Pissing on Picture of Jesus : Humorous to Hollywood

These clowns are gutless, I wouldn't expect anything less from hbo.

"God forbid if anyone at HBO or any other channel allows the depiction of a character urinating on the Koran"

U.S. troops have been doing that since the beginning of the war on terror.

"getting a cheap laugh at the expense of Allah or Muslims"

You really don't watch a lot of stand up comedians do you? Do you ever watch South Park? The Daily Show and Bill Maher's show? You probably don't, cause if you did you may have noticed "cheap laughs at the expense of Allah" and "Muslims".


That being said, I can totally see how someone urinating on the painting of the Jesus can be offensive and understand the anger. But the thing was a joke and Larry David didn't actually piss on the painting. The painting gets splashed because the painting was close to the toilet.

But if the idea of urine on a Jesus painting is still offensive, it's still better to keep in mind that it was meant to be a joke. A joke that is funny specifically because it is not okay to get urine on a painting of Jesus. Specifically because of the "Oh my God, what do I do!?!" moment.

The urinating on Jesus wasn't done to rub the face of Christians and Catholics. It was not meant to insult Christian beliefs.

Be pissed if you want to, express your outrage. But get your facts straight. Muslims and Allah and Muhammad are the butts of many jokes. And theses jokes end up on basic cable, you don't even need to buy a premium channel like hbo.



"It is dumb-founding to me how much is made about trying to censor the airwaves and limit the content of conservative talk radio and so forth, but you never hear any mention about monitoring this kind of hate filled hog wash. I challenge Larry David, Bill MaherBill Maher, HBO or any other channel to poke fun at Islam, Muslims or the Koran. The chances of that taking place, slim & none."


First off, conservative media claims to be giving the news. You know dealing with non-fiction. HBO is not news. Comedy Central is not news. Big friggin difference. If you are willing to admit that conservative media is not news, then you can make this comparison, otherwise you are again comparing apples with oranges.

And you "challenge" has already been faced and beaten. Jokes about Muslims and Allah and Muhammad have all been made. If you hadn't realize, we've been fighting the war on terror for over 8 years. They've been plenty of Islamo-humor during those 8 years. If you missed it, just go looking for re-runs online.

Family Guy (many episodes), South Park (many episodes), Bill Maher (you do realize he's an atheist, he makes fun of all religions), Christopher Titus (two different comedy specials) and just about every stand-up comedian that does political and social comedy, Daily Show and Colbert Report (numerous episodes).

And these are just shows I can think of off the top of my head.

THANK YOU!

I'm glad you also noted that Bill Maher is an atheist who makes fun of all religions.

Also, Family Guy makes fun of EVERYTHING, including Jesus. Love the show.

Am80, You have laid it out exactly right. It was a joke on a comedy channel.

Big Red makes it sound as if Larry David purposefully "pissed" on a picture of Jesus in an act of sacrilege, then laughed hysterically about it. In reality, it was clearly an accidently splashing, that set up the story line for the landlord to misunderstand what he was seeing.

There was obviously no blatant intention to offend anyone.

This is just another example of how conservatives latch on to an issue and choose to see it in their own self-righteous way and nothing on this Earth will change their minds--facts be damned.

I can't believe you just called Allah and Muhammad "butts". How insensitive. (sorry... just kidding)

I'm a consesrvative evangelical Christian, and frankly, I wasn't offended. Why? A picure of Jesus is not, to me a religious icon, and from my perspective, I actually thought it was pretty funny. I can, however, understand who some might find it extremely offensive; unfortunately, the Constitution doesn't guarantee our right to not be offended. As a literalist,

A80,

No way to defend this. HBO takes advantage of artistic freedom at the expense of Catholics because they know that there will not be any retribution.

You failed to mentione the violence caused by Muslims extremists when Danish cartoons poked fun at Muhammad.The Cartoonists life was threatened and many of the cartoons were disallowed in many publications here in the US & around the world because they may be insensitive to Muslims.Muslims took it upon themselves to boycott Danish Products and to date over 200 people have been killed and injured in viloence surrounding the publication & republication of the cartoons.

There in lies the difference, Muslims threaten with violence when made fun of, Catholics & Christians issue statements.

This is just another example of the moral corruptness and disregard for religion that the Left has on display on a daily basis.

I am not religious but i do not think this act is funny. It is unspeakable.

Shirley,

What is more unspeakable are the Producers of these shows that don't care. There are musch better ways to get a laugh out of an audience thatn to poke fun at religion especially Catholic & Christianity.

This is why I just watch HBO when boxing is on. Don't worry about people disrespecting Jesus because even Jesus said that people would continue to blaspheme him perpetually: confirmation of truth.

Ahol888,

HBO has started to get off track with their programming. I used to enjoy watching some of their programs like Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, The Larry Sanders Show and Carnivale.

