, buddy. Suck my balls.

You could easily substitute "religion" with politics, socio-economic class, race, gender, sexual orientation, etc., and have a good response to all the divisive sectarianism that pollutes society every day. Much better than the current pervasive attitude of: "How can you be friends with that guy when he's a Republican/Democrat/Christian/Atheist/Muslim/homosexual/Cubs fan?"

[Lightningfire]

A resounding "hell, no".

If only 1/10 of our nation becomes smarter its better then everyone being idiots. Id rather have 10 smart people and 90 idiots then their being 100 idiots.

[Roark]

My favorite exchange from South Park:

Gerald: You see, Kyle, we live in a liberal democratic society. And Democrats make sexual harassment laws. These laws tell us what we can and can't say in the workplace and what we can and can't do in the workplace.

Kyle: Isn't that fascism?

Gerald: No, because we don't call it fascism. Do you understand?

Kyle: Do you?

Also, from the "Death Camp of Tolerance": Here, intolerance will not be tolerated.

Erm, while I generally like South Parks little jabs at American society, this one is a bit off.

It's not fascism to ensure people's safety and well being while they try and do their job. If you want to go back to a time when men can slap women's butts all day long, more power to you I guess.

[zarahf]

If you want to go back to a time when men can slap women's butts all day long, more power to you I guess.

Only if they want to be slapped back!

[Javer]

If only 1/10 of our nation becomes smarter its better then everyone being idiots. Id rather have 10 smart people and 90 idiots then their being 100 idiots.

And I'd rather have a hundred smart people than ten. See how that works? The thing is, it'd be acceptable if that 1/10 was all that a program as popular South Park is capable of educating (if only a little, as is its fashion), but it isn't. They could do so much more with it, and as it stands, I'm not satisfied with the 10% that I guess is enough to appease you.

[Mugs]

Erm, while I generally like South Parks little jabs at American society, this one is a bit off.

It's not fascism to ensure people's safety and well being while they try and do their job. If you want to go back to a time when men can slap women's butts all day long, more power to you I guess.

Yea cause I'm sure they were referring to slapping on the ass and not how the laws are horribly vague and there's a huge range of things that can be construed as sexual harrassement that probably shouldn't be.:3huh:

[Roark]

Yea cause I'm sure they were referring to slapping on the ass and not how the laws are horribly vague and there's a huge range of things that can be construed as sexual harrassement that probably shouldn't be.:3huh:
That was a concrete example of what you can't do in the workplace. The vaguer aspects of the law kind of preclude telling people what they can and can't do.

That said, it would be nice if I didn't have to worry about a few Vampire Savior figures landing me in trouble.

[f1rst children]

Erm, while I generally like South Parks little jabs at American society, this one is a bit off.

It's not fascism to ensure people's safety and well being while they try and do their job. If you want to go back to a time when men can slap women's butts all day long, more power to you I guess.

That wasn't what I was talking about (although I do disagree with a large part of sexual harassment law as it pertains to free speech, that's another topic).

What I love about the quote, and why I bolded that part, is the logic that "It's not fascism because we don't call it that."

You could easily replace "sexual harassment" with "the Patriot Act" and the same fascism-by-any-other-name quote would fit just as well. You can do the same with any number of things regarding excessive government reach, from the Alien and Sedition Acts to WWII internment camps. Like many of South Park's "lessons" it's a message that applies to far more than simply the specific example used in the show. Same thing with the Mormon episode quote, replacing religion with politics, race, etc.

Also note that the quote doesn't mention any specific behavior - Gerald doesn't say the government says not to play grab-ass - but that the government should be telling everyone what to say and do - a statist, authoritarian ethic that promotes a single "right" way of thought, speech and behavior.

[Roark]

I can give you thought and speech (although certain forms of speech, such as libel, can and should be pursued in civil court), but actions can and do fall within the jurisdiction of the government. Always have, always will. The key factor is how actions affect other people and the consequence. We generally disallow actions that directly bring harm to other people. Killing, speeding, putting rusty nails in the middle of your walkway, throwing bricks through windows, etc. A list of proscribed actions isn't fascist. It's the basis of civilization.

The government should be telling people what they can and can't do. That's their job. That's why you don't get sewage treatment plants next to orphanages or people taking bulldozers to your house to build bypasses. The entire concept of law requires telling people what to do.

