The other night, I happened upon "The Daily Show" whilst surfing the TV waves and stuck around long enough to catch a couple minutes. Now, I'm not normally a big fan of the program and don't make a habit of watching it. Jon Stewart is perfectly serviceable comedian, but the notion that "The Daily Show" is good for anything more than the occasional chuckle or bemused grin has always struck me as silly.
Bill Moyers recently referred to Stewart as "the Mark Twain of our day."
Just last Saturday, I heard Bob Costas pontificating insufferably (as only he can) on how "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" were so superior to the likes of Don Imus, talk radio, and (gasp!) bloggers because they raised REAL issues and delivered SERIOUS messages through their humorous medium. Thank God we have Costas around to determine what media REALLY matters.
Anyway, on the show I saw Stewart was doing this bit where he played clips of Bush prior to the war in Iraq talking about how time was running out versus Bush asking for patience in waiting for victory now. It was set up as a "Bush vs Bush" debate.
Beyond the fact that the comparison was rather inapt (apples to oranges and whatnot), it had such a juvenile, sophomoric feel that it reminded me of nothing so much as a teenager who thinks himself oh so clever because he catches his parents in what he sees as a rhetorical paradox. "Well, once you said this and now you say this. So there." This is what passes for witty political commentary?
The man may be funny but he ain't no Mark Twain. Or Will Rogers. Or Ambrose Bierce. Or...
UPDATE-- Henry e-mails to concur:
Good blog 'boot Jon Stewart. Every time I surf over his show, I count. One,
two, three, four... It never gets beyond 20 before he openly mocks
Christianity. 20. Try it, it's kinda fun. Sophomoric? Gimme a break, 7th
grade tops.
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