Penn Jillette Thinks Lindy West Is a Cunty Cunt!

Comments

This is almost as bad as Ari Fleischer doing "damage control" for Komen.

Great MSNBC reviews. I only really liked the VW commercial and one of the polar bear commercials, and a thumbs up on Chevy.

Will in Seattle on February 6, 2012 at 1:34 PM

I disagreed with her review but I'm not going to cuss at her. Most of the commercials were pretty funny, but to each their own.

Democrat1234 on February 6, 2012 at 1:38 PM

I always thought he was an idiot.

very bad homo on February 6, 2012 at 1:40 PM

Wow. That's really...wow.

TVDinner on February 6, 2012 at 1:40 PM

@ 4 + 1

mr. herriman on February 6, 2012 at 1:45 PM

"This is just someone trying to hate people and be superior and having to work really hard at it."

I couldn't agree more. Asshat...

Foghorn Leghorn on February 6, 2012 at 1:45 PM

On the bright side, he didn't say anything about her weight.

Gern Blanston on February 6, 2012 at 1:47 PM

OK, now I really really need this: http://twitter.com/#!/DanaJGould/status/…

Daily in LA on February 6, 2012 at 1:48 PM

Makes such a point out of being an asshole. So tired.

gloomy gus on February 6, 2012 at 1:48 PM

I guess he has sort of been a professional troll for a while, now.

Zebes on February 6, 2012 at 1:53 PM

His rant against the ADA was almost as offensive as this.

Allyn on February 6, 2012 at 1:54 PM

Just don't call anyone retarded.

Vince on February 6, 2012 at 1:55 PM

Christ, what an asshole.

sirkowski on February 6, 2012 at 1:55 PM

Clever way of directing traffic to that lame article, dave

benjammin509 on February 6, 2012 at 1:56 PM

Once a dick, always a dick.

zombie eyes on February 6, 2012 at 2:00 PM

David, gratuitous use of the N word by random white people : never a good idea. Why, precisely?

harriettubman on February 6, 2012 at 2:00 PM

I don't get it. Is he mistaking Lindy's article as serious critique, or is he calling her a cunt because she failed to make him laugh?

P.S. There are more differences between "cunt" and "nigger" than there are similarities.

seandr on February 6, 2012 at 2:02 PM

I like Penn's work, generally, but I am kind of puzzled as to why he'd go out of his way to criticize someone's work for going out of it's way to criticize someone's work.

bleedingheartlibertarian on February 6, 2012 at 2:05 PM

There's something distinctly Hipster Generation about Lindy's sense of humor -- the gleeful tangents, the capitalized second-person slang fragments, the eight layers of irony -- of which a Classic Showbiz fart like Jillette is never going to see the appeal.

She just happens to be really fucking good with that style of humor, so out-loud-laugh-generating that she overcomes the subcultural limitations of the style. She is to hipster humor what Andy Kaufman was to performance art.

Penn Jillette, meanwhile, is a useless echo of post-Catskills, post-Vegas showboating as an end in itself. Dreary. And apparently a total douche as well.

d.p. on February 6, 2012 at 2:06 PM

Aw, Penn. In the case of you vs. Lindy West, Lindy wins every time. Way to blow away whatever residual goodwill you had from me for hosting MST3K Turkey Day marathons back in the day, you ass face.

laterite on February 6, 2012 at 2:09 PM

Didn't someone on Slog point out how Penn Jillette acted like a real prick to a barista at one of the small coffee shops in Seattle? Maybe someone can jog my mind but this sort of attitude from that lardass isn't that shocking.

Cato the Younger Younger on February 6, 2012 at 2:09 PM

West funny. Jillette not. Not much else to say about it.

Fnarf on February 6, 2012 at 2:09 PM

Lindy West, you have arrived! Some of us can only dream of being hated on by Penn Jillette.

Of course I'll be even more impressed if you get Teller to say something about you.

longball on February 6, 2012 at 2:15 PM

I liked him better when he was being a giant douche to people who actually needed it, like psychics and homeopaths and whatnot. It's one thing to pick on people who do the victimizing, and another entirely to pick on people who are already victimized demographics. Now I'm sort of surprised they never did an episode of "Bullshit!" on feminism. What a shithead.

balderdash on February 6, 2012 at 2:16 PM

Was that ACTUALLY his official account? I don't doubt he's a doucher enough to, of course. But I don't see why he'd bother yapping about any blogger's opinions versus anything else traditionally libertopian.

undead ayn rand on February 6, 2012 at 2:18 PM

Stranger writers, please educate yourselves about race. Happy Black History Month to you, too. The fact that no one else even comments on the N word or notices a damn thing (well, one comment) shows how utterly unnecessary & out of place it was. Let's try and be creative instead of reflexively going for the cheap shock value. & how many years have you been writing for The Stranger? Racial ignorance repeatedly presents itself in this paper, because the writers are predominately white and male and priveleged and basically don't give a fuck because they don't have too. No dear, gay is NOT the new Black.

harriettubman on February 6, 2012 at 2:19 PM

@26 of course not. It's the new Pink.

