You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Home Front: Culture Wars
David Letterman kinda sorta, well not really, apologises to Sarah Palin
2009-06-11
There's been quite a stink over David Letterman's ill-judged and offensive joke about Sarah Palin's daughter getting "knocked up" by Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees. I initially took it as a reference to Bristol Palin, who is now 18 and has a young baby.

Turns out though that the daughter who did accompany Governor Palin to the Yankees was Willow Palin, who's 14. Letterman has taken a lot of flak and few, even on the Left, have been prepared to stick up for him with any conviction.

So Dave has apologised. Kind of. Sort of. Well, hardly at all really.

He didn't mean it to refer to Willow at all, he insisted. He was talking about Bristol. So is it OK to make that joke about an 18-year-old but not a 14-year-old? Well, it's not as bad but it's still pretty grubby. My hunch is that some half-wit wrote the joke for him and Letterman himself didn't really notice - or care much - whether it was Bristol or Willow. Either one was a cipher to get at the Alaska governor.

"We were, as we often do, making jokes about people in the news and we made some jokes about Sarah Palin and her daughter [Bristol]... and now they're upset with me..." Letterman said.

"These are not jokes made about her 14-year-old daughter. I would never, never make jokes about raping or having sex of any description with a 14-year-old girl.... Am I guilty of poor taste? Yes. Did I suggest that it was okay for her 14-year-old daughter to be having promiscuous sex? No."

He then invited Palin to appear on his show. Good luck with that Dave. Oh, and he made no mention of calling Palin a "slutty flight attendant".
Posted by:Fred

#11  One Washington paper featured a less than flattering editorial cartoon of Ms Clinton shortly after arriving at the White House. Newt Gingrich sent a loud message out that it was unacceptable and we weren't entertained by a repeat. I'm sure NOW will provide a transcript citation of their claim about Rush and not some urban legend they want to repeat thinking that will give it credibility.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2009-06-11 23:18  

#10  Yes but they couldn't resist a little jab at conservatives:

On that point, it's important to note that when Chelsea Clinton was 13 years old she was the target of numerous insults based on her appearance. Rush Limbaugh even referred to her as the "White House dog." NOW hopes that all the conservatives who are fired up about sexism in the media lately will join us in calling out sexism when it is directed at women who aren't professed conservatives.

I never heard of any insults directed at Miss Clinton and somehow I don't think Rush said that.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2009-06-11 23:09  

#9  NOW put him in their "Media Hall of Shame".
Posted by: Pappy   2009-06-11 22:55  

#8  He's just a sad, washed up dude. And he still looks like he has hamsters on his head.
Posted by: eLarson   2009-06-11 22:29  

#7  Well, dave is an emotional retard. Wait that's not fair to retarded people. They are far better then he is.

No Dave is duller than a pet rock...

No that's not fair to the pet rock...

Dave makes road kill look inviting...
That's not considerate of road kill...

I know - Dave's mind and the bathroom in the bar in Desperado have like organization and coherency...
Posted by: 3dc   2009-06-11 22:21  

#6  this was way tacky, I expected better of him. He had some Marines I served w/on his show many moons ago - he treated them good. I rarely ever watch letterman, just don't find him that funny and never really have. Now Denis Leary and Dennis Miller crack me up.
Posted by: Broadhead6   2009-06-11 21:19  

#5  I thought A-Rod liked 'em older, anyway.

It's good, I guess that the Palins won't contribute to Dave's ratings, but as Jim Treacher said: it would have been great to see Todd contribute to "Will it heal?"
Posted by: eLarson   2009-06-11 19:30  

#4  So according to David Letterman - Its ok to make jokes about someone being raped.

Kind of shows you what kind of person he is doesn't it?

Actually Letterman hasn't been funny for at least 10 years - not even his 10 lists are juvenile.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2009-06-11 19:10  

#3  the only joke is that CBS is still letting this unfunny hack host a show. He should be "Dan Rathered"
Posted by: Frank G   2009-06-11 18:50  

#2  I haven't watched Letterman since summer of 1984 when I encountered him in Rockefeller Center. I was aparantly in his way, although he could have easily walked past, and he was extremely rude. Dickweed.
Posted by: Deacon Blues   2009-06-11 18:47  

#1  So it's okay to joke about raping an 18 year old teen but not a 14 year old teen. Got it, Dave.

Separate issue: Mr. Alex Rodriguez apparently is known as a philanderer. Mr. Rodriquez meets the federal definition of 'Hispanic' as he was born in the Dominican Republic.

So now Dave is joking about a Hispanic man raping a teen-aged girl.

Wonder how Mr. Rodriquez feels about being the tool in Dave's joke?
Posted by: Steve White   2009-06-11 15:29  

00:00