Jon Stewart
I have no real opinion on Jon Stewart other than that I think he’s occasionally funny but more often than not kind of tiresome. This is in large part because I’m a man of the right and feel as though Stewart rose to prominence by being a one-trick pony: “Bush is stupid, Cheney is evil, and the Republicans are racists: Here’s a clever quip that shows one of those facts to be true.” I can see how that would appeal to a certain percentage of people. It just doesn’t do anything for me.
The way people react to him often cracks me up, however. For example, Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry wrote a nice little post about the nature of commentary on the Internet and the importance of patriotism that was bound to kick up all manners of controversy because a.) the idea of defending one’s country is anathema to certain people and b.) he dared to defend Jonah Goldberg, a/k/a history’s greatest monster. He compounded his problem by daring to compare Jonah Goldberg to Jon Stewart in the comments, which prompted this reply:
Jonah Goldberg and Jon Stewart couldn’t be more un-alike.
Stewart is funny, smart, witty, charming, and self-deprecating.
As PEG mocks a little later, “He also poops unicorns and spits rainbows.” I mean, c’mon. Can’t we all agree that the Jon Stewart worship is just a bit much. I get that he’s the patron saint of 20-something progressives, but it’s all quite silly. It made me think of something from Chuck Klosterman’s (excellent) new collection of essays, in which Mr. Klosterman questions why Americans laugh so much:
In New York, you get used to people pretending to laugh. … Watch The Daily Show in an apartment full of young progressives and you’ll hear them consciously (and unconvincingly) over-laugh at every joke that’s delivered, mostly to assure everyone else that they’re appropriately informed and predictably leftist.
This is funny because it is true. Watching liberals watch The Daily Show used to be far more entertaining than watching The Daily Show itself. I wonder if that’s still true in the age of Obama…
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11 Comments - add your own
David Adesnik — November 29, 2009 at 2:04 am
On the one hand, I want to know what Jon Stewart makes fun of now. On the other, I got tired of him for the same reasons you did.
What we need is a Daily Show clipping service, that filters out the predictable stuff and just gives us the true gems.
Thomas R — November 29, 2009 at 7:30 am
I actually liked him from 1989 to a bit before the Iraq War. I don’t think he was as partisan in the first couple years of Bush’s term, even though he clearly preferred McCain so was somewhat obviously disappointed Bush was the GOP nominee, and I don’t remember him being all that political on “Short Attention Span Theater.” (It wasn’t that kind of show)
moochy — November 29, 2009 at 9:22 am
You know what I enjoy most? Hearing/reading conservatives with the same old bitch about how only dumb 20something progressives watch Jon Stewart, who they “overlaugh” at. Well, I’m a 50something pragmatist who watches him every day, along with others I know who watch him, some of whom are former Republicans. That’s right, “former.” Apparently, it’s not only progressives who revile Bush. And BTW, anybody who sees Mr. Liberals are Fascists Goldberg as anything more than a mama’s boy mouthpiece needs to let some fresh air and sunlight into his/her brain.
Mikeybackwards — November 29, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Most of the people I know who don’t ‘get’ Jon Stewart are the same people who revile Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow even as they parrot Jonah Goldberg, Bill Kristol, Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, etc. I see Jon Stewart as an opportunist who takes his targets where he finds them. It is hardly his fault that the Republicans and their mouthpieces have given him so much material to work with.
I can understand that it would be tiresome to see the standard bearers of one’s ideology skewered so often. However, don’t fault a comedian, fault the buffoons who think Sarah Palin is a person who should be taken seriously and that all that is necessary to solve our problems is to cut taxes, and leadership consists of screaming ‘terrorists, terrorists, terrorists’.
It is unfortunate that news outlets on both the left and the right have completely given over control to sycophants and partisan punditry that a comedian wittily presenting the issues of the day seems more journalistic than anyone at MSNBC, CNN, CBS, ABC, or Fox.
David Adesnik — November 29, 2009 at 3:38 pm
Hey Sonny, do you parrot O’Reilly or Beck? I never even heard of Beck until he became a liberal target, circa last year.
Looks like we need to work harder on this site to live up to expectations!
Sonny Bunch — November 29, 2009 at 3:46 pm
Agreed. We clearly aren’t fulfilling the role of cartoonish cariactures quite as neatly as we should be.
Mikeybackwards — November 29, 2009 at 4:06 pm
How amusing. I display an off the rack garment and some fools claim it is custom tailored for them.
Mikeybackwards — November 29, 2009 at 4:21 pm
As to charges of caricatures, since when have conservatives become such wusses? ‘That old Jon Stewart. He’s not funny. And he’s so mean to Republicans’
Grow a pair already, or has the Barracuda of Alaska already cut them off with her winks and sparkles she sends down your legs?
David Adesnik — November 30, 2009 at 10:45 am
Ooh, yes there is a thrill running down my leg. Oh, wait, that was Chris Matthews.
How about you, Sonny? Hot for Gov. Palin? I’ve noticed that you’re constantly posting about wonderful she is.
Note to commenters: Because Sonny and I are deeply insecure about our masculinity, we kindly request that no one challenge us to grow a pair.
If our self-esteem were in better shape, we might have the confidence to dismiss such schoolyard ad hominems. But we are weak and fragile men!
PEG — December 6, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Hi,
Thanks for your kind comments on my post!
c — February 3, 2010 at 11:40 pm
all politics aside, Stewart’s lacks some creativity, he knows this. he’s made a niche for himself. that’s what people do. he has become somewhat tiresome, although he is not without talent. i find steven colbert much more entertaining.