Ass of the Week

I think what is potentially funny about this new series of posts that I'm starting today is that it could essentially be taken so many different ways. . . But since I'm not a flesh-sharing website, the true meaning of the new title is something in the vain of Keith Olbermann's "Worst Person in the World" or ESPN Radio guys Mike and Mike and their "Just Shut Up" segment.

This is going to be a weekly post, usually on Saturdays (as it is the end of a week) that will feature someone in the news who was, for lack of a better term (as of now. . . I'm still working on a potential change to the title) an ass. I think the term works better with out the hole on it, and that's just my opinion, but go with it for me won't you?!?!

And for the first ever version of the Ass of the Week, I went no further than to a place that has had its fair share of nominees for awards o so similar to this one:

Fox News.

As you heard, I'm sure, this week was saddened by the loss of 28-year-old actor Heath Ledger to what appears to be an accidental overdose. The shocking news was presented in a respectful manner by almost everyone out there in the news world. Except, that is, for John Gibson. On his radio show, just hours after the news of Ledger's passing came across the wire, Gibson began making jokes and cracking-not-so-wise about Ledger's role in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, among other things. Riffing off of the movies' line (said about Ledger's character and not by him) "I wish I knew how to quit you" Gibson countered "Well, he found out how to quit you." Further mocking the young actor, he even called him a "weirdo with a serious drug problem" and went on to say the following, which is up there on the list of worst things to possibly say:

“Apparently Heath Ledger was suicidal and his friends saw it coming. I think he watched the Clinton-Obama debate last night. I think he was an Edwards guy, cause he saw his Edwards guy was completely irreverent.”

I understand that he was making jokes - I get that. But really, is this the best time (not that there is a good time) to be making SUICIDE JOKES! Running quotes from Ledger movies that have the word "dead" in them and running an intro to his show with funeral music and repeating the "We're dead" line like it was a sports score or weather or traffic update.

Gibson later apologized, but it was one of those half-assed attempts. You know the ones where they say, "sorry that some took my comments as anti-gay and insensitive." Well, I'm not really concerned about whether or not he used this as a platform to preach anti-gay messages (which, don't get me started on that - until we discover that gay people are in fact, not people at all or are all child rapists, then I think we should lay off of them, huh?) but I'm more about the whole "insensitive" part.

You see, Mr. Gibson, the reason some people took your comments to be insensitive was because they flat out were such. You ever heard that saying "Don't speak ill of the dead." - - yeah, that means you too! And if this was any other 28-year-old who accidentally overdosed then I would still have a problem with it. This man is no longer with us. His ex-fiancee' Michelle Williams and his two-year-old daughter, along with his family, are going through their mourning processes, but he also has fans who cared about whether or not this man lived or died. So the least you can do is respect not only him, but those who actually do respect other people, even if they did play a gay cowboy in a movie once.

So congratulations John Gibson! You are the first ever A RAMBLER'S RAMBLING, "Ass of the Week"!!!





Take a bow, sir. And don't let the collective boot up your ass get ya on the way out.