I think HBO has steered it's programming towards a more sociopathic and shallow audience. People that I beilieve lack empathy, have poor behavior controls and to some degree manipulative. They cater to an audience that is probably uninhibited in their sexual behavior, are superficial and irresponsible.

In jewish beliefs jesus is nothing special and who came first jews or christains thefore the christains are felt to be a knockoff religion so why should jews care?
oh and by the way your religoin didnt come about because of jesus it came about because of paul and totaly twisted the veiws of the folowers of jesus basicly

Big,

That is beside the point. It is still offesive to many people this is not he place for this sort of stuff. All religions should be offended by this. To Jews, perhaps Jesus Christ is insignificant, but to millions around the world it is everything.

I can understand why so many would be upset or even outraged at this, but there are those of us that do not believe in Jesus or even God. Yes, this may have crossed a line for those of faith, but what about us that don't believe? We are allowed to find humor in anything.

I respect those who do have faith and who are upset at this, I'm just asking for that same courtesy as an atheist.

Jessica,
Jessica,

So you find humor in this because you are an atheist?
How would you feel it the same scene depicted someone urinating on a picture of one of your close relatives or a picture of the president or the firts lady? Is that humorous as well?

Bottomline here is, that somethings should be off limits, this is one of them.

Bigmak,
you may want to read a little deeper, who was it that caught paul on the road to damascus. JESUS. Who was it that told the disciples to go into all the world(not just the jews),JESUS
You see bigmak all bases are covered on this subject, so quit making stuff up, so you can argue.

A80,
As always you leave out any incriminating evidence. Like red said the danish journalist was just one of many.

Jessica,
Whats your point, either your respect is false or you want us to be fake in our faith. Yea you can laugh at anything you wish.

No way should we stand behind Hollywood's irreverent sensibilities (non). This doesn't merely break down religion but it also breaks down the standard of acceptance. These actors and their creators of the show are Jewish. Does this give them license to disrespect other beliefs? Aren't the jews a population of people who have historically and presently sought acceptance and freedom from prejudice? People are struggling for freedoms and democracy all around the world right now. Hollywood takes these freedoms for granted and makes a mockery of our good fortune to be given this privilege.

TCI,

Well Said. I find it intriguing that when SNL did a skit parodying Barack Obama, CNN went out of it's way to fact check the contents of the skit. When anyone takes liberties to make fun of a religion, no one questions it.

It is really a sad commentary on where this country is morally.

And you "challenge" has already been faced and beaten. Jokes about Muslims and Allah and Muhammad have all been made. If you hadn't realize, we've been fighting the war on terror for over 8 years. They've been plenty of Islamo-humor during those 8 years. If you missed it, just go looking for re-runs online.

Family Guy (many episodes), South Park (many episodes), Bill Maher (you do realize he's an atheist, he makes fun of all religions), Christopher Titus (two different comedy specials) and just about every stand-up comedian that does political and social comedy, Daily Show and Colbert Report (numerous episodes).

That is what I wrote for my comments. The Muslims didn't kill anyone for all of those jokes made on those shows. No violence, no threats of violence.

You wrote that HBO has never made fun of Islam, Bill Maher has made fun of Islam. ANd he's going to do it again. He's on HBO.



Oh and if you're sooooo pissed off that Christians and Catholics don't react the same way as Muslims do when offended, then start acting that way.

You don't get to bad mouth people because you're whining about how you don't get to act as violent as them.

Um Christians and Catholics didn't act violent when offended. I would say that's a good thing. Shows how one should properly react to things like this.

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taken from wikipedia:

Danish Muslim organizations, who objected to the depictions, responded by holding public protests attempting to raise awareness of Jyllands-Posten's publication. Further examples of the cartoons were soon reprinted in newspapers in more than fifty other countries, further deepening the controversy.

This led to protests across the Muslim world, some of which escalated into violence with police firing on the crowds (resulting in more than 100 deaths, all together), including setting fire to the Danish Embassies in Syria, Lebanon and Iran, storming European buildings, and desecrating the Danish, Dutch, Norwegian and German flags in Gaza City. While a number of Muslim leaders called for protesters to remain peaceful, other Muslim leaders across the globe, including Mahmoud al-Zahar of Hamas, issued death threats.





All the people that have died from the violence surounding the protests were people that were protesting. When police fired at the crowds, or accidental deaths due to stray bullets.

No one really killed any Danish



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taken from a a blog:


Another incredibly ironic twist is that it wasn't until Danish imams toured the arab world with the drawings approx. two months after the publication that the strong reactions started - most of the imams in question had ties to Hizb-ut Tahrir, which is banned in most northern european countries because they're considered extreme, but which is allowed in Denmark because of our general tolerance.

