Why won't Glenn Beck deny these allegations?
October 8, 2009 2:01 PM   Subscribe

You can blame Gilbert Gottfried, or you can blame Fark, but either way a website was born that pissed Glenn Beck off enough that he sicced his lawyers on Isaac Eiland-Hall. The First Amendment protects Eiland-Hall, so Beck's lawyers are trying an end run on the Constitution by petitioning the ICANN to give rights to the website glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com to Beck. Eiland-Hall's lawyer Marc J. Randazza responds in a well-written and hilarious brief. (via) (previously)
We are not here because the domain name could cause confusion. We do not have a declaration from the president of the international association of imbeciles that his members are blankly staring at the Respondent’s website wondering “where did all the race baiting content go?” We are here because Mr. Beck wants Respondent’s website shut down. He wants it shut down because Respondent’s website makes a poignant and accurate satirical critique of Mr. Beck by parodying Beck’s very rhetorical style. Beck’s skin is too thin to take the criticism, so he wants the site down. Beck is represented by a learned and respected legal team. Accordingly, it is beyond doubt that his counsel advised him that under the First Amendment to the United States’ Constitution, no action in a U.S. Court would be successful. See, e.g., Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46 (1988). Accordingly, Beck is attempting to use this transnational body to circumvent and subvert the Respondent’s constitutional rights.

Marc J. Randazza
MetaTalk thread for your convenience.
posted by cjorgensen (102 comments total) 51 users marked this as a favorite
 
Don't abuse the mods like this.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 2:04 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


Well played, sir. Well played.
posted by brain_drain at 2:04 PM on October 8, 2009


The guy behind this (or an imposter, possibly, I guess) is posting in a reddit thread.
posted by Perplexity at 2:07 PM on October 8, 2009


I'll repeat (or, rather, paraphrase) what I said in the metatalk thread:

My favorite passage in Randazza's response is his devastatingly accurate summing-up of Beck's rhetorical style:

"Quite simply, Beck’s shtick is simply a cheap imitation of Gilbert Gottfried, sans the humor. "
posted by dersins at 2:09 PM on October 8, 2009 [7 favorites]


Nobody believes that the director of the critically acclaimed “Downfall” would have directed a script in which Hitler screams “YOU HOMOSEXUAL BLOOD ELF!

Classic.
posted by gottabefunky at 2:10 PM on October 8, 2009 [7 favorites]


See Wikipedia "Every time you masturbate … God kills a kitten" (Annex D).

Well, that's a citation you don't see every day.
posted by brain_drain at 2:10 PM on October 8, 2009 [27 favorites]


Don't abuse the mods like this.
How do you suggest we should abuse them?
posted by Electric Dragon at 2:12 PM on October 8, 2009 [15 favorites]


Why cite that deleted thread as "previous"? There is no discussion of the attempt to "google bomb" Glenn Beck's name in the deleted thread, just people commenting that it was a dumb thing, then derailing into talk about foodstuffs.
posted by filthy light thief at 2:14 PM on October 8, 2009


I couldn't have bombed this website better myself. Except I would've done it at midnight.
posted by evilmidnightbomberwhatbombsatmidnight at 2:14 PM on October 8, 2009 [20 favorites]


Don't abuse the mods like this.
How do you suggest we should abuse them?


A pie eating contest! Over-eating is not a good thing, but if you're going to stuff yourself, why not make it a competition? My money is on cortex, on account of that giant donut and all, even though there is no record of how fast he ate the donut in question.
posted by filthy light thief at 2:18 PM on October 8, 2009


That's awesome that you linked to the metatalk thread in the post itself. Mind if I borrow your time machine and your sports almanac this weekend?
posted by mannequito at 2:21 PM on October 8, 2009


How do you suggest we should abuse them?

Mid-summer cross country road trip in one car. With no radio or air conditioning.

And my flatulent dog in the back seat. Because that is as close to hell as someone can come on earth.

