I've just finished watching the BBC 4 movie made about the controversy stirred up by the release of Monty Python's film Life of Brian. Frankly, the move was hilarious, and I found it almost as funny as Life of Brian.
In the 2011 BBC 4 film Holy Flying Circus, John Cleese goes on a rant about how it's okay to be offensive. It's rather brilliant.
It's because of this film I feel the need to be offensive.
And before I begin, I have to say, it's not easy to be offensive for the sake of offending people. Really. You should try it sometime. Just say to yourself, "Today I am going to offend people." Simply trying to offend doesn't even touch the surface.
I like offending people. I really do. And if I do this properly today, you'll be offended. I want to offend you, dear reader. While I sincerely appreciate you taking time out of your busy surfing of the web for recipes and midget porn to come read my drivel and gibberish, I am going to offend you nonetheless because, after all that's what you come here for. Right? I called this blog Ted's Creepy Van. What the fuck else do you expect out of me?
Do you have any idea how hard it is to write a blog about creepy things and not self-incriminate? I can't plead the Fifth Amendment and still write about grabbing random assholes off the street and cutting their bits and pieces off while they scream for mercy. When a body or piece shows up, and they always do, the police will use everything in this blog as evidence against me.
What is worse, I have to write about nondescript assholes. I can't talk about the piece of shit down the street who looks at me funny, or the woman who is such a bitch to me I dream about pulling her finger nails out, or the person I worked with who lied to get me fired. Nope!
In fact, I have to be careful about discussing women and violence together because it puts me on a series of lists. I work with women who are already terrified of me as it is and discussing violence against women seems to set folks off. Not that I mind, but the FBI tends to be narrow-minded and devoid of humor. If the feds came to my workplace to arrest me, or even question me, most of the women in the building would just nod their heads.
"Uh-huh, dat fat guy be crazy!"
Frankly, the entire topic of violence against women as a comedic trope is a vast virgin territory waiting to be explored but I'm not going to do it because I love not being in jail. I love not being in jail so much, I often go outside and breath while saying to myself, "free air is the best air!" Once you start blogging about how hilarious it is to carve up people and have puppet shows with their bits all kinds of law enforcement agencies take notice.
And it takes serious balls to be offensive. Or the complete disregard of how others feel to a psychotic extreme. I've made rape jokes and thoroughly pissed off friends who were rape survivors. Even if you joked about raping a clown or a mime, somebody will point out that clowns are just people wearing make-up and how it's not funny. I'm pretty sure mimes are people, too. Despite those faces they make as they are ravaged, you can't really joke about raping clowns and mimes, because eventually the make-up is washed off by the tears.
But no, offensive content is an art unto itself. And these days I could blog about how much I hate this god or deity and nobody could care. It's mundane and boring. Sure, I could really go overboard and piss off the Muslim community just so they could issue a death sentence or whatever they call it, but there's no money in that. They decide to kill me, then they realize I live in Butt-Fuck Egypt, and after realizing Egypt doesn't have a town called Butt-Fuck and I'm really in rural Wisconsin they will give up. Some will. The crazy ones will come after me and kill me at some point because I mocked a prophet or a god or whatever.
Upon my death at the hands of extremist Muslims for offending them I will leave behind nothing but debt and a few poorly written blog posts that will never make a dime. Rather pointless, really.
Being offensive and making money at it isn't so easily done. Howard Stern offends but he gets paid. John Cleese offended people and he got paid, too. The good offenders of sensibilities get paid. But they were all pioneers of their area of offense.
Perhaps I could be a pioneer of cannibal humor? Eating people. Yum!
But human livers are so full of Vitamin A that a few bites would be lethal. And honestly, I wouldn't want to eat anything that's been alive for 18 years or more, so that leaves eating children. Tender, soft and succulent children. Jonathan Swift got away with it as satire. I doubt I could write about eating children these days without having serious problems. Cops, my friends at the FBI, parents. I know several people who just had babies and if I start writing and posting recipes for Human Veal they'd never talk to me again. A few of the fathers might want to kick my ass.
So, dear reader, I must conclude this post with the sincere wish that you were at least moderately offended by something today. Being offended is really a wonderful experience. It lets us know we have some morals left and the over-stimulation by the media hasn't left us hollow. Plus, being offended makes us think, and question just what we believe in on a personal level.
