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Mike Rosen: If it isn't PC, it isn't funny (political correctness on college campuses)
Rocky Mountain New column ^ | Friday May 13th, 2005 | Mike Rosen

Posted on 05/13/2005 2:23:03 AM PDT by ajolympian2004

Nowhere is the orthodoxy of political correctness more firmly established than on college campuses. Woe betide the unwary student who runs afoul of a certified victim group. While it's OK to pillory males, Christians, corporations or the military, any slight - real or imagined - that gives offense to women, minorities or homosexuals, for example, can bring on severe consequences.

In this kind of environment, College Republicans at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island displayed remarkable courage in taking on the PC establishment. Their target was V-Day. No, not Valentine's Day, but Vagina Day, which has replaced, in feminist circles, the traditional observance of Valentine's Day on hundreds of college campuses across the country. V-Day was apparently inspired by Eve Ensler's play The Vagina Monologues. That play has been described by Christina Hoff Sommers, the bane of man-hating feminists, as "raunchy" and "poisonously anti-male." On V-Day at Roger Williams University, feminist celebrants saturated the campus with flyers bearing slogans like "My Vagina is Huggable" and "My Vagina is Flirty," and conducted self-help sessions including the always popular "orgasm workshop." What the heck, it's the 21st century; Hester Prynne could be a college housemother these days.

Rivaling V-Day, College Republicans (including some young Republican women who, unlike grim feminists, apparently have a sense of humor), staged P-Day, a satirical tour de force replete with their own version of The Penis Monologues. Their mascot was Testaclese (sounds like Socrates), costumed as a 6-foot-tall penis. (By way of precedent, at Arizona State University, V-Day festivities included the display of a 40-foot inflatable plastic vagina.) Unlike the promiscuous V-Day handouts, the P-Day provocateurs distributed more intellectual flyers, like the one captioned "My penis is studious," featuring Testacles reclining on a couch reading Michael Barone's recent book Hard America, Soft America. (Barone contrasted "hard" Americans who revere competition and accountability to "soft" Americans who wallow in self-esteem and entitlement.) I mean, give them credit; that's a hoot. We're not talking about the lewd and gratuitous sexual antics of a Howard Stern, here. This is biting, cerebral, political satire.

Guess what? While the V-Day activists were coddled and accommodated by university faculty and administrators, the P-Day College Republicans were issued letters of reprimand, placed on probation and even had their Testaclese costume confiscated.

The point of this case study is to document political correctness in action, demonstrating yet again that behind every apparent double standard there lies an unconfessed single standard. College administrators invoke the principle of unbridled free speech to immunize inflammatory leftist quacks like Ward Churchill. They look the other way when leftist students destroy conservative newspapers on campus. But they suddenly acquire disciplinary backbone to crush a harmless burlesque by College Republicans.

In the midst of rising to this grand conclusion on my radio program the other day, I was perplexed by the reaction of a few listeners who were distracted from the larger philosophical issue, taking offense, instead, at my "tasteless" reference to body parts on the air. Which brings me to a tangential topic: anatomical discrimination.

Why in the world would rational adults be offended by the mere mention of perfectly legitimate, essential parts of their own body? Are some organs more respectable than others? Should you be proud of your heart, lungs and brain, but be ashamed of your penis, breasts or vulva? Are your eyes and ears better bodily citizens than your rectum, anus or large intestine? We're not talking about slang vulgarisms for certain body parts; we're talking about their official, scientific names. Should medical schools place a black rectangle over the eyes of that full-color wall chart that illustrates a human body and its internal workings? Phlegm, saliva and mucous may not be very appetizing but where would we be without them? If the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, you'll also have to deal with a heavy dose of hydrochloric acid en route. Some people can't stand the sight of blood, urine isn't exactly romantic and we won't even talk about "number two" but they all serve a vital purpose.

And coming full circle to the gender wars, why should men have any less reason to be proud of their reproductive organs than women?

Mike Rosen's radio show airs daily from 9 a.m. to noon on 850 KOA.


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: academia; academicbias; campusbias; collegebias; collegerepublicans; feminism; feminists; koa; mikerosen; pc; politcallycorrect; politicalcorrectness; republican; rosen; universitybias; wardchurchill

1 posted on 05/13/2005 2:23:06 AM PDT by ajolympian2004
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To: ajolympian2004

If you dare to disagree with the PC establishment, you are sanctioned. If you agree with the all the pap of the PC establishment, you not only get 10,000 pats on the back, but you get to call yourself a victim. This is beyond anything Orwell ever could have imagined. It's nth-degree Orwellianism.


2 posted on 05/13/2005 2:45:37 AM PDT by samtheman
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To: ajolympian2004

On a slightly different subject, it seeems that those who insist on being absolutely clinically correct on the names of body parts have no problem at all with using words like "jammie" and "binkie" and "floatie".


3 posted on 05/13/2005 3:00:35 AM PDT by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: ajolympian2004
Giant inflatable vagina's and testicle costumes...

And we care who gets disciplined and who gets encouraged...?

I guess rounding them all up and sending them to a civics reeducation camp is out of the question at this point.

How far the mighty have fallen.
4 posted on 05/13/2005 3:07:02 AM PDT by mmercier
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To: mmercier
I recently went to a university commencement.

The highlight of the somber event was the inflatable blow up sex toy doll that was bounced around the rows of graduating caps and gowns

Yes, we have certainly fallen.