Actually no. I like all the mods. Lets save this one for Beck himself.

And let's change "my dog" to "someone else's flesh jar of flesh-eating bacteria."
posted by quin at 2:21 PM on October 8, 2009


Wow. I've never seen a thread preceded by its own call-out before. The rumor is that Glenn Beck causes time to collapse in on itself.
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:22 PM on October 8, 2009 [17 favorites]


Matt or Jess might disagree, but I'm more or less okay with this as a decent way to post about the whole phenomenon, so we can probably skip some of the attendant metacommentary (or divert it over to the handily linked metatalk thread) and just get on with the thread itself.
posted by cortex at 2:23 PM on October 8, 2009 [14 favorites]


While the gettin's good, I guess.
posted by Dr-Baa at 2:27 PM on October 8, 2009


I'm generally one to leave RTFA comments for Slashdot, but in this case, the Ars Technica write-up really is worth a read. They make the story more than that of trying to out-Beck Glenn Beck, but about how satire and memes are treated, at least by the World Intellectual Property Organization.
posted by filthy light thief at 2:28 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


What would metafilter be without metacommentary? Hmmmmm?
posted by blucevalo at 2:29 PM on October 8, 2009


The briefs are a study in contrasts. The Complainant's brief comes across as dry, uptight, and uncomprehending. It's also fairly short and conclusory. The Respondent's brief, by contrast, is funny, engaging, and considerably better written. It doesn't hurt that it also appears to have both the law and the facts on its side.

I expect Beck will lose. His attorneys probably advised him that it was a loser of a case, and the decision was made to file a pro forma complaint on the off chance the site owner would fold without a fight.
posted by jedicus at 2:31 PM on October 8, 2009


This thread. Love it or leave it.
posted by DU at 2:32 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


Let him bring his own damn flesh-eating bacteria. He doesn't deserve any of mine.
posted by nebulawindphone at 2:36 PM on October 8, 2009


Eiland-Hall's lawyer Marc J. Randazza responds in a well-written and hilarious brief.

I would not apply the word "well-written" to this brief. It is, however, hilarious.

The Complainaints brief is not much better. They have conclusory statements for the jurisdictional argument, which is where this one is going to be decided.'

Both briefs are weak.
posted by Ironmouth at 2:37 PM on October 8, 2009


That brief is a thing of beauty. Even though I read Randazza's bio, I wanted to believe its what happens when satirical english majors get tired of not making money and go back to law school in their early 30s and apparently blow the curve away on the bar. Because... I saw that english-major-copywriter-headed-to-law-school-because-I-live-in-an-appartment-with-five-other-guys-guy at Bukowski's all the time when he was making that decision... and man... he was funny but tired of being broke...

Well... it wasn't him... but man... I hope that guy is making something of his law degree.
posted by Nanukthedog at 2:38 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


The briefs are a study in contrasts.
posted by HP LaserJet P10006 at 2:38 PM on October 8, 2009


They're not Briefs. They are a Complaint (which is generally supposed to be dry, short, and conclusory) and a Response (which can be more free-wheeling). That doesn't change the fact that the Response is funnier and better-written.
posted by yhbc at 2:41 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


The briefs are a study in contrasts.

*adjusts contrast and brightness*
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:42 PM on October 8, 2009


The one side effect of this law suit that I can see generating some humor is that Beck has had to acknowledge the existence of the rumor/ stunt in order to go after them.

This means that, in a perfect world, we may see journalists asking him, "So Mr. Beck, I see that you have given up on your lawsuit. Does this mean that you are finally going to provide some kind of refutation to the allegations?"

I want to see that moment. I want to be there when some (even somewhat) respected journalist finally takes this and turns it into more than just a silly internet meme.