Then there are a couple of things to note about the flyers which the imams handed out on their tour. I've read a translation, and the following makes me question the purity of their motives:

-it says that mosques aren't allowed in Denmark and that we persecute muslims.
Not true - we have a couple in the larger cities as well as graveyards exclusively for muslims. When the cartoon controversy was at its peak, muslim organizations had the freedom to hold demonstrations as they wished - the only larger one I can recall was held in front of our parliament, mostly attended by members of Hizb-ut Tahrir.




Crazy imams went around lying to people to rile them up. That's when the violent reaction started. WHen people started believing the lies the extremist imams were spreading.

A80,

I can't say it enough. This country has kissed the asses of Muslims and bent over backwards to avoid being insensitive for too long.

I put the challenge out to HBO again, "Please replay that same bathroom scene and replace the picture of Jesus Christ with Muhammad or some other Islamic religious figure head.

I gurantee you that you will wait till the cows come home for it to happen.

If it did happen, the WH would probably be first in lne to get the show off the air.

Hey Red,

Been a while since I've been on the site (very long story for another day...fire, tragedy...awful. Praise God, we are all still among the living).

Your article is, in my opinion, spot on..again. I always enjoy reading your stuff. It always refreshing (and encouraging) to know that there are more of us out there than many realize.

Great work, and keep going!

~Joe

jnkasper.

Good to hear from you. I hope all is well.

Just saying what I believe in. I know many people feel the same way as I do. I believe in God and therefore I feel it is appropriate to call out HBO on this sick attempt at humor. I am just fed up with all the double standards and always surrendering our way of wife to appease some of the very same people that want to harm Americans.

It is a cowardly move to pick on Catholics and Christians, these people take the lead from our Commander in Chief who referred to Midwesterners as "Gun Toting Bible Thumping Rednecks".

It is a shame, but unfortunately many people have taken the lead from our President and feel this type of behavior is ok.

wow... this is a prime example why we are where we are... there is just no longer any respect for anything or anyone...

are you serious?
have you ever even seen the show?
its about larry david and the shit he gets himself into
i havent seen the episode, but im SURE that it wasnt intentional
and im sure it led to him getting himself into some more shit later in the episode
larry david would not piss on a picture of jesus and laugh about it as if it was intentional
so shut the hell up and know what youre talking about before you start talking about respect

gnsnrse,

I think it' not fair to get on Carolina especially if you have not watched the video. We understand that larry David is a comedian. I just think that thistyoe of skit was done once too many and I think it is unfair that Catholics constantly get flogged and made fun of for no reason. As I have said, I wish they would repeat this exact same scene and instead of Jesus Christ use the Koran or a picture of Muhammad instead. Then let me see what type of reaction they will get from the Muslim community.

D,

I think subliminally there was a message sent and consumed by impressionable young minds.

The fact that Larry David and the shows Producers makes it even worse. I am sure that they would be as offended if Don Rickles or Jackie Mason railed against or made fun of Jews that worshipped the Star of David or Abraham.

For once I would like to see HBO mix it up and have a Muslim themed show where he makes fun of Muslims and their culture. If the company line is going to be that the shows are not meant to offend any religion or group, then why not insult, the Koran or Muhammad, Allah or Abraham?

I agree with Redhanded101 all the way. Wow..where do you FIND TIME TO write all your comments, dude? Is it your day off or what? I'm going to school and work today, so the next time ya'll see my comments posted on allvoices, it will be almost midnight. :) byyyye ya'll

According to The Times (London), it's part of the job description for comedians:

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/comedy/article6899806.ece

Or, to quote the Irish novelist Anne Enright, "American isn't a nationality; it's a religion - with a broad definition of heresy".

man this is a pretty messed up thing to do

Oh for Christ's sake (pun intended), the whole point of Curb Your Enthusiasm is to offend absolutely everyone. That is the joke. If you don't get it, or don't find it funny (it hardly appeals to universal taste), don't watch it.

Gnsnrse,
"What happened dude", did you break your last Guns and roses CD. lighten up, she has a point. We've done things the liberals way(they own the airwaves) for a while and it's not working.

Delilah, A80 didn't lay anything out right, he went on a 50 page rant about the poor muslims. Surely you don't believe your own statement:

There was obviously no blatant intention to offend anyone.

This was a set up from the out start. Did you not read A80 journal,sure sounds to me like he latched on to defending muslims, sounds to me like he see's it in his on self righteous way. You BWL's

How do you even turn on the television to see THIS but never noticed or heard the incessant jokes on Muslims, Allah, the Koran, etc? Are you CHOOSING what you hear?

What rotten humor would that be? Nothing but bad and the film should be banned. 4/11/2009.

