No Tears for Kathy Griffin

In an incredibly asinine decision by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences to censor the part of comedian Kathy Griffin’s acceptance speech last Saturday dissing Jesus is giving her exactly what she wants: publicity:

Griffin made the provocative comment on Saturday night as she took the stage of the Shrine Auditorium to collect her Emmy for best reality program for her Bravo channel show “My Life on the D-List.”

“A lot of people come up here and thank Jesus for this award. I want you to know that no one had less to do with this award than Jesus,” an exultant Griffin said, holding up her statuette. “Suck it, Jesus. This award is my god now.”

Asked about her speech backstage a short time later, an unrepentant Griffin added, “I hope I offended some people. I didn’t want to win the Emmy for nothing.”

Comedians by nature are supposed to say something funny upon receiving the meaningless statue at whatever awards show they’re being honored at on that particular evening. Sometimes it can be construed as offensive, but for me that’s a lot better than some routine boring oration about how “hard” they worked to achieve this moment.

And yes, even the props-to-Jesus gets old. This time Griffin does something a little different and all of sudden the Academy pretends to be sensitive about a religion routinely defiled by the industry it celebrates.

But as ridiculous as it was to censor Griffin for saying something negative about Jesus, it doesn’t come close to the audacity of the schools that do the same to valedictorians who praise the lord during their graduation speeches.

Hollywood’s Troop Treatment

Even liberal movie critic Richard Roeper notices Hollywood’s penchant for trashing the U.S. and our soldiers in recapping the films featured at this year’s Toronto Film Festival…but they still love the troops:

“Rendition” — Stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon. Focuses on U.S. customs agents detaining and torturing suspected terrorists in foreign prisons.

“In the Valley of Elah” — Directed by Paul Haggis (“Crash”) and starring Oscar winners Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron and Susan Sarandon, this story is based in part on a magazine story about an Iraq war veteran who returns home and is murdered by a fellow veteran.

“Redacted” — Brian de Palma’s brutal, gut-churning interpretation of a real-life incident in which four American soldiers raped and killed a 14-year-old Iraqi girl. (Three are serving 90-years-plus sentences; a fourth faces a criminal trial.)

“The Battle for Haditha” — Nick Broomfield’s docudrama about the killing of two dozen Iraqis, including children, by U.S. Marines, allegedly as revenge for the killing of an American soldier.

I admire the skills of filmmakers such as Haggis and Gavin Hood, the director of “Rendition.” The themes and issues they’re exploring are of vital importance.

But nearly every film we’ve seen so far about the Iraq war reinforces the conservatives’ prevailing view of “liberal Hollywood.” (Note: Many of these movies are foreign-financed, but the mostly American stars and directors are the authors and faces of the films.)

Of course we shouldn’t shirk from the atrocities, alleged and confirmed, committed by our side. But would it be so horrible to make a film showing American soldiers performing genuine heroics? Or how about a film that shines the harsh spotlight on the administration that so badly botched the war and especially the “post-war” efforts?

Maybe we’ll eventually see such movies. In the meantime, even though some of this is Oscar-quality work, in terms of subject matter, Hollywood is giving the Fox News crowd some fastballs right down the middle.

The answer to Roeper’s question as to why more films aren’t being made focusing on the Bush administration’s policies is clear: it’s more fun to depict an American soldier raping a 14-year-old Iraqi girl.

The last time a movie was made about President Bush, it featured his fictional assassination. Anything less would just be boring.

And no, we won’t see a movie showing “American soldiers performing genuine heroics” because in Hollywood’s eyes our soldiers are incapable of doing good, and the movies will continually reflect that. But don’t worry, they really do love our troops. They love our troops.

Jesus Survives Latest ACLU Attack

I’ve been following this case for awhile and am pleased that the court didn’t give in to the ACLU’s ridiculous demand that a portrait of Jesus be taken off a wall inside a Louisiana courthouse:

A disputed portrait of Jesus Christ will remain at the Slidell city courthouse in Louisiana after a federal judge refused to grant a demand by the American Civil Liberties Union to have the painting removed.

The Jesus portrait, which had been on display in the courthouse for more than a decade, had spurred the ACLU to file a lawsuit claiming that the display violated the separation of church and state.

An interesting fact you won’t hear from others covering this story, especially those who sided with the ACLU, is that the judge who dismissed the case, Ivan Lemelle, is a President Clinton appointee.

Yet expect many to blame the ruling on President Bush’s efforts to Christianize the nation and drive the courts in a fundamentally conservative direction.

MTV Doesn’t Like Black People Either

President Bush isn’t alone in his disdain for black people. According to obnoxious rapper Kanye West, MTV is all about the “White Power” too:

LAS VEGAS, Nevada (September 9, 2007) Kanye West has lashed out at Britney Spears’ upcoming performance at MTV’s Video Music Awards.

“I can’t believe she would perform,” he told the Associated Press. “She hasn’t had a hit record in years.”

According to MTV.com, West is scheduled to perform his track, “I Wonder,” on the broadcast. The Associated Press reported that West was apparently upset that he was not invited to open the event.

“Maybe my money’s not right. Maybe my skin’s not right,” he said.

According to viewers and critics alike who watched the MTV Video Music Awards, Spears bombed miserably. The consensus appears to be that she’s still out of shape and even has trouble lip-synching.

Enter Kanye West who believes he should have been the opening act but was passed over because of his skin color. It’s a shame too, because I find his new single, “Stronger” rather enjoyable.