More specifically, I want to see the photo of Beck's face when he realizes that his whole rhetorical style has just spun around and bit him hard on the ass.
posted by quin at 2:43 PM on October 8, 2009 [12 favorites]


Oh for God sake. It's actually hosted by ACORN. I mean, way to instantly enable the entire right wing to brush this off as a funded attack piece—which it might well be.
Not Found

The requested URL /forcea404 was not found on this server.
Apache/1.3.27 Server at www.acorn.org Port 80
I mean Jesus. This'll be on Drudge by the morning.
posted by stepheno at 2:48 PM on October 8, 2009 [15 favorites]


...a Gilbert Gottfried routine performed during the Comedy Central Roast of "comedian" Bob Saget.

Someone's not a fan.
posted by MikeKD at 2:49 PM on October 8, 2009


More specifically, I want to see the photo of Beck's face when he realizes that his whole rhetorical style has just spun around and bit him hard on the ass.

If you're waiting for Glenn Beck to have a moment of self-awareness and clarity, I suspect it's going to be a long wait.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 2:50 PM on October 8, 2009 [18 favorites]


Both briefs are weak.

The briefs are weak. Fucking briefs are weak? You’re weak. I’ve been on this website fifteen years.

> What’s your username?

@FUCK_YOU, that’s my username!! You know why, poster? Cause you logged on from a six-year-old Compaq laptop tonight, I'm typing on a Mac fucking Pro. That's my name!

posted by cortex at 2:51 PM on October 8, 2009 [27 favorites]


Oh for fuck's sake.
posted by Decimask at 2:55 PM on October 8, 2009


More specifically, I want to see the photo of Beck's face when he realizes that his whole rhetorical style has just spun around and bit him hard on the ass.

Exactly. The funniest thing is that if this just keeps snowballing, eventually Beck will have to respond publicly. It's a pitch-perfect demonstration of at least a modest part of what's wrong with American media discourse - that it's so narcissistic, focused on controversy, and unwilling to admit its own self-referential role in shaping the news that people like Beck can abuse the system to spread useful lies that resonate with the public
posted by crayz at 2:57 PM on October 8, 2009


This would all go away if Beck would just deny on his show that he raped and murdered a young girl in 1990

And let's not forget: he has yet to prove he was born in the USA.
posted by joetrip at 2:58 PM on October 8, 2009 [5 favorites]


I translate legal documents for a living: complaints, responses, rebuttals, deposition challenges, briefs, jurisprudence, etc. That shit is for the most part BORING AS HELL. That Randazza response would have made my WHOLE FUCKING CAREER WORTH IT. It may not be legal genius (although he seems to make his point well enough that WIPO has no jurisdiction over the matter, and even if they did, big fucking deal), but it is COMEDY GOLD for those of us who munch on legalese for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
posted by msali at 2:58 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


It's actually hosted by ACORN.... I mean Jesus. This'll be on Drudge by the morning.

Oh, wow. Good catch. Is it hosted by Acorn, or did they just set up Apache to say it is? Whoever's hosting it, did they intend for that to be found, and for that to get all over, as you say, Drudge, and spin the meme up further?
posted by gurple at 2:59 PM on October 8, 2009 [5 favorites]


I saw that Glen Beck website and let me tell you, it is totally real.

I'd love to chat more about it but I'm in a hurry and gotta go. Fox & Friends is on and I don't wanna miss it.

See ya bitches!
posted by Moron in a hurry at 3:01 PM on October 8, 2009 [20 favorites]


Exactly. The funniest thing is that if this just keeps snowballing, eventually Beck will have to respond publicly.

Yep. I'm guessing today or tomorrow and it will include stepheno's post above:

Not Found

The requested URL /forcea404 was not found on this server.
Apache/1.3.27 Server at www.acorn.org Port 80


Which pretty much renders this GAME OVER.
posted by eyeballkid at 3:01 PM on October 8, 2009


This letter that Randazza wrote to opposing counsel is also pretty entertaining. My favorite part is how he accused Beck of trying to cower under the protection of French law.
posted by exogenous at 3:01 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


Woah,

glenn beck raped and murdered a young girlin 1990 .com !?
posted by delmoi at 3:03 PM on October 8, 2009


Oh for God sake. It's actually hosted by ACORN. I mean, way to instantly enable the entire right wing to brush this off as a funded attack piece—which it might well be.