I have, in the past few years, watched this show "Curb Your Enthusiasm" but I just got tired of same lame "misunderstandings" and "hideous jokes" this show portrays. It's a shame how low Hollywood has to go to get a few laughs. And for WHAT?? Like HBO isn't HURTING in the Emmy dept. They GOT the ratings.. so what's the story? My question here is WHY do they think it's funny? I know one for sure-- they better be glad it's on HBO and not one of the BIG THREE networks like NBC or ABC. I know ABC wouldn't tolerate that nonsense. You see they cancelled Bill Maher's show...which ironically is on HBO now.. hmmmm..interesting.

Antonianoel,
Yea, it's real easy and simple! Don't turn on the TV, I've known for sometime hollywood is anti everything I believe, so why would I give them one second of my time.

Redhanded,

I have to disagree with you on this one. In fact, there *is* a way to defend this, and it's laid out in a very cogent fashion by A80.

I also defended - and still defend - the Danish cartoons that poked fun at Mohammed. Do I think they were particularly funny? No, at least not the one I remember seeing. Do I think the idea of an icon of Jesus getting splashed with urine is funny? Not in the least. It's kind of disgusting, and I certainly wouldn't watch the show in question if I knew that's what the episode was about.

BUT...I believe in both Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Speech. In other words, I believe in the Constitution. I am an American.

If you are somehow insinuating that advocating violence is a solution to what you perceive as an insult to Catholics or Christians, then I strongly disagree. After all, Jesus himself advocated turning the other cheek, and I do not mean that at all in a sarcastic way. It is the way of bending with the wind, of staying strong in your foundations without lashing out at that which you perceive as a threat. Is this easy? Hah! If it were, so many more of us would be doing it as effortlessly as we laugh or grow outraged at some unfunny comedy on HBO.

Could it be that your reaction is merely a mirror of your own disregard for other religions? I don't ask this in a judgmental way, but because some of the comments you made lead me to believe you don't hold Muslims in very high regard. Please forgive me if I am wrong about that, but it seems that way from the comments. As a Christian, I find that the less I judge (and therefore react to) something I find "offensive," the more peace of mind and overall sense of kinship with my fellow humans, regardless of religion, that I feel.

But then again, I suppose that's just a case of me putting my faith in practice.

See Matthew 7, verses 1-3:
"Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again."

"What I took offense to was that it seems to me that Catholics & Christians are too often the brunt of religious jokes. It is kind of taken for granted."

Red,
From a purely Biblical context, doesn't that sort of come with the territory?

Good call Punditty;

To me, as a Christian, I think it's necessary to maintain a certain amount of perspective as well as a sense of humor. One of the things that makes for very good satire, is very poor taste, or at least almost total irreverence. I don't, for a minute believe that the episode was intended to be derogatory or insulting; it's intended to be funny, and frankly, I thought it was very funny.

That picture was not my God. It's nothing but a man made representation of that about which we know little in terms of Jesus the man. My God is real, and supersedes such nonsense. Irreverent satire in no way detracts from my faith, or my relationship with Jesus.

Look at the movie"Dogma"; it's as irreverent as it gets, but that's what's funny; stereotypes are funny because they are so exaggerated and and often absolutely ridiculous. We laugh at the stereotype, not the object of that stereotype.

More irreverent satire and stereotypes:
The Belairabs
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xasgz2_saturday-night-live-the-bel-airabs_fun

Good to see that there are in fact real Christians out there who abide by their teachings.

Thank you for this comment.

punditty,

Thnx for checking in.

I believe in Freedom of Speech and I believe in Religion as well.

What I took offense to was that it seems to me that Catholics & Christians are too often the brunt of religious jokes. It is kind of taken for granted.

My argument and challenge to HBO was, why not level the playing field and show some diversity by poking fun at other religions. I mentioned Muslims to reference the fact that in the past when they have been made fun of, they have acted violenty and sought to exact bodily harm on anyone reproducing or republishing such material.

If HBO would show a similiar scene replaceing the picture of Jesus with Muhammad or urinating on The Koran or the Star of David or any other religious symbol, I would say thery were fair. But that is not what I see here. I see an intentional & subliminal attempt to discredit Catholics and Christians. Bill Maher takes the same liberties and goes as far as attacking the Pope.

I don't disregard other religions my beef is with HBO.

I agree with you, too, Redhanded. If HBO is going to poke fun at one religion, why not poke fun at ALL religions or at least 3-4 more?? America is made up of VARIOUS religions. Not everyone believes in God, Jesus Christ, angels and so forth. If you're going to joke, do 'em ALL, HBO. Play FAIR.Like you said, redhanded, 'level the playing field.'

Redhanded,
I agree with you some what, but to me this just re-enforces what we truely believe. Everything written about our belief says these things will happen and must happen.

Pollard, you're right.