Having never been to an event where grown men duel with farm animals, I’m in the dark about what constitutes normal behavior at a rodeo. But poking fun of gays, writes
Denver blogger Melanie Asmar, isn’t part of it.
I was sitting in the stands of the rodeo at the National Western Stock Show on Saturday night, watching men wrestle steer to the ground, when the announcer mentioned Brokeback Mountain. He and the bullfighter/rodeo clown had been bantering all night.
Your favorite cowboy movie is Brokeback Mountain, one said. You were the stunt double for the sex scenes, the other shot back.
The lines were clearly meant as put-downs, though many in the audience — which included kids and families — laughed. Later, when the guy in charge of music played a clip of “Tiny Dancer,” the announcer struck again. “I bet you have a lot of Elton John on your iPod,” he teased the bullfighter. “So?” the bullfighter said in a mockingly defensive tone of voice.
The two spent the rest of the evening making jokes about Lady Gaga, the bullfighter’s balls and how he sucked at picking up women. The bullfighter spent much of the night straddling the fence surrounding the ring, asking a woman in the audience to marry him.
But don’t worry! The rodeo has apologized! Says a spokeswoman: “After reviewing the tape of the event, we understand how some of the comments made during a rodeo comedy routine might have been offensive. As such, we have taken internal measures to address the situation. Both employees involved have apologized for their remarks during their comedy act and have removed this from all future shows.” Which, uh, only goes to show the announcers have been including this “comedy act” in all their previous shows.
Nate
Funny how they don’t realize it’s offensive until AFTER there done making numerous jokes isn’t it?
Rick Gold
Two things:
1. I told Queerty about this TWO DAYS AGO and it just gets up on the site now: http://twitter.com/#!/ricktgold/status/27432624452538368
2. How many of these cowboys at the National Western Stock Show are looking for some hot, discreete M4M online: http://denver.craigslist.org/search/m4m?query=stock+show&srchType=A&minAsk=&maxAsk=
Oh well.
mikenola
so have we become so whiny and pathetic that a few jokes are supposed to spark outrage?
sorry guys, queer as I am, I would probably laughed at them, or at least after a beer or two would of.
complaining about this is just ridiculous and makes lgbt people look as idiotic as the right wing Christians simpering that “gays are mean to us when we hate on them”.
John
One of the causes of heart disease is from stress. Stress can be caused from not having a sense of humor and taking everything serious..
Tangelo
@mikenola:
I have no problem with them making jokes as long as they are making jokes about blacks, asians, Christians, Jews, Palin admirers and every other group out there. If their routine is focused only on belittling and minimizing the integrity and rights of one group only…especially to impressionable kids in the audience…then they have gone to far.
adman
Why do stupid people hurt you so much Queerty? Is it because you see a little too much of yourself in them? Stupid is eternal, so just turn the table on them, and carry on. Remember there is a confederacy, it’s made up of dumb shits who don’t like anybody they can’t understand instantly, and so that means they reject the most worthwhile people out of hand. See? It’s stupid, and it shouldn’t be a contagion, since that takes you to make it that way.
justiceontherocks
The biggest bashers are just about always the ones with the biggest secrets.