Here's something to ponder....
Take the show "Family Guy" for eg. Consider the character of "Joe" (cop in the wheelchair) who is often the butt of many over-the-top, and I'm quite certain, offensive jokes to some handicapped persons by the other characters on FG. Now, if the character's lines were written by someone with a disability, does that mean that any concerns by those handicapped viewers are unfounded and they should accept it? would they feel different if the writer(s) were not handicapped?
I find this show(generally) funny, however, sometimes they go so far overboard it doesn't make sense and really is unnecessary as the rest of the show is quite funny. I saw an episode the other day that involved a child with cerebral palsy and they joked about how you don't see many victims of cb with grey hair. I immediately thought of my neighbours who have an adult son with the condition, and thought they would be very offended by such a comment. For the record, I'm quite certain they don't watch Family Guy, but that's not really my point. Where do we draw the line? do we even have a line or do they(we) keep changing the goal posts?
Adrian, I don't watch Family Guy, but my sister is a devoted viewer of the show and quite frequently posts clips of Joe on my Facebook wall, and I find them all absolutely hysterical. From my experience, it's easily a minority of people in the disabled community that would find something on the show disparaging (I honestly can't think of one person that I know or have met).
Regarding where do we draw the line, I can't really say because nothing bothers me.
When you mentioned Family Guy and how some disabled people might be offended, you reminded me of the cartoon Quads that is an adult cartoon they used to air on the Toon Network. The cartoon is based on the life of a quadriplegic named Riley, who lives with friends with various disabilities. The show plays on a lot of stereotypes, but also truisms (I can relate to the ones concerning Riley), and could also be considered offensive by some. I, however, think it's absolutely hilarious.
Here's part one of three from the episode Let The Gimp Games Begin. I encourage you, Dean and others to at least watch all three parts of that episode and let me know what you think. Pay close attention to the lyrics of the song at the opening of the show
. Too funny!
Don't do a background check of the show! Or at least not until you formulate an opinion about it.
Cheers
