Ladies and Gentlemen, Its The Muppet Show!

December 6, 2011 9:07 AM

Fox anchor Eric Bolling says the new Muppets movie pushes a dangerous liberal agenda.
posted by SueDenim (32 comments total)

Well there's a reason no one is occupying sesame street.
posted by The Whelk at 9:10 AM on December 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

"Happy Feet 2" is apparently also commie indoctrination.

Wasn't there something along these lines a few years back about Mr. Rogers?
posted by Flunkie at 9:11 AM on December 6, 2011

If portraying rapacious businesses as evil is liberal, then I assume he's agreeing that the US is a liberal nation, not a conservative one.
posted by DU at 9:12 AM on December 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Scooby Doo must be downright commie.
posted by goethean at 9:13 AM on December 6, 2011

Scooby Doo teaches you it's never ghosts, so they have a dangerous atheist agenda.
posted by The Whelk at 9:14 AM on December 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

The Whelk: "Well there's a reason no one is occupying sesame street."

I wouldn't be too sure of that.
posted by schmod at 9:15 AM on December 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

If Fox has to resort to this level of trolling and flame-baiting, that means they're losing, right?
posted by lekvar at 9:15 AM on December 6, 2011

Occupy Sesame Street heckles Rupert Murdoch.
posted by swift at 9:16 AM on December 6, 2011

If Fox has to resort to this level of trolling and flame-baiting, that means they're losing, right?

Probably more like going back to crush the remaining scraps.
posted by Thorzdad at 9:17 AM on December 6, 2011

I remember when everyone was going on about how Bush=Hitler. I always thought it was such a dumb, reductivist thing to say (even when my German in-laws said it).

But the 'Republican/Conservatives' did learn one thing from the Nazis and that was the power of propaganda. And for that, that they are selling such obvious shit to gullible people, I think these are horrible, immoral people.

it threatened to usher in a whole new paradigm of stupid.
Good phrase but they did this a while ago.
posted by From Bklyn at 9:17 AM on December 6, 2011

"Liberal Hollywood depicting a successful businessman as evil – that's not new," said Bolling. He asked his guest, media-bias alarmist Dan Gainor, if Hollywood was deliberately trying to brainwash kids.

He's simply got it backward. The villain (this Bolling person must know what that word means) is evil because he's evil, not because he's a businessman.

This is something that a lot of conservatives misunderstand about modern liberalism/progressivism. We're not against business, we're against corruption, illegal and unethical business practices, and regulatory capture. None of those things are necessary for businesses to exist and prosper, but they're popular for obvious reasons.

Business is not the problem, evil is.
posted by clockzero at 9:18 AM on December 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

YHBT
posted by mathowie at 9:19 AM on December 6, 2011

Muppets backwards is Steppum.

I'm just sayin'.
posted by chavenet at 9:20 AM on December 6, 2011

They do this to pretty much everything intended for family audiences that doesn't come from Fox itself. Pixar is a favorite target. Wall-E and even Cars 2 got slagged by fox for being liberal propaganda.
posted by Naberius at 9:21 AM on December 6, 2011

The Muppets are most likely returning to NBC with a new show.
posted by zarq at 9:22 AM on December 6, 2011

Sharing is Unamerican.
posted by The Whelk at 9:22 AM on December 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Another thought: boot-lickers to power like Bolling are essentially against dramatic depictions of the misuse of great power, I think. There isn't any depiction of the powerful cheating or abusing the powerless that they're okay with because they want to foster the idea that power is inherently legitimate, no matter how egregious any abuse is. It's stupidly simplistic might-makes-right thinking.
posted by clockzero at 9:23 AM on December 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

Sadly, Cars 2 was just pure crapola.

Next up on the Enemies list: puppies, rainbows, any remaining vestige of joy or laughter remaining in our blighted existence.
posted by emjaybee at 9:23 AM on December 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

If we let the muppets get away with this, pretty soon classroom teachers are gonna be telling our children to share their toys!
posted by kingv at 9:24 AM on December 6, 2011

Wall-E ... got slagged by fox for being liberal propaganda.

Well, that's sort of a given, ain't it, what with the concern about the fact that we are reducing the biosphere to a landfill?
posted by goethean at 9:24 AM on December 6, 2011

You know... if someone hates the Muppets I am prepared right here and now to say they have no soul.