No it's not. That's another joke.
> nslookup glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com 

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:	glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com
Address: 174.142.41.105

> nslookup acorn.org

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:	acorn.org
Address: 66.70.39.144
Further evidence reveals the former site is being served out of Montreal, QC while the latter is serving out of Flemingdon, NJ.

I recognize this is inconclusive, but unless Acorn has some pretty crazy loadbalancing going on then it's at least 2 different Apache servers doing the serving, which means there was no reason they'd configure the 2nd one to have the same default hostname.
posted by goingonit at 3:04 PM on October 8, 2009 [23 favorites]


"And let's not forget: he has yet to prove he was born in the USA."

I'm just sick of these people coming into my country to commit unspeakable crimes some 20 years ago and refusing to answer loaded questions about it on national television.
posted by klangklangston at 3:05 PM on October 8, 2009 [8 favorites]


When I first heard about this whole thing it was as a comment on a website. I was intrigued and googled it and was blown away by the number of hits. For a moment I thought it must be true and some evidence had just come to light. But even a cursory search showed what was going on. But all the same, for a short time, I thought Glenn Beck must have done this.

I think it would have been more effective if it had tried to link him to crimes like insider trading or fraud, since those are more believable. It for sure would have been less offensive.
posted by cjorgensen at 3:05 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


Apache/1.3.27 Server at http://www.acorn.org

Now all I can think of is how Acorn is 7 years behind on security updates.
posted by Zed at 3:07 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


Moron in a hurry.

$5 joke. Some people have too much money!
posted by cjorgensen at 3:08 PM on October 8, 2009


Which pretty much renders this GAME OVER.

Not necessarily; if someone starts asking the hard questions, like "Is ACORN complicit in acting with Beck to get this removed from the web?" maybe the truth will finally come out.
posted by quin at 3:09 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


I don't think it's really hosted by ACORN:
mdaly@**:~$ host glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com 
glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com has address 174.142.41.105
glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com mail is handled by 0 glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com.
mdaly@**:~$ host www.acorn.org
www.acorn.org has address 66.70.39.144
And 174.142.41.105 is assigned to privatedns.com whereas 66.70.39.144 is assigned to datapipe.net. (The GB1990 people are probably just throwing gas on the fire.)


....and beat by goingonit by six minutes.
posted by MikeKD at 3:09 PM on October 8, 2009


*golfclap* for setting up their webserver to imitate acorn.org. I have a feeling they're just waiting for the breathless ranting on Fox. Too bad they didn't make it 'whitehouse.gov' but that would have probably gotten them a friendly chat with the Secret Service.
posted by PenDevil at 3:10 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


Oh for God sake. It's actually hosted by ACORN. I mean, way to instantly enable the entire right wing to brush this off as a funded attack piece—which it might well be.
Not Found

The requested URL /forcea404 was not found on this server.
Apache/1.3.27 Server at www.acorn.org Port 80

Because everyone knows you can't put whatever 'servername' string you want in Apache's httpd.conf config file, and you also can't put up a custom 404 page either, that like violates the laws of the internet. And even if you could no one would think to change it in order to play a joke on ignorant right-wing meta-data obsessed dumb asses.

Also, hosting is very expensive. The fact that netcraft shows that the IP is owned by 'iWeb technologies, inc" is probably just a coverup by the shady left-wing group. Along with this whole website which advertises "$1.67 hosting"
posted by delmoi at 3:11 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


goingonit beat me to it, I was just coming back to partially* retract my statement.

