For Elena: Acclaim/Blame Game

You ask great questions. Such a thinker you are. Rather rare in the world—which is a good thing to remember. You are in the minority simply by thinking.

I would love to respond back regarding Jon Stewart. My own reaction to him is that his humor is healing. The whole world is crazy. He makes fun of that. I can feel in my gut that he is a worthwhile, passionate person who has chosen to take the role of the sacred clown. When I laugh, I would bet that I am not the only one who also feels close to tears. He opens my heart with this sarcasm, sharp wit, making fun of the absolute shittiness of American politics and he calms me. And he is not just talk. He is learning from us, his audience, and he is growing. His voice is one we will listen to and he is becoming more and more aware of that. In a good way. In a way that holds responsibility for that while not losing the humor. http://www.rallytorestoresanity.com/

When Jon Stewart went to Afghanistan, he said "... I was indignant without knowledge. And I wanted knowledge from the people who were asked to carry this out. They are some of the brightest, most engaging, funny, down-to-earth, respectful, intelligent group of people I've ever met. But what it did was to solidify my outrage, rather than to lessen it."

That is not just a comedian talking. He wanted first hand experience. Now he speaks with more knowledge and always with respect for the soldier, if not the politician who sent him or her there.

Another thing. One of the hallmarks of the news we all grew up listening to, say Walter Cronkite. We trusted him and we all listened so that we had a common frame of reference. That is true now of Jon Stewart, at least for your generation of the neutral or progressive persuasion. He gives us a common experience, one we can all refer to. That is putting whole back into the country of fragmented. And one more. Jon Stewart actually keeps focus. He does give you real news and it has a theme that continues. It is not trivialized and sensationalized and it does make you think—at least a little. That’s worth a lot. These dark days need the bright light of humor.

The Canadian show, Little Mosque on the Prairie http://watchlittlemosque.com/ is a comedy that allows the viewer to go beyond stereotypes by not being afraid of topics that would terrify Americans. We would never even approach it. Yet, in my humble opinion, that show is so great for busting up stereotypes for that very reason. Respectful yet fearless and sharply funny comedy is good.