I understand media criticisms about how good, or not good a given movie/show is. Lord they made some Muppet movies they reeked, but to flat out attack the Muppets, yeah that is empty pit of despair existence right there.
posted by edgeways at 9:25 AM on December 6, 2011

Maniacal laugh! maniacal laugh!!
posted by Sassyfras at 9:26 AM on December 6, 2011 [3 favorites]

This guy is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT, even if you liberals are too indoctrinated by your anti-freedom, anti-progress groupthink to see it. The stereotype of the "greedy businessperson" has been a hate figure for decades, to the utter detriment of our society. Of course, this all started with the arch-liberal Jesus Christ, who began the whole "rich man can't get into heaven" bullshit, who gave free health care to poor people, and who actually tried to restrict the activities of MONEY LENDERS by OCCUPYING their temple. So the REAL problem here is the Bible and its endless, freedom hating communism. Memo to Jesus: stop brainwashing our children with your poverty-porn.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 9:29 AM on December 6, 2011 [6 favorites]

In a perfect world, a propaganda war would now break out between Disney properties (The Muppets, ABC, ESPN, PIXAR, and the NFL) and Fox properties. ESPN would start doing in depth reports on how Fox is ruining sports, including a 30 for 30-style documentary called "The Clown who Couldn't Make People Laugh-The Dennis Miller/MNF Story."

Fox would counter with claims that Wall-E is a communist.
posted by drezdn at 9:31 AM on December 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

It's probably a good thing there was no Fox News when 101 Dalmatians came out.
posted by Naberius at 9:31 AM on December 6, 2011

How dare those puppies stand in the way of a job maker's desire to introduce new products to market!
posted by The Whelk at 9:32 AM on December 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

They should stick to something wholesome, like Rudolf [via]:

"Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" is usually taught as inspirational verse and a statement against prejudice and mockery: Rudolph is visibly marked and consequently discriminated against, yet he rises above the catcalls to achieve fame and success. Sounds great, right? Let's look a little closer. Rudolph's moment of redemption comes not as the cause of any consciousness-raising, but because his difference (superficial as it is) is shown to have utility to the corporate body. He is accepted by his peers not for his own merits, but because circumstances conspired to harness his idiosyncrasy and turn it into profit for his employers. What is the real lesson we take from the fable of Rudolph, boys and girls? ***Difference will be tolerated and celebrated only if it can be put to the service of the power structure.*** Otherwise, you're just a wacko, and you can forget about those reindeer games for good. Once again, Santa Claus is portrayed here as an unfeeling, self-absorbed cad -- he makes no intervention in Rudolph's persecution until he needs to save his own ass (at least the TV special got that part right). But does Rudolph get his moment to tell the boss to screw himself; that his hypocrisy won't be tolerated? No, he's the first one tethered to the sled, happy to take the whip of his former oppressor as long as he can feel both useful to the corporation and validated by his peers. If I had a kid, this would be about the last lesson I'd want to teach her.

posted by mazola at 9:33 AM on December 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

Fox anchor Eric Bolling was never a child.

Or his parents didn't let him watch Sesame Street, because they were afraid of the "ghetto" setting and the harsh realities that it portrayed. (This has happened: I met someone whose parents were afraid of the gritty, urban setting of Sesame Street.)
posted by filthy light thief at 9:33 AM on December 6, 2011

Guys, if you simply knew your history, you'd know that Fox is right.
posted by Legomancer at 9:37 AM on December 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

So the problem is with the villain being an oil man? Or a powerful businessman or something? Are they suggesting that the villain in a movie narrative should be powerless and weak?

They do this to pretty much everything intended for family audiences that doesn't come from Fox itself

I was just about to make a comment about how one of the most successful FOX franchises produced the character Mr Burns.
posted by Hoopo at 9:37 AM on December 6, 2011

Bolling's Fox News colleague Andrea Tantaros chimed in, saying: "I just wish liberals could leave little kids alone." Bolling wondered aloud why the Muppets couldn't, for once, "have the evil person be the Obama administration". It only remained for him to throw up his hands and cry: "Where are we? Communist China?"

Because if the evil person (singular) were a whole administration (collective), it would have to be represented by a comically large muppet, like Sweetums. Which would make it even more charming. You cannot fight Muppets with Muppets and expect anyone to really lose. We just get more Muppets, and that's never a bad thing.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:39 AM on December 6, 2011

There isn't any depiction of the powerful cheating or abusing the powerless that they're okay with because they want to foster the idea that power is inherently legitimate, no matter how egregious any abuse is. It's stupidly simplistic might-makes-right thinking.

Depends whose authority the depiction is likely to call into question. If it's Obama, game on.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 9:39 AM on December 6, 2011