*(partially because a 404 page that returns that url is enough to convince the conspiracy nutjobs Glenn Beck followers that it's a plot by Acorn.)
posted by eyeballkid at 3:11 PM on October 8, 2009


Because everyone knows you can't put whatever 'servername' string you want in Apache's httpd.conf config file, and you also can't put up a custom 404 page either, that like violates the laws of the internet

Again, we're talking about Glenn Beck viewers. That argument doesn't work.
posted by eyeballkid at 3:13 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


They're not actually trying to link him to the crimes, cjorgenson, they're trying to point out how HE does hit jobs on OTHER people. You're supposed to figure out that it's bullshit, and then realize that Beck himself spews the exact same type of nonsense.

Yes, insider trading would be more believable, but that would just sow confusion. It needs to be blatantly impossible to have the correct effect. It's supposed to teach you to ignore Beck for being an idiot, rather than trying to toss him in jail as a criminal.
posted by Malor at 3:13 PM on October 8, 2009 [5 favorites]


MetaTalk thread for your convenience.

While I'm okay with this thread in a pretty shruggo sort of way, that's a sort of crappy framing technique.
posted by jessamyn at 3:13 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


........"Flesh jar"?
posted by kaseijin at 3:15 PM on October 8, 2009


Wait. Doesn't Beck believe - or appear to believe - that the American Constitution should be seen as somewhat similar to scripture? But he's trying to subvert it here?
posted by liquidindian at 3:16 PM on October 8, 2009


Trolling Drudge by faking an ACORN server. Fucking brilliant.

A whole bunch more advertisers pulled out of Beck's show. 62 companies responding to over a quarter-million people. Speak up here.
posted by five fresh fish at 3:17 PM on October 8, 2009 [9 favorites]


Again, we're talking about Glenn Beck viewers. That argument doesn't work.

I'm pretty sure that's why the string is there... Glenn Beck viewers also think Acorn is setting up concentration camps, so I'm not sure exactly what you're worried about here.
posted by delmoi at 3:20 PM on October 8, 2009


stephano,
That's actually part of another joke.
The DNS records for www.acorn.org and glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com are completely different.
Anyone can put up whatever they want for their 404 page.
Example 1, Example 2.

Frankly, I think it's hilarious.
posted by daq at 3:21 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


I think it would have been more effective if it had tried to link him to crimes like insider trading or fraud, since those are more believable. It for sure would have been less offensive.

No, see, you've missed it. Spreading a small, complicated lie is hard. Not many people are interested in whether Glenn Beck committed insider trading, and the people who are will be more likely to actually want to see facts/arguments supporting the claim. Who's going to send that to their friends?
posted by crayz at 3:25 PM on October 8, 2009


I really do hope enough people at Fox Nation do bite onto the Acorn.org bait. I'd love to see the Fox and Friends crew get in a huff over how Acorn is funding such slander, and then they have on a "cyber-terror security analyst" talking head from The Heritage Foundation.
posted by mccarty.tim at 3:26 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


Let's not rush to judgment. Remember the cruel lies the liberal media spread about Mark Foley sending explicit emails to teenage boys. Or the outrageous allegations that Rush Limbaugh was a drug addict. I don't believe Glenn Beck raped and murdered an innocent little girl. The evidence just isn't there. But you never know.
posted by Tashtego at 3:29 PM on October 8, 2009 [10 favorites]


delmoi, mikekd, goingonit: points taken.

However, both are at least running Apache 1.3.27 (404 pages: acorn.org, didglenn....com). As far as I know Apache is 2.x by now so this is at least a bit fishy.

Unless they literally cut and paste the acorn.org 404, in which case bravo for the reverse conspiracy!
posted by stepheno at 3:29 PM on October 8, 2009


Glenn-Beck-Sucks.com.

Facebook: Glenn Beck Sucks!
posted by ericb at 3:29 PM on October 8, 2009


bravo for the reverse conspiracy

Awesome.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:32 PM on October 8, 2009


My money is on cortex, on account of that giant donut...

