George Carlin: In Defense of Politicians

Source:Official George Carlin Back in Town (1996)

"Legendary counter culture comedian, George Carlin, pokes holes in the reasoning behind the verbal attacks on American politics and politicians.

Back in Town aired as a live broadcast from New York City’s Beacon Theater and features Carlin’s trademark acerbic observations on topics such as abortion, capital punishment, familiar expressions and bodily functions. Classic routines “Sanctity of Life,” “State Prison Farms,” “Free-Floating Hostility” and more are included in this hysterical stand-up comedy performance." 

From Official George Carlin

"Everybody complains about politicians. Everybody says they suck. Well, where do people think these politicians come from? They don’t fall out of the sky. They don’t pass through a membrane from some other reality.

They come from American parents, American families, American homes, American schools, American churches, American businesses, American universities, and they’re elected by American citizens.

This is the best we can do, folks. This is what we have to offer. It’s what our system produces. Garbage in…garbage out.

If you have selfish, ignorant citizens…if you have selfish, ignorant citizens, you’re gunna get selfish, ignorant leaders. And term limits ain’t gunna do ya any good. You’re just gunna wind up with a brand new bunch of selfish, ignorant Americans [leaders].

So, maybe…maybe…maybe it’s not the politicians who suck. Maybe something else sucks around here. Like…the public. Yeah, the public sucks! That’s a nice campaign slogan for somebody: “The public sucks! Fuck hope! Fuck hope!”

Because if it is really just the fault of the politicians then where are all the other bright people of conscience? Where are all the bright, honest, intelligent Americans ready to step in and save the nation and lead the way?" 

From Daniel Joder

Here's some of what I wrote about this issue in 2015: 

"I partially agree with George Carlin on this. Our politicians actually do suck in way too many cases. I think that is obvious when you have a Congress that can’t get its basic responsibilities taken care of: 

Like gee I don’t know, funding the government that they are part of. 

Or paying the bills that has been run up on the debt, which is what a debt ceiling extension actually is. Not an agreement to borrow more money, just to pay the interest on the current debt. 

And you could add other examples of how members of Congress in both parties treat each other... 

From The New Democrat

"In Defense of Politicians", that would never be 1 of my lines. Not even if I was a defense lawyer defending a politician. I would be in there in court telling the judge: 

"I'm here to defend the politician". But if I win this case, as soon as it's over, I'll be the first person telling the public how big of an asshole I think this person is. And why I've never voted for this politician. Well, not after the first time...

My point here is it's not  just the politicians. It's not just the voters either. It's just mostly the voters. As George Carlin said: 

"Everybody complains about politicians. Everybody says they suck. Well, where do people think these politicians come from? They don’t fall out of the sky. They don’t pass through a membrane from some other reality.

They come from American parents, American families, American homes, American schools, American churches, American businesses, American universities, and they’re elected by American citizens.

This is the best we can do, folks. This is what we have to offer. It’s what our system produces. Garbage in…garbage out... 

If voters took voting as seriously as buying I don't know, their latest smartphone, their latest smart TV, which coffee house to buy their coffee and what coffee drinks that they want, (just to throw out a few examples) I could guaran-damn-tee you that voting would be a helluva lot better in America. For the simple reason because then American voters would become American consumers of politics and government and would take it seriously. It's not that Americans are stupid by-en-large, (with a lot of exceptions) it's that they tend to be mentally lazy and don't like doing their homework and taking risks. Unless that's what their pop culture icons are doing and they think that's the cool thing to do.  

But as long as American democracy is like some realty TV game show, or something, where the winner is the person who is the coolest, the best looking, knows the best and most catch phrases, is hanging out with fabulist people, (so to speak) voting in American democracy will never be any better than voting for the NBA or MLB All Star Game. And to paraphrase George Carlin: it will just continue to be garbage in, garbage out, in our government.

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