The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age

    Michelle Bachmann Meets Hip-Hop

    By rmrd0000 on Thu, 11/24/2011 - 3:06pm |

    Republican Presidential candidate Michelle Bachmann made an appearance on Jimmy Fallon's late night show on NBC on Monday November 21st. The Fallon show's studio band, The Roots, introduced Bachmann with the 1985 song by the band Fishbone titled "Lyin Ass B*tch. Prior to the performance, the Roots' drummer, Questlove, tweeted that the listening audience should listen closely to the song to be played since the drummer was not going to mention the title. Those unaware of the tune were instructed to ask around if they remained clueless after hearing the tune. Following the performance, Questlove said that the song was the perfect introduction for Bachmann. Instructions were left for purchase of the song on iTunes. Questlove, who is also the bandleader said the song was a "tongue in cheek and spur-of the moment choice".

    Needless to say, there was a considerable amount of criticism about the song choice. Jimmy Fallon offered an apology the next day. New York Democrat Nita Lowrey called upon NBC to apologize for its' insulting and inappropriate" treatment of Michelle Bachmann.

    Bachmann demanded and received an apology from NBC.  Doug Vaughn, head of late night programming at NBC, issued the apology. Vaughn called the song "inappropriate and unacceptable". Fallon subsequently tweeted that Questlove had been "grounded". Unclear if the grounding is a joke or a fact.

    Bachmann is obviously factually challenged. Sensibilities are strained when the b-word is used as a female descriptor. My initial reaction was to classify this episode as another example that you can only call Black women female dogs in song. However I'm wondering whether there might be an equal objection to calling a liar a liar.

    Mitt Romney has an ad in which he uses a snippet of sentence of Barack Obama quoting a John McCain aide during the 2008 campaign saying "If we (the McCain campaign) talk about the economy, we (the McCain campaign) will lose. The snippet used in the Romney ad suggests that Obama is talking about himself rather than quoting McCain. John McCain supports the Romney ad. Mainstream media seems reluctant to call the lie in the Romney ad a lie.

    Anderson Cooper was criticized for calling former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak a liar,  even though the critic agreed that Mubarak was a liar.

    Perhaps the big insult here is to state that a liar is lying. The b-word may not be the offense.

     

     

     

    Comments

    Frankly, "Lyin' Ass Bitch" is one of the nicer ways I could describe Michelle Bachmann. She is heartless, dishonest, and purposely stupid to appeal to her ignorant sycophants. She should consider the song a compliment, considering her hateful rhetoric if she has one ounce of decency within her frigid soul

    by CVille Dem on Thu, 11/24/2011 - 8:38pm

    I agree that Bachmann is a piece of work.

    The Roots intro to the Fishbone song allows the unsympathetic Bachmann to become a victim. If Limbaugh played the Fishbone song in reference to Michelle Obama  I would be upset. I think Bachmann can be justifiably upset.

    I wouldn't have a problem if the Roots had played Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" which has the following words:

         Don't know much about history

         Don't know much biology

         Don't know much about a science book

         Don't know much about the French I took

    There is also the Knickbockers "Lies":

         Lies, lies, you're telling me that you'll be true

         Lies, lies

         That's all I ever here from you.

    Suggesting Bachmann is a bitch, seems a little lazy. It had to be done undercover with tweets to those in the inner circle."Wonderful World" or "Lies" would have been upfront statements and the words performed in Bachmann's face, so to speak. I'm sure a multitude of other songs would have fit the bill. The Roots introduced former CNN anchor Lou Dobbs who focused on immigrants with the Genesis song "Illegal Alien". I think use of bitch, allows the point that the Roots were making about Michelle Bachmann to be diverted from ignorance and mendacity to profanity.

     


    by rmrd0000 on Thu, 11/24/2011 - 9:31pm

    Or how about a little irony? Instead of Sam Cooke, they might have covered Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World.


    by Michael Wolraich on Thu, 11/24/2011 - 11:23pm

    Or how about a blot of the psychedelic?

    When the white knight is talking backwards...

     


    by moat on Fri, 11/25/2011 - 12:31pm

    My favorite pet dog of all time was a bitch.

    To use that word as an adjective for some loser like Bachmann would be obscene!

    http://motherjones.com/media/2011/11/roots-questlove-occupy-ahmir-thompson-interview

    MJ has something on this Questlove guy.

    Kind of a neat guy!


    by Richard Day on Fri, 11/25/2011 - 11:28am

    I agree, using bitch is like using Uncle Tom. In the setting depicted, Tom was somewhat heroic. Calling Herman Cain a hero would be obscene.


    by rmrd0000 on Fri, 11/25/2011 - 11:54am

    Just a reminder: Questlove dj's a party at the brooklyn bowl on thursday nights at 11

    by jollyroger on Sat, 03/24/2012 - 12:35am

    I don't see male candidates regularly described as "dicks", "cocks", "pricks", "assholes" or other curses reflecting gender or over the top slurs in normal press releases and political commentary.

    Whether Michelle Bachmann is a liar depends on what she said vs. the truth. Fact check it, and use it if appropriate. Frankly, I thought her problem was being delusional, not lying.

    As for "bitch", simply drop it - it's not appropriate, and it reflects badly on all women, who make up only 16% of elected officials despite being over 50% the populace.

    (yeah, I know - women get irrational because they have periods so they deserve the term, it's only descriptive, etc. now let's step forward into 2012)

     


    by PeraclesPlease on Sat, 03/24/2012 - 5:44am