I don’t like reading it, and so I don’t write it. And that’s one reason I won’t write an obit-hymn for George Carlin, who I think mainly contributed to the coarsening of our culture. If you disagree, you can join in the wake here, but to paraphrase some of the commenters there, he seemed to have become just an old liberal ranting at conservatives; I thought he was brilliantly funny when I was twenty-five, but I grew up. He didn’t.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 
I haven’t written any obits for ol’ George either, but I believe he contributed more to society as he got older and angrier. He didn’t contribute so much to the coarsening of our culture as much as help uphold the freedom of speech.
While it’s true that now, during present times, many use curse words as substitues for proper english more than ever, the words usually have histories being used as defense mechanisms to disarm adversaries, as evidenced by the research of David Milch and the Deadwood Historical Society.
Protecting the first amendment should be paramount. Our morals are what we impose upon ourselves.
You call my mother a @unt and I just try to kick your a$$ for saying that, but let me see you burn our flag and my values are insulted that much more. Either way, it’s your right, no matter how vulgar I preceive either.
His time came and went. He was never up there with the comedy greats, and I doubt any future comedians will ever take the time to study and capture what it truly takes to be funny to the masses.
Nice of you to use a @ in place of a c., Al. Saved me the trouble of deleting the word. I did have to change the other one to a$$. To keep my cuss-o-meter score low, you understand.
But I really don’t see how cussing upholds the First Amendment, whatever the historical “value” of the words. Or how Carlin did it preaching to the choir. I admit I didn’t go out of my way to follow what he was saying in the past twenty years, but something tells me he was more likely following the cue of his fellow Hollywood bolds by whacking the Christian right (the liberal’s favorite bogeyman) than taking his life in his hands and dissing jihadi Muslims.
As for comedy, well he seems to have aspired to be another Mort Sahl, and who remembers Mort, except as a historical footnote? Niether of them was as funny as Stan Laurel, or one of the Marx brothers. They weren’t as consistently funny as Cosby, who didn’t rely on dirty words at all.
The old funny men will be remembered. Carlin, not so much, certainly not after the last “counterculture” acolyte in the news media finally takes the dark journey.
Sorry about a$$, that just rolled off my finger tips and I didn’t catch that one. I’ll admit that I just now unleashed a vocal vulgar tirade after opening a frozen beer that sprayed all over my desk and keyboard!
I don’t think that cussing in and of itself upholds the 1st Amendment as the act of excersising that right using said language does so. It’s up to us to set our own standards, as you are chosing to do, and each of us should have the discretion to measure when, and if our audience is receptive and/or insulted.
In the old days, I think George was comparing why the bible could get away with using the words in their meaning, compared to the new slang meaning today. Such as you censoring a$$, short for horse/doneky mix, but now slang for buttocks or someone that can’t shut up about something like I’m doing now. Not that funny but he made his point. I don’t care for censorship in any form, or for any reason. It’s leads to burning books, banning books from libraries and such. Knowledge is power regardless of how it is taught, to me anyway.
GC made a lot of stoned people laugh in the early days. He bored a lot of people in the middle of career when he tried to revive it, and in the end woke up a few. Very few, but not just liberal Hollywood types. Our government is out of control and that was his message, however sordid he made it.
Thanks for stopping by, Al. I appreciate your comments. But I’m worn out on this subject. Time to move on, to coin a phrase. 😉
I’m at 14.8% on the cussing meter, and here I was thinking I ran a family blog. Soprano family, I guess
Must be archived stuff I’ve never seen, Akaky. I don’t recall anything.