Poll: Frankie Boyle challenged over Down's Syndrome joke

[Madshaw]

he should be allowed to say whatever he likes, and if people don't like it then they wont buy his books and tickets for his gigs, so he wont make any money. i think thats how our society works at just about every other turn

 

[Wardnath]

ITT: Hypocrites.

Protip: Free speech works both ways. Yeah, you can use your right to free speech to make jokes like that all you want, but you've got to be a fucking moron if you think no-one's gonna use their right to free speech and call you out on it sooner or later.

 

[ZeeClone]

Comedians should be able to make whatever joke they want.

People should be able to be offended by them.

That's it. There's nothing more to it in my view.

^ What he said. /Thread

 

[stabnex]

Wow, people taking stand up comedians seriously never ends well for the antagonistic fans. They just look like douches in the end.

Now if I were a stand up comedian I'd make nothing but Pie Jokes and sooner or later some prick would take offense just to get media attention.

 

[CJ1145]

But should somebody popular and infulential, like a comedian, be allowed to make jokes that could perpetuate a negative view of a certain group of people? Would you support a comedian making racist or anti-semetic jokes?

If he was that race or had someone of that race up on stage laughing at the jokes, yes.

 

[William Dickbringer]

does this remind anyone of the famliy guy inncident where sarah palin got mad just because someone said they had down sydrome

 

[Pilkingtube]

Dude, it's Frankie Boyle, what did you expect?

 

[Mcface]

But should somebody popular and infulential, like a comedian, be allowed to make jokes that could perpetuate a negative view of a certain group of people? Would you support a comedian making racist or anti-semetic jokes?

Yes I would.
And they all do it. The good ones, anyway.

 

[Mcface]

My girlfriend is deaf, and whenever I make a deaf joke or Helen Keller joke, she laughs along. Only the most uptight get angry over a simple joke.

Wait what.. do not get..

 

[Sebenko]

Stupid *****.

How can you be a fan of Frankie Boyle and then expect him not to offend you at some point?
Oh, I guess talking the piss out of people is fine until it's relevant to you, huh?

I fucking love Frankie. Everything he says is fucking hilarious.

Ok, first and foremost you're reading a sensationalist tabloid, so the full-story may not be apparent.

Secondary, "stupid *****", I really don't see how you can insult the women in this story - she didn't stand up and complain - if anything Boyle created the controversy himself by forcing her to talk to him regarding her issue. Of course she has the right to be offended - you'd have to be incredibly moronic to not understand that point - yet she didn't actually do anything.

Personally I find Frankie Boyle to be the comedian for stupid people; everything he says is aimed at the lowest common denominator and appears to get laughs just because he insults someone...

She was in the same room, she should have known.

Frankie Boyle is as close as you'll get to a walking equivalent of ED's "Offended" page

 

[lockeslylcrit]

My girlfriend is deaf, and whenever I make a deaf joke or Helen Keller joke, she laughs along. Only the most uptight get angry over a simple joke.

Wait what.. do not get..

What's there to not get?

 

[Professor Idle]

I can't take issue with Frankie Boyle's politically incorrect jokes, because I've laughed at all of them.

 

[Big Max]

People make jokes all the time about people of a different race or proffesion, why is it so much worse to make jokes about people with disabilities. In my eyes its perfectly reasonable.

 

[Jackle_666]

Where do we draw the line though? Its OK to make fun of people who are disabled but not of an ethnic minority? In neither instances could the people choose who they become. If he said something racist, I doubt we would be having this discussion. We would be outright condemning him.

I'm a fan of Frankie, but it does worry me where this whole "PC gone mad" business is taking us.

 

[ThePocketWeasel]

It's comedy, it's not meant to offend people. Frankie Boyle makes fun of everyone. If this woman was at one of his shows she can't surely be shocked; he talks about rape, cancer, aids etc.
Without sounding harsh she's kinda saying 'Ah I found that joke about rape funny, but when it's about a problem I have it's no longer funny'.

 

[TAGM]

But should somebody popular and infulential, like a comedian, be allowed to make jokes that could perpetuate a negative view of a certain group of people? Would you support a comedian making racist or anti-semetic jokes?

The important word here is "joke." The fact is, he doesn't mean any of this seriously - and I think this kind of stuff has happened to all of us. Dude tried to explain himself, at least, and he's well known for it. You don't walk into a warzone then complain about being shot, So why walk into an offensive comedian's show and complain about offensive jokes?
Strangly enough, no-one seems to be even slightly bothered that she walked right into this show, on the front row no less, Saw the jokes coming, and still took offence, Then wrote a blog and made it sound like she DIDN'T see it coming, and that he was an evil bastard for daring to come up to her, ask her questions, then try to save himself and explain why he's such a git on stage when he got caught out. Was I the only one that caught that and cared? (I realise that he said that he doesn't give a f@£&, but let's face it - If he's trying to save face for five minutes, he clearly does...) Besides, she says it herself - The jokes are based on an old and falce stereotype. Is it not clear? The jokes are about the Stereotypes of Downs, not People with Downs themselves. I'm sure most people with half a brain can understand, even without being told, That not all people with Downs are the same - Frank included.
Got to love how people support her as well - "Let's hope that he never gets a gorgeous fiesty daughter like yours.Let's hope that he never gets a gorgeous fiesty daughter like yours." Lovely sentiment. You realise that this punishes the possible child and wife as well?
Anyway, Sorry for going on so long. just something about this got me riled up - The stupidity of it all, mostly.

 

[notyouraveragejoe]

I personally think its a little excessive but he should be allowed to say it. Its like the gay joke he made on Mock The Week. He's a comedian and I think some of his appeal is from being excessive and over the top.

 

[Quiet Stranger]

Like everyone else says he's a comedian, that's his job also why should we let other people tell us what's right and what's wrong

 

[agrajagthetesty]

What I hate is that people always ***** about people with disabilities being treated equally, and well, if that is true. They should be able to be the butt of a joke.

This. Saying that it's not okay to make jokes about certain groups only maintains the idea that there's something "different" or "other" about them. True equality has its disadvantages.