5 posted on 05/13/2005 3:17:18 AM PDT by Popman ("I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst, and to provide for it." Patrick Henry)
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To: ajolympian2004

What's the ugliest part of your body
What's the ugliest part of your body
Some say your nose, some say your toes
But I think it's your mind
I think it's your mind.

--Frank Zappa--


6 posted on 05/13/2005 3:22:49 AM PDT by Fresh Wind
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To: ajolympian2004

I'm surrounded by the humorless politically correct at work. Most of the women here are definitely the Vagina Monologues-types.

Out of all the women in my office, I'm the only one who knows who won Super Bowl III, and the only one who doesn't know what Jennifer Aniston was wearing at her last award show. I kind of like it that way.


7 posted on 05/13/2005 4:27:18 AM PDT by JillValentine (Bill Clinton: The Soft and Bent One)
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Comment #8 Removed by Moderator

To: JillValentine

The Jets beat the Colts. I still remember the film of Joe Namath after the game waving his finger in the air.


9 posted on 05/13/2005 5:14:57 AM PDT by NotSoFreeStater
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To: NotSoFreeStater

And that was his INDEX finger!!! LOL


10 posted on 05/13/2005 5:17:59 AM PDT by MortMan (Quiet reflection does not involve a mirror.)
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To: ajolympian2004
Some people can't stand the sight of blood, urine isn't exactly romantic and we won't even talk about "number two" but they all serve a vital purpose

LOL! I miss Mike Rosen's talk show, I listened to him every day. He is hilarious--brilliant and hilarious.

11 posted on 05/13/2005 5:30:28 AM PDT by proud American in Canada
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To: ajolympian2004
Ladies and Gentlemen, we have yet another stunning, yet not surprising example of how PC, especially in academia, is destroying society.

First off, I say bravo to the CR's at that college for having the cojones to challenge the system, especially given that what they did was 100% in line what was going on. It was merely a clever and downright hilarious satire of the feminista activity. (and for the sake of public view, let's just leave it at that)

Plus, these radical feminist quacks are out there calling for "equality" and saying that the law should treat everybody* fairly. Keep in mind that these are the same ones constantly playing the "sexism" and "chauvinism" cards left and right. If these people were truly devoted to fairness and equality, then why are opposing groups "not allowed" to express themselves?

Apparently, the "tolerance", "diversity", "equality", and "fairness" specifically does not extend to Christian males, conservatives, and anyone else opposed to their agenda.

Third, shame to the university for exacerbating the problem. If these people wanted true equality, they'd enable the CR's to pull off this harmless satire.

Then, I have to ask, if it was a distinctly Liberal group, would they have been treated in such an asinine manner?

Of course they wouldn't. And the scarier thing is that these nuts running the three-ring Ponzi circus most of us otherwise (albeit diplomatically) refer to as academia seem to completely disregard Tinker, especially when it means that they'd actually have to recognize that conservative students do in fact have a right to free expression.

What enrages them further is that the mere fact that such opposing voices are on campus is NOT a casus belli for stifling the voices' dissent after all.

It also means that they can't have a monopoly on the minds of American students, nor are they legally allowed to use academia as a form of civic reeducation or indoctrination.

But they shamelessly do this nonetheless. It's high time for change, and it starts right here right now with us!

12 posted on 05/13/2005 6:13:16 AM PDT by rzeznikj at stout (My Tagline! Where the heck is it?)
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To: ajolympian2004

Laughter is PC's biggest enemy.


13 posted on 05/13/2005 6:18:03 AM PDT by kallisti
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To: mmercier

"Giant inflatable vagina's and testicle costumes...
And we care who gets disciplined and who gets encouraged...?
I guess rounding them all up and sending them to a civics reeducation camp is out of the question at this point.

How far the mighty have fallen."

I say put the two groups together and film it for Comedy Central.


14 posted on 05/13/2005 6:27:47 AM PDT by EQAndyBuzz (Liberal Talking Point - Bush = Hitler ... Republican Talking Point - Let the Liberals Talk)
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To: ajolympian2004
I was perplexed by the reaction of a few listeners who were distracted from the larger philosophical issue,

I'm a big fan of Rosen's and was listening that day.He tried to be funny about the subject of body parts, but it came across as just crude.

Somehow, adult male callers just don't sound funny when they begin the call with "My favorite body part is............"

15 posted on 05/13/2005 7:35:03 AM PDT by Balding_Eagle (God has blessed Republicans with really stupid enemies.)
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To: ajolympian2004
I'm surprised the College Republicans got off so lightly. (That was sarcasm for any DUers lurking about.) I just spent all of yesterday dealing with the local media here in Corpus Christi over the "Flaming Heterosexual?" and "Legalize opposite-sex marriage" flyers the CR club here put up (with approval from the Student Activites office) a couple of days before the National Day of Silence for Gays, Lesbians, yadda, yadda, yadda (I'm the faculty advisor for the CR group). The "incident" is still under investigation by the Dean of Students office.

Don't ya' just love the tolerance of diversity?

16 posted on 05/13/2005 9:04:10 AM PDT by BillaryBeGone
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To: proud American in Canada
LOL! I miss Mike Rosen's talk show, I listened to him every day. He is hilarious--brilliant and hilarious.

You can listen to his show on-line Monday - Friday from 9am - 11:45am mountain daily via the Listen Live link at http://www.850koa.com/

KOA finally removed the login requirement to listen live on-line.

17 posted on 05/13/2005 11:52:36 AM PDT by ajolympian2004
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To: onef

ping


18 posted on 05/14/2005 1:53:12 AM PDT by beaversmom
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