November 11, 2015

"My wife's name is Janet. And when you say Janet yellin', I'm very familiar with what you mean."

Ugh. Did Mike Huckabee make a bad and really out of place joke at last night's debate.

That's the type of joke you used to hear all the time in the 1950s and 60s. In TV sitcoms and "The Ed Sullivan Show."

46 comments:

tim maguire said...

Well, Mike Huckabee is the perfect conservative for the liberals who think we're still living in the 50's and 60's, so it's fitting.

Tank said...

War on Women.

Hunger strikes for all.

I'm not eating until he resigns.

Gotta go, Mrs. Tank is yelling sumptin.

=========================================

More stupid feminist BS. Can't anyone take a joke?

rhhardin said...

Women respond by yelling.

dreams said...

It was weak but I don't give a F**k if it was sexist.

Skipper said...

Terrible, just terrible. Now, that "joke" about strangling Carly Fiorina is a real modern knee-slapper. How about a good joke about lynching Dr. Carson?

traditionalguy said...

War on civilized Patriarchs. We are so far over the hill now that young folks see our culture in black and White. But we remember the Baptist Patriarchy with affection.

Phil 314 said...

Have we hit peak outrage yet?

Lyssa said...

I dislike Huckabee's politics a lot, but there are two things that I like about him - First, that he supports the Fair Tax (which is never gonna happen, but a gal can dream), and second, his tendency to make the corniest, cheesiest "dad jokes" imaginable. I don't know, I just find that sort of thing charming. Is that so wrong?

Ann Althouse said...

"Terrible, just terrible. Now, that "joke" about strangling Carly Fiorina is a real modern knee-slapper. How about a good joke about lynching Dr. Carson?"

The difference is, Hillary didn't make that joke. It was an ordinary citizen's form of expression and Hillary laughed it off. The Janet "Yellin'" joke was something Huckabee chose to say and to say in the context of a serious debate that I was taking time out of my day to watch. If nothing else, he wasted our time. But it was more. It was a decision to drag his wife out and make us think about her as a big nag and to simultaneously diminish one extremely accomplished female role model. The disrespect to women is completely stupid, and the joke is so incredibly bad, because who hasn't noticed the Yellen/yellin' pun? And Huckabee presents himself as a social conservative, steeped in traditional values. He should have gravitas. Especially when we are devoted the evening to paying attention to a political debate.

Ann Althouse said...

And humor based on mocking people's names is very low.

And very stupid for a person with an unusually ridiculous name.

Huckabee.

Let's write limericks.

Ann Althouse said...

There was an old fool named Huckabee
Who thought that he'd go and ...

Beorn said...

Lighten up, Francis.

Karen of Texas said...

...and whack a bee.
Enviros went insane.
Was clear he should feel pain.
Now the Huckster can go and suck a bee.


Karen of Texas said...

Sorry. Haven't finished my coffee yet...

hombre said...

And humorless feminists now tell us such things aren't funny and don't comport with the template of funniness.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Rule: If anyone in the room says something wrong, it's the candidate's fault.

oh - that rule only applies to the R-party.

mtrobertslaw said...

Oh,Oh, there has been another serious "I find that offensive" attack at one of our universities.

hombre said...

Shocking! I'm surprised it wasn't in the AP "Fact Check" on the Fox Politics website ( http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/11/10/ap-fact-check-in-republican-debate-flubs-and-funny-numbers/ ).

I'm even more surprised that Fox would print what amounts to a Democrat rebuttal from the partisan whores at AP. Oh oh, "whores." Was that sexist?

Sebastian said...

"Hillary laughed it off."

Ah, that's what you call it. So the proper feminist thing to do when a female candidate is confronted with a violent statement about another female candidate is to "laugh it off." Got it. By the way, does this just apply to Progs or do GOPers also get this special dispensation?

"He should have gravitas"

Like "pragmatic" Barry?

Chuck said...

"Take my wife... Please!"

One of Huckabee's few charms for me was that his many hours of TV appearances had trained him to be more careful. I gotta say, I think Althouse's take on this one is correct.

dreams said...

