Waxing Poetically: Addressing Culture with a Twist of Poetry

Me and comedian Josh Blue as SUNY New Paltz in 2007

You may have seen this Saturday Night Live skit on the news since Sunday here in the States:

Was this out of line? In some ways, maybe. It did depict blind people in a certain incompetent light if a viewer took it as such. The Governor had his chart upside-down, and was wandering around the set (which would not probably happen in real life). But remember all comedy to an extent has an element of exaggeration. Mannerisms, gestures, accents and physical traits too. So when the same SNL cast gives Al Gore a robotron voice and George Bush the wits of an eight year-old boy, we’re more likely to say, “Hey, that’s so them!” Are the disabled off limits?

I was born with Cerebral Palsy and that means I use a wheelchair and a sometimes a walker to get from point A to point B. It means a car with hand controls is necessary for me to drive. It means I likely can have a child someday… but it won’t be created while standing. It also means that when I try to make a taco my slight fine-motor impairment makes it friggin’ hilarious! As in, “Nothin’ like a taco to make me feel more handicapped!” So, to the Governor of my lovely state I say, “Was the SNL skit over the top? Yes. But could it have been done any other way? No.” It’s comedy, it’s all to be expected.

Furthermore, I find political correctness to have made one distinct difference in the world… it made it worse. For instance, I have a disability, but I am not inclined to think of myself as physically challenged or a worse term, differently abled. The tech geek in gym class who’s bad at baseball is physically challenged too (if not even more so than I am). Short people, big people, really tall people are all physically challenged as well! As for differently abled, Barry Bonds hits homeruns, I write blogs and poetry… so f***in’ what?

Here is a clip of a guy I like who knows how to take a joke. My brother in Palsy, comedian Josh Blue. Enjoy and please try to learn to laugh at life because it is that funny!

Uploaded by Youtube member mattosk

Wax in good humor!

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