Will in Seattle on February 6, 2012 at 2:23 PM

Whatever Lindy wrote, that response was overblown. But comparing "cunt" to "nigger"? Please.

If you want a word for females that carries an analogous amount of cultural baggage as "nigger" does for blacks, then I think the word you're looking for is "wife".

madcap on February 6, 2012 at 2:26 PM

which means? nothing.

harriettubman on February 6, 2012 at 2:27 PM

Bravo, d.p.

Also, Harriett, not disagreeing with you, but I think it's more likely that commenters aren't saying anything because they don't really know how to address it (or they don't think it's a big deal, which is problematic). I find that when I avoid talking about race it's because I don't want to be perceived as a racist. I am interested in your take on what makes this particular use of the N word thoughtless and offensive (not being sarcastic or ironic; I really am. educate me).

As far as white hipsters using race to be edgy, I always find it helpful and humbling to watch this informative and even-handed vlog episode from badass Jay Smooth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpK0Ad8hD…

Anyway, bottom line: Penn 0, Lindy eight million.

daftgiraffe on February 6, 2012 at 2:31 PM

#27. You referenced yourself as the other comment. That's really lame and sad. A lot of black writers, like Ta Nehisi Coates , would have no problem with Schmader's use of the word. It's making a point, where saying the "N-word" just makes the reader say it in their mind. There's a place to use the word in context of someone else using it or it being in a book or a sign (Rick Perry thing). Also, please educate yourself about race is the most condescending line I can think of in a blog comment.

Hosono on February 6, 2012 at 2:32 PM

I agree with @26. Also, when is it okay for white people to use the n-word? Ummm, almost never.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iau-e6HfO…

shaneleopard on February 6, 2012 at 2:32 PM

@26: Yeah, there's plenty enough douchey in the reply without feeling forced to co-opt race and give it "more weight".

undead ayn rand on February 6, 2012 at 2:32 PM

@32, yeah, almost never. The exception would be like this here, where the white writer is using it in the voice of the bigot he is making fun of.

You Stranger readers need to educate yourself in the art of reading comprehension.

Fnarf on February 6, 2012 at 2:35 PM

I do thank Penn for doing his part to lessen the sting of "cunt" though. Calling someone a cunt over not being funny? Way to lower the bar, man.

OuterCow on February 6, 2012 at 2:36 PM

A rose by any other name...

Central Scrutinizer on February 6, 2012 at 2:36 PM

Anybody in this comment thread who's angry about use of the n-word without recognizing an entirely uncalled-for, malicious use of the c-word is missing the p-word.

Sam Machkovech on February 6, 2012 at 2:36 PM

@34 You should educate yourself in not being a dick, but I fear it's too late for that lesson.

It seems like busting out the n-word every time someone called Lindy a cunt would mean the entire stranger staff would be chanting the n-word like a KKK march. Hardly an excuse to trample out "nigger" to make a point. Asshole.

shaneleopard on February 6, 2012 at 2:38 PM

the 'article' really was horrible though....

34x42 on February 6, 2012 at 2:41 PM

How exactly are the words "nigger" and "cunt" different? They're both slurs. It just seems like playing oppression olympics to try to make one worse than the other. They're both equally awful.

on February 6, 2012 at 2:46 PM

@28 -- Historically, calling a woman a cunt doesn't seem as bad as calling a black person a nigger. Linguistically and rhetorically? Pretty much the same thing. These are both examples of synechdoche where one part of the person's physical identity, either race or gender, is used to define that person and turned into an ad hominem attack.

Amanda on February 6, 2012 at 2:48 PM

that is fucking awesome.

grats lindy!

i'd love to be able to piss off penn that badly. the dude is pretty tough as nails.

Swearengen on February 6, 2012 at 2:52 PM

But wait a minute - Lindy is a cunt. So what's your problem?

Fifty-Two-Eighty on February 6, 2012 at 2:54 PM

Projection.