"The difference is, Hillary didn't make that joke."

"Hillary Clinton really knows how to yuk it up with her supporters, one of whom stated (video below) during a recent Q&A with the candidate that “[e]very time I see her [Carly Fiorina] on TV I want to reach through and strangle her.”

Clinton seemed to find his comment hilarious, as she erupted with laughter along with the rest of the audience. Even when the man followed up his comment by noting that he realized that what he said doesn’t sound very good, Clinton kept laughing."

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2015/11/hillary_laughs_as_supporter_says_he_would_like_to_strangle_carly_fiorina.html

JAORE said...

I see I have missed half of National Panties In A Wad Week.

dreams said...

"Hillary Clinton really knows how to yuk it up with her supporters, one of whom stated (video below) during a recent Q&A with the candidate that “[e]very time I see her [Carly Fiorina] on TV I want to reach through and strangle her.”

Clinton seemed to find his comment hilarious, as she erupted with laughter along with the rest of the audience. Even when the man followed up his comment by noting that he realized that what he said doesn’t sound very good, Clinton kept laughing."


"Dr [Camilla] Clark said: "These were marked changes - completely inappropriate humour well beyond the realms of even distasteful humour. For example, one man laughed when his wife badly scalded herself."

Just saying.

dreams said...

If only liberals could see themselves as they really are, they would see how despicable they can be.

Nichevo said...

But then they would commit suicide and Ann wouldn't like that. She prefers the suicide of our civilization.

Nichevo said...

Also, Yellen is funny looking and mockable, and Ann has no stones to throw.

Thorley Winston said...

I dislike Huckabee's politics a lot, but there are two things that I like about him - First, that he supports the Fair Tax (which is never gonna happen, but a gal can dream), and second, his tendency to make the corniest, cheesiest "dad jokes" imaginable. I don't know, I just find that sort of thing charming. Is that so wrong?

No, I don’t think it’s wrong at all. Jokes like that are a form of self-deprecation (almost always the wife isn’t yelling because she’s mean but because the husband messed up) and it’s usually a sign that the guy telling them is comfortable in his own skin.

Unknown said...

"That's not funny."

Punch line to "How many feminists does it take to change a light bulb."

dreams said...

Hillary was just laughing it off but notice the double standard by the liberals.

dreams said...

Huckabee was trying to be folksy, its what he does.

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Well, Huck lost Althouse's vote. That leaves just Rubio, Jeb or Kasich still to be disqualified for telling a bad joke, insufficiently exalting women, or drinking too much water. Thanks for playing repubes, but Althouse can't vote for suchsilly, uunserious candidates. She has no choice but to support Hillary 2016!!!! ...surprise.

Chris N said...

Someone doesn't appreciate the smooth bass line and smooth time kept by The Huck'

You loss, baby-doll.

Bob Ellison said...

These debates should have a talent competition. Huckabee could play bass and tell dad jokes , Rubio could, I don't know, say something in Spanish, Jeb, same thing, Carson could divide some conjoined twins, and the rest of them could figure something out. But please, no swimsuit competition.

buwaya said...

In the 50's and 60's it was understood that the humor in such things lay in that it was true. A reason (one reason) for joking is to tell the uncomfortable truth in a more acceptable way.
Gradually, slowly, things have changed, so that even in jokes we can't handle the truth.

Curious George said...

"Ann Althouse said...
"Terrible, just terrible. Now, that "joke" about strangling Carly Fiorina is a real modern knee-slapper. How about a good joke about lynching Dr. Carson?"

The difference is, Hillary didn't make that joke. It was an ordinary citizen's form of expression and Hillary laughed it off. "

Bullshit. She did not "laugh if off". She laughed. And then she laughed some more.

dreams said...

"The Yale snowflakes are pathetic, yes. But what’s even more pathetic is the ridicule of the snowflakes by the very generation who created this world in which words are seen as wounding, judgement is considered harmful, and everyone is treated as fragile. Having claimed for 30 years that offensive discussion, or porn or racist newspapers, create a ‘hostile environment’, can the older generation really be surprised that students are now setting up Safe Spaces? The Safe Space is the logical solution to the notion that words and images cultivate a ‘hostile environment’."

http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/the-yale-snowflakes-who-made-these-monsters/17613#.VkNu2LerSUm

Curious George said...