The extent and reach of laws is another matter entirely. But declaring a government fascist because it tells people what to do is pure nonsense. (Sidenote: Fascism is one of those fun words that everyone uses but never really define. I'm going to assume it means extreme state control over behaviour, economics, speech, etc.) When a government starts making laws about "you must say these things in this way" or "You must perform these actions and only these actions" during the day, you may have a case. As it stands though, we haven't really approached that point. Some of the mechanisms for extreme population control are in place, but it's not fascist/totalitarian.

Which is why I took exception to the South Park quote, and don't really think it's that wise, really. It simplifies the issue into a sound bite.

I'm generally of a rather anarchistic bent, meself. I don't like restrictions on behaviour, especially when it doesn't harm anyone except the actor. I don't like vague laws, or laws that enforce personal morality, or laws that require a lot of judicial interpretation. I also don't like simplifying issues to the point of irrelevance.

[Illjwamh]

And I'd rather have a hundred smart people than ten. See how that works? The thing is, it'd be acceptable if that 1/10 was all that a program as popular South Park is capable of educating (if only a little, as is its fashion), but it isn't. They could do so much more with it, and as it stands, I'm not satisfied with the 10% that I guess is enough to appease you.
You're asking too much. Satire by definition can't enlighten everybody, since one needs to be of reasonable intelligence in the first place to even understand it.

Basically, what you're doing is this: instead of praising them for helping some people, you're calling them down for not helping more people. If some high school kids got together on weekends to go out and buy food and clothing for homeless people in their neighborhood for no other reason than the desire to help their fellow man, would you applaud their generosity or chastise them for not helping those out of their neighborhood as well? For not building houses for these people? For only doing it on the weekends and not every day? What about how long they spend doing it? They donate 8 hours a day to this cause, when the average human only needs 8 hours of sleep per 24 hour period. That's 8 hours wasted. Even letting them take an hour break to eat, there's seven hours that they did not spend helping homeless people. How dare they.

Rather than censuring people for what they don't accompish, we should be grateful for what they do. After all, if they didn't do anything, we'd still have 100 idiots instead of only 90. I don't see you enlightening anybody today.

I can give you thought and speech (although certain forms of speech, such as libel, can and should be pursued in civil court), but actions can and do fall within the jurisdiction of the government. Always have, always will. The key factor is how actions affect other people and the consequence. We generally disallow actions that directly bring harm to other people. Killing, speeding, putting rusty nails in the middle of your walkway, throwing bricks through windows, etc. A list of proscribed actions isn't fascist. It's the basis of civilization.

The government should be telling people what they can and can't do. That's their job. That's why you don't get sewage treatment plants next to orphanages or people taking bulldozers to your house to build bypasses. The entire concept of law requires telling people what to do.

The extent and reach of laws is another matter entirely. But declaring a government fascist because it tells people what to do is pure nonsense. (Sidenote: Fascism is one of those fun words that everyone uses but never really define. I'm going to assume it means extreme state control over behaviour, economics, speech, etc.) When a government starts making laws about "you must say these things in this way" or "You must perform these actions and only these actions" during the day, you may have a case. As it stands though, we haven't really approached that point. Some of the mechanisms for extreme population control are in place, but it's not fascist/totalitarian.

Which is why I took exception to the South Park quote, and don't really think it's that wise, really. It simplifies the issue into a sound bite.

I'm generally of a rather anarchistic bent, meself. I don't like restrictions on behaviour, especially when it doesn't harm anyone except the actor. I don't like vague laws, or laws that enforce personal morality, or laws that require a lot of judicial interpretation. I also don't like simplifying issues to the point of irrelevance.

But see, that's all part of the point. The point was simplified into a sound bite by an eight-year-old. Children tend to see things in terms of black and white, and thus the satirical jab is two-fold: presenting the issue in its own right as well as using it as a metaphor for others, as f1rst children was saying, and also in subtly calling attention to the fact that many adults see things in black and white, too.

[Ghostmaster]

The two-part episode was funny, but I think I definately liked the first part more before he gets sent into the future. Part two was funny, but it was just like what the hell is going on here with beavers and idk it was weird. But the phone call at the end was hilarious. Cartman to himself: "Oh suck my balls Kyle." I could not stop laughing.