Hawke on February 6, 2012 at 2:59 PM

Did msnbc pull all the comments from her article? Tried to find them and can't seem to.....hmmm....

gnarly on February 6, 2012 at 2:59 PM

@41 An example of a synechdoche? What part of the body is the nigger?

mulata on February 6, 2012 at 3:01 PM

@26, you're co-opting the name of Harriet Tubman for your myopic, peevish blog comments, and you have the unmitigated gall to call out other people for playing the race card?

Fuck. You.

balderdash on February 6, 2012 at 3:06 PM

So when she calls the M&M ad victim-blaming, she's implying that the audience's take away is that the woman appearing to be naked excuses the douche-M&M's inappropriate come on?

My reaction at the time was that we were supposed to be empathizing with her while dismissing the behavior of the dumb, horny men. Didn't the red M&M seem like the antagonist? I feel like the argument that this ad is anti-feminist would be stronger if the red M&M wasn't on the way to getting shut down hard when the ad ends.

The message I got is "if you think that a woman being dressed provocatively can only mean she is like totally into you, bro; then you're an idiot like this dancing naked cartoon candy." And I like that message, but maybe I'm just being optimistic.

Anyway, good ad, because we're talking about it.

algorhythm99 on February 6, 2012 at 3:10 PM

You're so funny, @47. Clueless in Greenwood.

harriettubman on February 6, 2012 at 3:12 PM

Lol, I'm Penn Jillette. I make lots of statements about how atheism is amazing and people are dumb and we should all be progressive liberals, lol!

And then I call women misogynstic slurs that help enforce a gender binary-promoting patriarchy, lol!

Look how funny/edgy I am, lol!

What a fucking jackass.

Helix on February 6, 2012 at 3:16 PM

& @26," Fuck. You." is quite a bit more peevish than anything that I wrote, wouldn't you say? Sensitive about race and discussions of white privilege much?

harriettubman on February 6, 2012 at 3:16 PM

I don't think cunt means what you think it means...

econoline on February 6, 2012 at 3:17 PM

Except for the use of that abhorrent word he's pretty much spot on in his evaluation of Ms. West's, uh, talent. She does seem to enjoy her own humor far more than anyone else.

bigyaz on February 6, 2012 at 3:19 PM

@50 Jillette is a notorious LIBERTARIAN. Not a liberal. And as we all know libertarian is simply another word for dipshit.

Lindy's article was terrible. But I fail to see how it got Jillettes ire up to the point he has to scream "cunt" over and over at her. And he's the very last person who should go around chastising people for claiming superiority. Jesus. That guy is the most smug, condescending fucking douche bag on the planet. I guarantee he was involved in one of those ads somehow. Otherwise that dude is a mental case for getting so het'd up over nothing.

tkc on February 6, 2012 at 3:27 PM

Hello folks: Having my post blasted for "gratuitous use" seems totally fair, and this icky sideline of inherent revulsion/comparative suffering of c-word vs. n-word (ALWAYS AWFUL, plus the n-word forever "wins") will be remembered as a deal-breaker next time I'm offended enough to want to reference the goddamn n-word.

Short version: My distaste for the childlike "n-word" < the inherent offensiveness of the actual word.

Learning and growing, thanks for playing.

David Schmader on February 6, 2012 at 3:28 PM

@54: "And as we all know libertarian is simply another word for dipshit."

^ This

HelpMeJebus on February 6, 2012 at 3:29 PM

What is up with white people insisting that in some particular instance, in some particular context that's not racist, it's ok for them to use the word n****r????? It's not just here in the Stranger comments, it seems like everywhere I turn there's some white person saying an exception can be made for them to write or say it. You know, since you cannot separate your whiteness from the history of this word, using it is always going to bother someone. And what is so awesome about using it anyway? You don't have enough white privilege, you have to be able to say n****r too? Please.

jamerican girl on February 6, 2012 at 3:29 PM

@33 - no part of a dispute between Jillette and West needs more weight

on February 6, 2012 at 3:29 PM

Also he's right. Lindy's article was Real Bad and completely unfunny

on February 6, 2012 at 3:30 PM

Harriett, I asked a respectful question, and you've chosen only to respond to the people you can respond to antagonistically. If you're not going to engage in a constructive conversation about race instead of taking on a condescending tone and telling people to "educate themselves" without explaining what you mean, you're just trolling. Do you actually want people to be smarter about race, or do you just want to feel superior?

daftgiraffe on February 6, 2012 at 3:33 PM

Speak for yourself, @53.