"Thorley Winston said...
No, I don’t think it’s wrong at all. Jokes like that are a form of self-deprecation (almost always the wife isn’t yelling because she’s mean but because the husband messed up) and it’s usually a sign that the guy telling them is comfortable in his own skin."

This.

khematite said...

And speaking of bums and jokes (two of today's Althouse topics), there's what must be the Ur-joke of 1950s comedians:

"A bum came up to me this morning and said he hadn't had a bite in weeks. So I bit him”

HoodlumDoodlum said...

Ann Althouse said... The disrespect to women is completely stupid, and the joke is so incredibly bad, because who hasn't noticed the Yellen/yellin' pun?

It was a bad joke, sure; lame, obvious, and not related to any larger point/other joke, but "disrespect[ful] to women..and so incredibly bad" seems a bit over the top.
Cheesy older square dude makes lame, unfunny joke: story at 11.
It's not like he contrasted Yellin's high power job with her other option, you know, staying home baking cookies...

Wince said...

And in my hour of darkness
he is standing right in front of me,
Speaking words of wisdom... Huckabee
Huckabee, Hackabee.
Self-censor words of humor, Huckabee.

Wince said...

Good thing Yellen's name isn't Madge Packer!

Althouse's head would explode!

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

It's a hack joke, but so what? Don't women yell?

Ann Althouse said...

For the record, I haven't watched the Hillary video. The Huckabee thing was inflicted on my as a watcher of debates. If I'd seen the video, by chance, I probably would have blogged something negative about it. I have no idea how much or how cackle-y she laughed, and I'm just not interested in bothering with the damned thing.

But, frankly, what bores me (and almost irks me) is that every time I blog something negative about a Republican, commenters don't engage with the subject directly but childishly point out that those other people are bad too and just assume that I'm meaner to Republicans than Democrats. But it's not true. It's not what's in this archive. I've never been nice to Hillary, not in the entire 12 years of this blog!

Nichevo said...

Although:
Assume you are wrong, and work backwards from the answer.

Nichevo said...

You know what it may be that really pisses people off Ann? Its not that u blog something negative about a Republican, it's that you blog such trivial, superficial things and invest it with such emotional significance that you really become inhuman, or should I say unreal.

Again: you are doing something wrong. Figure out what it is that you are doing wrong, is your challenge.

damikesc said...

Feminism: Focusing on the SERIOUS issues. For reals.

No concerns about the audience member telling Hillary that he wanted to kill Carly and her laughing about it?

The difference is, Hillary didn't make that joke. It was an ordinary citizen's form of expression and Hillary laughed it off.

Republicans fairly regularly get condemned over comments made by people in their audience and not them.

But, frankly, what bores me (and almost irks me) is that every time I blog something negative about a Republican, commenters don't engage with the subject directly but childishly point out that those other people are bad too and just assume that I'm meaner to Republicans than Democrats. But it's not true. It's not what's in this archive. I've never been nice to Hillary, not in the entire 12 years of this blog!

We point out double standards.

I don't like Huckabee. He is tied with Kasich as my least favorite candidate out there. But a cornball joke is a cornball joke. And if Republicans weren't raked over the coals based on comments made by their audience (hell, McCain REPUDIATED a member of his audience for calling Barry a Muslim and he was STILL trashed), none of us would care about what happened with Hillary.

But it happens. Repeatedly. And "Starting now, we don't care about this" doesn't work because the same double standard will always occur.

I'll note not a lot of people called you out for agreeing with Jonah about how bad Kasich was at the debate. And if you said "Bush was crap at the debate", nobody would disagree and would join in. It's when the issue is so pointless that it gets people's dander up.

Is Huckabee a misogynist? No. He told a cornball joke. C'est la vie.

Is Carson an idiot because of his views on pyramids or should his views disqualify him for the Presidency? Well, since the question isn't asked about others who have even goofier ideas about RELEVANT things, people will point it out.