The reactions to Pete Davidson’s joke about Daniel Crenshaw on “Saturday Night Live” have been incredibly overblown.
Davidson joked about the Republican Texas congressional candidate, a former Navy SEAL who lost an eye due to an IED blast in Afghanistan, looking like a hit man in a porno after suffering the injury in “war … or whatever.” It obviously took no time at all for the short video clip to go viral. You can watch it below.
Dan Crenshaw was nearly blinded in 2012 when he was hit by an IED blast in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, where he was on his third deployment. He lost his right eye in the blast, and his left eye was badly damaged.
Shame on you, @nbcsnl, this is disgusting! pic.twitter.com/VQnhXMa6iT
— The Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) November 4, 2018
The outrage quickly followed. People were calling for his job, attacking “SNL” relentlessly, while refusing to shut up about the whole issue. Crenshaw had one of the best takes on the situation, which isn’t surprising because he is clearly smart.
Good rule in life: I try hard not to offend; I try harder not to be offended. That being said, I hope @nbcsnl recognizes that vets don’t deserve to see their wounds used as punchlines for bad jokes.
— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) November 4, 2018
Yet, I can’t believe how out of control this Pete Davidson debacle has gotten. Sunday, we had a full slate of NFL games. I thought surely by noon this would be out of the news as we do what we do best in America, which is to watch football and relax on Sundays. I was wrong.
I want to make something crystal clear here. I don’t know Crenshaw or Pete Davidson at all. As far as I know, I don’t even have any mutual connections with Davidson. I’m writing this solely because the outrage machine needs to slam on the breaks. (RELATED: Hollywood’s Biggest Power Couple Is Officially Over. The Love Story Of A Generation Is Dead)
First off, it’s important to get the whole context here because the viral clip doesn’t show it. Davidson mocked a variety of people, including himself for his own physical appearance.
Second, the part so many conservatives on Twitter seem upset about is the fact he said “war … or whatever” as if minimizing Crenshaw’s sacrifice. I hate to state the obvious here, but the entire joke is Davidson delivering the line in such a flippant and cavalier way when it’s such a serious topic. The only person in the national media who seemed to understand that was Fox News’ Greg Gutfeld.
starting to rethink davidson joke. isn’t the point that it’s a ridiculously absurd thing to say? so when he says it, he knows that its cavalier delivery about such sacrifice is the punchline cuz there’s nothing cavalier about that sacrifice. trying to be generous here. thoughts?
— GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) November 4, 2018
Anybody who is shocked by the fact Davidson would joke about a serious subject in such a manner is either a liar or doesn’t know what the hell they’re talking about. This is the same guy who said he lasts longer during sex by thinking about his firefighter father, who was burned alive and murdered on 9/11. Is anybody really going to sit here with a straight face and tell me his comments are somehow surprising given Davidson’s history? Give me a break.
Finally, comedy can’t have any protected classes and it has to be edgy. That’s just the way comedy works. I couldn’t stop thinking about Patrice O’Neal’s appearance on Fox News after the Don Imus incident years ago. He made the same argument, and the white liberal he was talking to was absolutely stunned he felt that way.
I’m not saying the joke was funny, written well, delivered well or anything else. However, we’re heading for a dark place if a bad joke leads to this much outrage and people gunning for Davidson’s livelihood. I thought conservatives prided themselves on not engaging in petty boycotts and trying to get people fired? I thought they left that to liberals? I guess the same rules just don’t apply when it’s against somebody they don’t like.
I can’t state this clearly enough. Comedy can’t have restraints at all. Nothing can be off limits. It doesn’t matter the person or subject. If we embrace any other standard, I promise you we will all suffer.
As for the people going wild on Twitter, find a better use of your energy. “SNL” isn’t going to fire Pete Davidson for reading a script during a sketch. There’s no chance in hell, and you’re all just coming off as whiny babies. Spend some time outdoors, grab a beer and relax.