Superfrankenstein on February 6, 2012 at 3:39 PM

Haha, oh wow, @51. Called you out and got two replies and a profile stalk (And the point of that is, by the way? "Don't disagree with me on the internet because I WILL FIND YOU"?) but no actual response. I guess that's pretty much par for the course, though - your comment was basically just "Nuh-uh" to begin with.

Anyway, confirmation of troll acquired. We're done here.

balderdash on February 6, 2012 at 3:40 PM

Let me get this straight. A white person when say quoting the Nixon tapes to make a point of how racist Nixon must use "the N-Word." What authority has definitively decided this? A lot of black thinkers/writers would feel the exact opposite, that to use "n-word" in actual racist quotations is a lame and touchy-feely way to get out of actual history.

Hosono on February 6, 2012 at 3:41 PM

63: There's no "has to" here. It's about how you like to communicate/be perceived. I like to offend people on purpose, to make a point, not offend them in a way that obfuscates the point, which is how I see this particular case, and probably all point-making use of the worst word in history going forward...

David Schmader on February 6, 2012 at 3:45 PM

@57:

Thanks for exemplifying the worst extremes of political correctness. As a Jewish person who has heard people use words like "kike" first-hand, I do not subscribe to your position that any usage of a word is offensive. Intent is an important factor, and the idea that academics discussing the etymology and history of the word "nigger" need to instead use the much less-specific "n-word" is laughably stupid. Kind of like your comment.

Sincerely,
Kikey McKikerson

HelpMeJebus on February 6, 2012 at 3:49 PM

@64: Was your intention to trigger a discussion of a word that African Americans find offensive? If so, congratulations, you've succeeded. If instead you wanted people to focus on how offensive Penn Jillette's choice of words was, you've failed.

dlauri on February 6, 2012 at 3:52 PM

Lindy should take comfort in knowing that Jillette gave his daughter the name of a very specialized stripper.

suddenlyorcas on February 6, 2012 at 3:52 PM

66: Duh.

David Schmader on February 6, 2012 at 3:53 PM

As a white (and male) person, I'm of the opinion that white people just don't get to use the n-word. There are a lot of ways that Jillette's (unsurprising) asshattery could have been called out without the use of an easy and offensive joke. AND, I generally agree that while both words are very offensive (I also don't like and would similarly criticize men using the c-word), they're not appropriate corollaries.

I also would like to bring up the point that I've read elsewhere that the focus of the conversation has been diverted away from Jillette's misogynistic comment by David's choice of words. What might have been an interesting discussion about casual misogyny became, instead, clouded by the necessary issue of addressing the n-word. The point that it was bad was clear, there was no need to use racially charged language.

SamClemens on February 6, 2012 at 3:56 PM

People still say "kike?" I thought the discerning modern bigot preferred the more subtle dog whistle "Hollywood agent", "pinko intelectual" or "banker."

tkc on February 6, 2012 at 3:58 PM

@37: "Anybody in this comment thread who's angry about use of the n-word without recognizing an entirely uncalled-for, malicious use of the c-word is missing the p-word."

Who are you arguing with, here?

@41: "Linguistically and rhetorically? Pretty much the same thing."

Yes, utterly devoid of context, any insult carries the same weight as another?

undead ayn rand on February 6, 2012 at 4:03 PM

Before jumping all over Penn Jillette I'd like a link to the actual source of this quote, please. Frankly it doesn't sound like him, it wasn't posted on Twitter which is where he usually takes these things, and I can find no sign of it having been posted on Facebook or anywhere else.

Rillion on February 6, 2012 at 4:11 PM

@55: <3 Thanks for the reply.

undead ayn rand on February 6, 2012 at 4:19 PM

i think the equivalence that Schmader made was brilliant, relevant and effective.

onion on February 6, 2012 at 4:22 PM

I really don't understand why everyone's so upset by the N-word. Some of my best friends are Neopolitans.

NateMan on February 6, 2012 at 4:23 PM

@46 -- People with darker skin sometimes get called niggers by ignorant racists. Racists reduce someone's identity to skin colour in a diminishing, derogatory way.

@71 -- Looking at something in a different context, like a rhetorical one rather than a historical one, isn't the same as stripping it of any context.

Amanda on February 6, 2012 at 4:26 PM

I adore Lindy but this is not her best work.

(though "the end is hella nigh" is fantastic)

Buuuut Penn is a jackass and I hope he apologizes for this.