Next week, I'll blog about how easy it is to swindle the Amish.
In the 2011 BBC 4 film Holy Flying Circus, John Cleese goes on a rant about how it's okay to be offensive. It's rather brilliant.
It's because of this film I feel the need to be offensive.
And before I begin, I have to say, it's not easy to be offensive for the sake of offending people. Really. You should try it sometime. Just say to yourself, "Today I am going to offend people." Simply trying to offend doesn't even touch the surface.
I like offending people. I really do. And if I do this properly today, you'll be offended. I want to offend you, dear reader. While I sincerely appreciate you taking time out of your busy surfing of the web for recipes and midget porn to come read my drivel and gibberish, I am going to offend you nonetheless because, after all that's what you come here for. Right? I called this blog Ted's Creepy Van. What the fuck else do you expect out of me?
Do you have any idea how hard it is to write a blog about creepy things and not self-incriminate? I can't plead the Fifth Amendment and still write about grabbing random assholes off the street and cutting their bits and pieces off while they scream for mercy. When a body or piece shows up, and they always do, the police will use everything in this blog as evidence against me.
What is worse, I have to write about nondescript assholes. I can't talk about the piece of shit down the street who looks at me funny, or the woman who is such a bitch to me I dream about pulling her finger nails out, or the person I worked with who lied to get me fired. Nope!
In fact, I have to be careful about discussing women and violence together because it puts me on a series of lists. I work with women who are already terrified of me as it is and discussing violence against women seems to set folks off. Not that I mind, but the FBI tends to be narrow-minded and devoid of humor. If the feds came to my workplace to arrest me, or even question me, most of the women in the building would just nod their heads.
"Uh-huh, dat fat guy be crazy!"
Frankly, the entire topic of violence against women as a comedic trope is a vast virgin territory waiting to be explored but I'm not going to do it because I love not being in jail. I love not being in jail so much, I often go outside and breath while saying to myself, "free air is the best air!" Once you start blogging about how hilarious it is to carve up people and have puppet shows with their bits all kinds of law enforcement agencies take notice.
And it takes serious balls to be offensive. Or the complete disregard of how others feel to a psychotic extreme. I've made rape jokes and thoroughly pissed off friends who were rape survivors. Even if you joked about raping a clown or a mime, somebody will point out that clowns are just people wearing make-up and how it's not funny. I'm pretty sure mimes are people, too. Despite those faces they make as they are ravaged, you can't really joke about raping clowns and mimes, because eventually the make-up is washed off by the tears.
But no, offensive content is an art unto itself. And these days I could blog about how much I hate this god or deity and nobody could care. It's mundane and boring. Sure, I could really go overboard and piss off the Muslim community just so they could issue a death sentence or whatever they call it, but there's no money in that. They decide to kill me, then they realize I live in Butt-Fuck Egypt, and after realizing Egypt doesn't have a town called Butt-Fuck and I'm really in rural Wisconsin they will give up. Some will. The crazy ones will come after me and kill me at some point because I mocked a prophet or a god or whatever.
Upon my death at the hands of extremist Muslims for offending them I will leave behind nothing but debt and a few poorly written blog posts that will never make a dime. Rather pointless, really.
Being offensive and making money at it isn't so easily done. Howard Stern offends but he gets paid. John Cleese offended people and he got paid, too. The good offenders of sensibilities get paid. But they were all pioneers of their area of offense.
Perhaps I could be a pioneer of cannibal humor? Eating people. Yum!
But human livers are so full of Vitamin A that a few bites would be lethal. And honestly, I wouldn't want to eat anything that's been alive for 18 years or more, so that leaves eating children. Tender, soft and succulent children. Jonathan Swift got away with it as satire. I doubt I could write about eating children these days without having serious problems. Cops, my friends at the FBI, parents. I know several people who just had babies and if I start writing and posting recipes for Human Veal they'd never talk to me again. A few of the fathers might want to kick my ass.
So, dear reader, I must conclude this post with the sincere wish that you were at least moderately offended by something today. Being offended is really a wonderful experience. It lets us know we have some morals left and the over-stimulation by the media hasn't left us hollow. Plus, being offended makes us think, and question just what we believe in on a personal level.
Next week, I'll blog about how easy it is to swindle the Amish.
I'm offended you had nothing to say about yappy dogs.
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