June 23, 2008
In the not too distant past, I achieved a BA in philosophy. I remember arguing, more than once, that dead, white, Christian men from academia were not the only philosophers worthy of study. I believe at the time I was arguing the case for the study of Ayn Rand.
I will make the case again, for George Carlin.
We used to have speed trials, in my misspent youth, to see who could say the "seven words" fastest. We had no conception of what the argument was for the use of those words. Or that he fought to the Supreme Court to use them. Only that someone was saying the biggest, baddest cusses we ever heard, on purpose, to be funny.
It was a long time before I discovered the philosophy part. How he talked about the use of language, and the way it's use affected our discourse. I suppose that sounds a lot nerdier than it's meant to. Frankly, he inspired me to use the word fat. I've been stealing some of his lines for years. "Dinosaurs are big boned." The use of euphemisms to shield ourselves from the truth. And the unvarnished, no bullshit look at what the truth was, as he saw it. Even something as benign as "Your stuff is shit, and my shit is stuff." opened a window.
And he was incredible fucking funny. One of my favorite bits came during the close of one of his concerts. He unrolled an enormous list of things you couldn't say. Must have been six feet long. And he proceeded to release a comprehensive list of some of the funniest names and phrases I have ever heard. All language, in and of itself, that was not objectionable. But used in a certain way, filthy as hell. And funny.
His books should be the basis for a master class in the use of language and culture in the late 20Th century. His examination of American culture was flawless. He seemed to want us to think about who we are, what we believe in, and why we believe in it. And to laugh our asses off in the process. I will miss him.
Shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, and tits. Strangely...still satisfying.
good night and good luck...stimp
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