Another day, another celebrity being a goose.
Tale as old as time.
For those who are somehow not in the know, how do you survive without social media? But also let’s get you up to speed.
During a show in Australia, Tenacious D celebrated guitarist and vocalist Kyle Gass’ birthday. They had a cake and everything. Gass blew out the candles and made a wish. His wish was that the next aspiring Lee Harvey Oswald “doesn’t miss Trump next time”.
Cue shock and awe, because apparently we can’t make jokes about convicted criminals has-been celebrities sex pests grifters liars the President of the United States anymore. I guess it’s okay to want Clinton’s head on a stick but not the MAGA guy.
Cue every single conservative talking head having a complete meltdown, but that was to be expected. There were also comments from so-called bastions of free speech calling for blood as well.
Most notably (here in Australia at least), KIIS FM broadcaster Kyle Sandilands who’s up there with Alan Jones with the amount of hot water he’s been in from what comes out of his mouth. The saving grace here being at least Sandilands occasionally makes good points and is good for a laugh, while Alan Jones is well, Alan Jones.
On his show, Sandilands said Tenacious D are barred from ever being on the show.
There was also United Australia leader Ralph Babet who called for Tenacious D to be deported despite -of course- raging against cancel culture in the past and saying “Without free speech our nation will fall” when he was called out for sharing clips on a stabbing on Twitter.
As a result of Gass’ gaffe, future Tenacious D AU/NZ shows were cancelled for the tour, and it seems the future of the band itself is in jeopardy.
Let’s break this down a little. Tenacious D, a comedy rock band who are regularly vulgar and obscene (cock pushups, anyone? What about ‘Fuck Her Gently’?), made a joke on stage about a recent event that -let’s be honest here- we were all thinking, and the world goes mad and there are calls for deportation.
Then-President Trump himself makes a vague threat to assassinate Hillary Clinton and… nothing?
Republican Senator Richard Burr makes a similar joke and… nothing?
I guess those were just harmless jokes, right?
How about another liberal example to keep the two conservatives who actually read this drivel happy? When The Dixie Chicks make some disparaging comments about then-President George W. Bush and the Iraq war, they were straight up cancelled. They’re just “The Chicks” now, and former fans destroyed CD’s and called for blood.
Again, tale as old as time. Those who claim they’re hit hardest by cancel culture and consistently claim “facts over feelings”, are calling for people to be cancelled because their widdle fee-fees were hurt.
Should Tenacious D be cancelled? I dunno. I like Tenacious D. So my heart says “no” but my head says “given the current political climate, probably for the best”. Given that this was the same band who once wrote “The Government Totally Sucks” (a banger, by the way), Jack Black’s response to the outrage kinda leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t condone violence, really. I’m more of a pacifist softie bleeding heart than anything (except Nazis. Punch fucking Nazis). I’d rather witness or be party to civil disobedience and being a shit-stirrer than seeing people getting their cunt punched in, or worse.
What I don’t condone, is the diaper-filled caterwauling from these free speech warriors when someone says something they don’t like. Or similarly, when they get called out for their bullshit.
Someone isn’t “telling it like it is” or “is fucking real“, or “says what we’re all thinking” just because you like them. You don’t like people who “tell it like it is“, you like people who agree with you.
Free speech (but not freedom from consequences of free speech, I could write a whole essay about that alone) for all, not when it’s convenient.
This isn’t a “left” or “right” thing, it’s about consistency. Maybe my brain’s wired wrong (read: most likely), but shouldn’t calls for free speech for all mean -you know- free speech for all?
If you condone one and not the other? You’re nor a warrior of democracy and free speech, you’re a hypocrite. End of story.
Till next time.
IF YOU’VE READ THIS FAR:
Hey so I provide this on my own website, funded by myself, with my own money. If you liked this and want to support this nonsense, feel free to flick me a couple of bucks on Ko-Fi!