Uh-oh. Don't mention donuts.
Fox News Host Shepard Smith Outraged By Bacon Cheese Doughnut Burger: 'Sign Of The Apocalypse'.
posted by ericb at 3:39 PM on October 8, 2009


Yeah. I think we were saying the same thing delmoi, but I just misread you.
posted by eyeballkid at 3:42 PM on October 8, 2009


Moron in a hurry.

$5 joke. Some people have too much money!


Well, in my case it's around €3,38.

Either way, what do you expect? I'm a moron.
posted by Moron in a hurry at 3:44 PM on October 8, 2009 [8 favorites]


Haven't you got some place to be heading off to?
posted by cillit bang at 3:51 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


So I wonder how many people on Twitter have put out some form of, "I don't believe Glenn Beck raped and murdered an 11 yo girl in 1990, but some Americans might see it that way"? Has it already (seeing as how this meme has been going a while now) been a trending topic?

Because I do like how this meme is turning his own tactics around so that they bite Beck on the ass.
posted by misha at 3:54 PM on October 8, 2009


I'll bet Bob Saget is breathing a sigh of relief that he's off the hook for denying those 1990 rape and murder allegations. Those were a lot of allegations! Luckily for Saget, Glenn Beck is now allegedly taking all the heat for not denying 1990 rape and murder rumors.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:11 PM on October 8, 2009


Mod note: comments removed - the only way this thread is staying alive is if the googlebombing nonsense stuff doesn't happen here - there's metatalk, use it.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:12 PM on October 8, 2009


owever, both are at least running Apache 1.3.27 (404 pages: acorn.org, didglenn....com). As far as I know Apache is 2.x by now so this is at least a bit fishy.

Unless they literally cut and paste the acorn.org 404, in which case bravo for the reverse conspiracy!


They're not both running 1.3.27, Acorn is for some reason, but this other site is running under cPanel's WHM and it's definitely Apache 2.x, though the webmaster stripped the rest of the identifying server ID stuff from error pages, so it just comes back as Apache. So, he did literally clone the acorn.org 404 message. Fucking brilliant.
posted by signalnine at 4:20 PM on October 8, 2009 [7 favorites]


A sign you may be reading MetaFilter: the purported topic is a vicious satire of a demagogue and half the posts are about configuring Apache servers.
posted by el_lupino at 5:20 PM on October 8, 2009 [33 favorites]


I'm missing something here. What does Gilbert Gottfried have to do with this? I looked at the South Park link: Ike is haunted by dead celebrities. Okay. What has that to do with either Gottfried or Beck?
posted by CCBC at 5:30 PM on October 8, 2009


The entire meme is inspired by a Gottfried routine at a roast of Bob Saget.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 5:42 PM on October 8, 2009


I looked at the South Park link: Ike is haunted by dead celebrities.

Huh? I linked to the original sketch on Comedy Central. Not sure what you clicked on.

I'm not a fan of Glenn Beck, and I can honestly say the same thing about Bob Saget. They kind of occupy the same headspace for me in the category of people I don't care to watch. I'd have a beer with Saget though.

I know roasts can be brutal affairs, but I don't really get the original skit either. Oh well.
posted by cjorgensen at 5:53 PM on October 8, 2009


I know roasts can be brutal affairs, but I don't really get the original skit either. Oh well.

The legal brief somewhat explains the joke, if you truely don't get it.
posted by haveanicesummer at 5:58 PM on October 8, 2009


I guess I should have said I didn't find it funny, which makes me question if I got it. And I agree with the brief in that explaining a joke kills a joke. I guess I should have stopped questioning myself at Gilbert Gottfried.
posted by cjorgensen at 6:18 PM on October 8, 2009


Gilbert is a master roaster, if you appreciate the form, which is essentially to be as evil as humanly possible towards the roastee and all attendees or people associated with the roastee.