DeaconBlues on February 6, 2012 at 4:27 PM

Oh: and when a full grown adult uses the term 'n-word' or 'c-word' instead of what you mean, you sound like Kyle's mom from the South Park movie; namely, like you've got a telephone pole shoved up your C-word. You're an adult, theoretically speaking. Stop talking like a fucking 6yr old. Language has power. Stop trying to act like you can pull its teeth by hiding behind allusion. We know what you mean when you say it. Grow a pair and say it.

NateMan on February 6, 2012 at 4:27 PM

And yeah, I also question whether this was the actual Penn Jillette.

Amanda on February 6, 2012 at 4:29 PM

it was a terrible piece of non writing to be fair.

would have much preferred a WM Steven Humphrey review.

aardvark on February 6, 2012 at 4:34 PM

Lindy must be the only non-Mexican fat chick in Southern Cali.

on February 6, 2012 at 4:36 PM

Can we still call white guys with pit bulls wiggers?

on February 6, 2012 at 4:39 PM

I've reviewed Lindy West's review. It sucked. Get over it.

Yes, Mr. Schmader could have used a different word. He didn't; it caused controversy. Get over it.

Ms. West, you are now a contributor, not at The Stranger but a larger publication, it would be wise for you to start thinking on a larger scale; you are still a plagiaristic hack and the review shows this.

Everybody else? Grow the fuck up.

white queen B on February 6, 2012 at 4:47 PM

I'm more offended by bad taste than anything else. If your over the age of 14 and still get offended by nigger/cunt your a fucking idiot. The over-used variations of "douche" are far more pathetic because of the users inability to resist parroting their dominant peers. Cunt is coming into its own right now and I'm sure nigger will eventually have it's day. The window for douche was brief and never surpassed the broad richness of "asshole" in it's design.

porchedge on February 6, 2012 at 4:48 PM

Maybe now we know why Teller doesn't talk.

Alice Dreger on February 6, 2012 at 4:49 PM

Everyone who honestly got worked up over nigger vs. cunt needs to kill themselves immediately

on February 6, 2012 at 4:57 PM

@68 ftw.

onion on February 6, 2012 at 5:28 PM

All you peckerwoods telling the niggers to get over it when being compared to cunts are a bunch of dicks.

djh on February 6, 2012 at 5:30 PM

Did anyone bother to confirm whether that comment in the screencap was made by the actual Penn Jillette and not one of the zillions of Facebook imposters of famous people? Y'know...do a little fact checking?

on February 6, 2012 at 5:32 PM

Yay Lindy! Penn's always been a jackass.

Karla Canadian on February 6, 2012 at 5:36 PM

Lindy's article was stupid, as was Penn's review. Yet another example of how everyone shutting the fuck up and minding their own business would've been nice.

HOT PUSSY on February 6, 2012 at 5:46 PM

We don't deserve the second coming of Robert Benchley or S J Perelman, evidently.

Keister Button on February 6, 2012 at 5:55 PM

@91. Sorry, but is this your first day on the Internet? I can only assume so, if you think the response to anything at all online is for all parties to shut up and mind their own business.

mkyorai on February 6, 2012 at 6:07 PM

Didn't we have this "n" vs. "c" discussion before around here? Why are we repeating the same mistake?

Jillette's (supposed) reply was way over the top, but West's über-snark gets old really fast.

Teslick on February 6, 2012 at 6:09 PM

I used to think Penn was great but when he called "bullshit" on environmental activists because -- I don't know, he's a moron? -- he lost me. This is not helping.

Puty on February 6, 2012 at 6:17 PM

@84: "I'm more offended by bad taste than anything else. If your over the age of 14 and still get offended by nigger/cunt your a fucking idiot."

South Park has apparently made a generation of children functionally retarded.

undead ayn rand on February 6, 2012 at 6:18 PM

Cunty niggers are the worse.

on February 6, 2012 at 6:24 PM

The above does not look like the real Penn Jillette's twitter feed.

This does:

http://twitter.com/pennjillette

clashfan on February 6, 2012 at 6:31 PM

@97, the thing you find suspiciously unlike a twitter feed is what kids these days call a "Facebook post".

gloomy gus on February 6, 2012 at 6:40 PM

100

@98, gol-ding it, wtf was I thinking? I can only claim that I recently woke up from a nap. Good lord, that were dumb of me.

clashfan on February 6, 2012 at 6:47 PM

Penn Jillette Thinks Lindy West Is a Cunty Cunt!

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