If you don't find being over-the-top evil to be funny than roasts really aren't meant for you.
posted by haveanicesummer at 6:22 PM on October 8, 2009 [2 favorites]


I don't really get the ACORN bit. Like, are they supposed to go "gotcha! it's not really acorn" once someone publishes it? If they think that will work, they don't understand their enemies.
posted by smackfu at 6:48 PM on October 8, 2009


I don't really get the ACORN bit. Like, are they supposed to go "gotcha! it's not really acorn" once someone publishes it? If they think that will work, they don't understand their enemies.

This isn't something planed or mastermined. It's fark and a completely unharnessed mob. The point of the meme is to make the meme as big as possible. Baiting rightwing nutjobs with an acorn connection is a dastardly way to do it.
posted by fontophilic at 7:11 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


CCBC: I looked at the South Park link: Ike is haunted by dead celebrities. Okay. What has that to do with either Gottfried or Beck
Eponhysterically, you got nailed by the Comedy Central [US] vs. Comedy Network [CAN] redirect. I wish the fuckers would have the courtesy to set up a link resolver. Gilbert Gottfried's bit starts at the 12 minute mark. And there's some serious funny earlier in the show.
posted by Decimask at 7:16 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


Not Found

The requested URL /forcea404 was not found on this server.
Apache/1.3.27 Server at www.acorn.org Port 80


Instead of Acorn, they should have used http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/ or http://www.billoreilly.com/
posted by Fiberoptic Zebroid and The Hypnagogic Jerks at 7:19 PM on October 8, 2009 [1 favorite]


Here's a quick transcript of Gilbert Gottfried's initial roast of Bob Saggat:
Now a lot of you are saying, why did we pick Bob Saggat? Why should we pick Bob Saggat, who raped and killed a girl in 1990? Should we even waste two seconds on Bob Saggat, who raped and killed a girl in 1990? Well first of all, it's not true. It's not true that Bob Saggat raped and killed a girl in 1990. So if you have any proof that Bob Saggat raped and killed a girl in 1990, stop gossiping, and go right to the police with it.
If you haven't seen the clip, Bob is laughing at the beginning of this bit, and is in hysterics by the end. If that was an act, he did it quite well, and should be re-evaluated as an actor. If not, he honestly found the cruel and absurd humor of Gilbert to be really amusing.

Because Gilbert Gottfried repeated that phrase so frequently in that minute long clip, I now associate his voice with the Glenn Beck website, which helps because I found the whole thing really distasteful until re-watching that clip.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:16 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


A similar gag to Gottfried's was done earlier, and far funnier, by the incomparable Berkley Breathed: "Senator Bedfellow denies that pond is where he sunk Hoffa..." (about halfway down the page)
posted by frobozz at 10:22 PM on October 8, 2009 [3 favorites]


It needs to be blatantly impossible to have the correct effect.

Massive fail, in that case.
posted by Jimmy Havok at 11:29 PM on October 8, 2009


This isn't something planed or mastermined. It's fark and a completely unharnessed mob. The point of the meme is to make the meme as big as possible. Baiting rightwing nutjobs with an acorn connection is a dastardly way to do it.

And the really amazing thing is, the incredible, flabbergasting, almost unbelievable truth is that one or a dozen or a thousand Beck fan mouth breathers will catch wind of this and...actually change their minds about Beck, because it plants that seed of doubt deep (well, it can't really go that deep) into their minds, where they think "Hmmm...if someone went to all the trouble to make that site and now reporters on the teevee are talkin' about this...there be must be something to it. Screw Glenn Beck, I'll just listen to Rush from now on".

I don't think this could happen much, but even if it happens once it would all be worth it.
posted by zardoz at 12:06 AM on October 9, 2009 [1 favorite]


Too bad it's more likely that someone goes "hmm, I keep hearing about this Glenn Beck guy... maybe I should check him out".
posted by smackfu at 5:51 AM on October 9, 2009


Well, this helps me decide on my Halloween costume: A t-shirt with PALIN/BECK 2012. What could be scarier?
posted by Midnight Skulker at 6:27 AM on October 9, 2009 [3 favorites]


No, Midnight Skulker, you have to go as the infamous eleven-year-old girl that, you know, didn't get yada yada yada Glenn Beck.
posted by misha at 6:44 AM on October 9, 2009 [1 favorite]


Wow. I've never seen a thread preceded by its own call-out before.

For the record, the call-out happened because someone tried to drop a couple Googlebomb comments into a completely different thread on an unrelated and serious topic. THIS thread is actually an offshoot of the callout.

Which is probably the first time THAT'S happened.

The callout has now somehow gone on to discuss whether crabs are "Metal" enough to be allowed into Valhalla, which tickles me in a place I can't reach.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:24 AM on October 9, 2009 [3 favorites]


It needs to be blatantly impossible to have the correct effect.

So that's why it isn't

glennbeckrapedandmurderedayoungboyin1990.com

Thanks for clearing that up for me.
posted by Enron Hubbard at 7:42 AM on October 9, 2009


Anything that upholds Gilbert Gottfried as a hilarious gentleman... okay by me.

(And jessamyn: "pretty shruggo" needs to be a band/album/song name.)
posted by grubi at 8:30 AM on October 9, 2009


I'm glad I live in a country with free speech laws so that I can say Glenn Beck's got his head so far up his ass he uses his appendix as a pillow without legal ramifications.
posted by mephron at 10:17 AM on October 9, 2009


That is what makes the challenge to the site interesting in my mind. It has nothing to do with the meme, but the free speech aspects. Beck can't go after the site because the guy probably has a pretty solid free speech case (and even if not, it would look incredibly bad for Beck to mount such a challenge). He can sue for defamation (like the Ars article pointed out), but still becomes questionable. So what is his response? To try to sidestep these issues and get control of the site.

This worked against the Yes Men. I forget exactly who they were pillorying, but they thought it would be funny to use the guy's nephew (or some-such) as the administrative contact info in the whois database. That guy just faxed in the proper documents and the site was given over to him. They outsmarted themselves.

Anyway, this "I get to control my name" argument is a pretty crappy one. It didn't work for Bruce Springsteen, but other options are effectively denied Beck.
posted by cjorgensen at 10:49 AM on October 9, 2009


The acorn hosting thing is stupid. People who continue to assert that Obama was born in Kenya will grasp any foolishness and never let go. Although acorn is a common name, so a site could be affilliated with an organization called acorn and have no connection to http://www.acorn.org/.

That legal response is beautiful.

The Glenn Beck meme is offensive, mean, vile and couldn't be more appropriate to its target. I won't promote it, but I can sit back and observe, and let a smile slip over my face.
posted by theora55 at 11:13 AM on October 9, 2009 [1 favorite]


I love this legal response!

The humor equation is simple: (Outrageous Accusation) +
(Celebrity) + (Question Why the Celebrity Does Not Deny the Accusation)
= (Confirmation of the Falsity of the Accusation + Laughter)


Solve for Hilarity.
posted by Spatch at 1:22 PM on October 9, 2009


I think this meme needs to be further spread via a fake conservative advocacy e-chain-letter.

Anyone?
posted by ZenMasterThis at 1:37 PM on October 9, 2009


Stephen Colbert nails him pretty dexterously with this segment: Bend it like Beck.
posted by lazaruslong at 1:59 PM on October 9, 2009




There's a new version of one of the memes mentioned in the response. Hitler responding to Kanye West's VMA meltdown. For bonus points, it mentioned Bab Saget.
posted by cjorgensen at 9:11 AM on October 10, 2009




Round two: Pedobear.
posted by cjorgensen at 10:29 AM on October 22, 2009


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