Phil Robertson (Duck Dynasty) goes on crazy homophobic rant.

[darkplumaged]

Kind of off topic, but it annoys me that so many of the headlines on HuffPost's Gay Voices are stories about what some whack job said about gay people. "Random Russian actor said that gays should be burned alive!" "Fundie radio host says gays are possessed by demons!" Shouldn't a section called Gay Voices be, I dunno, mostly stories from a gay perspective? I may not be phrasing that very well. It just seems to me that there's a lot more to say about LGBT issues than focusing on homophobic incidents--especially when a lot of those incidents are like, "Some dude no one gives a shit about said something insane!!1111!!"

[Tdoc72]

I like Duck Dynasty because it's entertaining. What I don't like right now is the fact that the rest of his family didn't also leave to show support for their father. Contract or not, it wouldn't matter to me. If my family member got canned for their beliefs, and I shared those beliefs, I would say "See ya" to whomever did the firing. Otherwise, I'd be a hypocrite.

GQ also suggested Robertson’s son Jep endorsed his father’s beliefs, when he said: 'We’re not quite as outspoken as my dad, but I’m definitely in line. If somebody asks, I tell ’em what the Bible says.'

(link to article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/ar ... rview.html)

[scc12]

Could this be just a publicity stunt? It wouldn't surprise me.Even negative publicity nets more attention/equals=more $$$.The Duggars know this as well,they just haven't been a blatant about it.

I mean, wouldn't there be something in his contract that he can't just say whatever he wants publicly? So he would know not to do this, but it appears he did it anyway? JAT.

[formergothardite]

Oh the persecution front has already started on my fb feed.

Some of my favorite comments so far:

It's such an elementary school mentality. It's his opinion! We're all allowed to have opinions no matter what they are!

DD is one of the greatest shows of our era. :lol: A real show? :lol: The parts I've seen are so staged and they go out of their way to make themselves look dumber than they really are because that is how they market themselves. I wish people understood reality tv.

[apple1]

A relative of mine is already kind of crying persecution via Facebook. .

First thing on my FB feed this morning. :-(

[lilwriter85]

I'm also seeing crying on FB about Phil. I have watched Duck Dynasty a few times. I get where they can be seen as lovable rednecks, but they always rubbed me the wrong way.

[lilwriter85]

Saying something like that will get most people fired from their jobs. They may not be "employees" but they can still be expected to act a specific way when representing the brand and station. Legally in the US, any place where company business is preformed is considered the work place. This would include the places where Duck Dynasty is filmed. Phils statements could make filming a hostile work environment and put A&E at risk of a lawsuit.

A&E and any production companies working on the show probably worry about that and I wouldn't be surprised if there has been any issues due to Phil or any of the other family members with A&E or crew members. Jep's statement about how he isn't as outspoken as the father, but he believes in the Bible gives me the feeling that the family wouldn't be too tolerant of non-Christians in addition to gays. I can see a gay or a non-Christian crew member feeling uneasy around the family.

In the scripted TV industry, there has been tons of rumors over the years about some film and TV sets being hostile workplaces due to the beliefs of actors or producers. In the soap opera industry, that has become pretty evident on different shows over the years. There are two actresses on Days of Our Lives right now that never do any scenes with the actors playing gay characters and it does appear those two actresses are disliked by some of the cast members.

[RandomTrivia]

First thing on my FB feed this morning. :-(

Well, now I know what the big topic will be at Christmas dinner with the in-laws next week. :roll: At least three of them are big fans of the show. I've never watched more than a few minutes, but I can't stand most "reality" shows anyway. The fact that there's a Duck Dynasty Christmas Album doesn't help matters, either.

It's a big topic on the local TV station's Facebook feed too, but at least there are a couple of people pointing out that it's not a violation of his First Amendment rights.

[LittleMama]

I've read the guy's book, he actually has a pretty intense "redemption" story. Beyond that it has always seemed like he didn't want to really be part of the show, he just had to because he was the creator of the company and he and his wife have a lot of opinions, which make more interesting TV. But he has talked about issues with the network before, and the guy did decide not to play in the NFL so he could live a life with more hunting, so I think it is safe to say he likes the quiet, simple life and might be glad to be rid of the show.

[starfish]

Do tell...I love DOOL but I don't get to watch very often.

[doggie]

I've never watched "Duck Dynasty," never been even vaguely interested in it. But they're everywhere. My local Walmart's photo store closed, and they replaced the area with a bunch of "Duck Dynasty" merchandise. It's ridiculous.

I don't even know what it is about and don't care to find out.

[thoughtful]

I have never watched Duck Dynasty. From what I've read about it here on FJ, Phil's nasty comments were no surprise, but I'm glad to hear he is being called out and suffering a consequence for them.

Really, I'm mostly posting to say

:D

[yoadrian]

I have never watched Duck Dynasty. From what I've read about it here on FJ, Phil's nasty comments were no surprise, but I'm glad to hear he is being called out and suffering a consequence for them.

Really, I'm mostly posting to say

:D

Thank you!!! I've been lurking for years, kind of a big day for me hehe. 8-)

[Sobeknofret]

So much this. I live in Alabama. You can't swing a cat without hitting Duck Dynasty merchandise. And people here are eating it up with a spoon :cray-cray: Yesterday I was at Walmart and they had DD stockings and dog toys. Seriously?

I live in New Mexico, not exactly redneck central, and it's the same here! DD santa hats?! :wtf:

[Rescinded and Mended]

DD is one of the greatest shows of our era. :lol: A real show? :lol: The parts I've seen are so staged and they go out of their way to make themselves look dumber than they really are because that is how they market themselves. I wish people understood reality tv.

Plenty of crazy going on in my Facebook feed, too. When I suggested the big reason that Phil was suspended was because he offended a part of A&E's audience, which would result in a loss of viewership and money from merchandise tie-ins for the show, I got yelled at for not believing that Phil should be able to say whatever he wants without any offense or consequences of any kind. Hey, I could walk into my boss's office and tell him to go eff himself, but that doesn't mean I would walk out of there with my job. Do these psychotic little darlings not understand how reality works?

[formergothardite]

The only DD thing on my FB feed so far is a quote about how they stand for "real" American values including respecting everyone. Pretty sure his statement showed no respect for gay people.

He had to have known he would get fired for saying that. I wonder if this is what he wanted?

[GeoBQn]

Josh Duggar â€@joshduggar 14h

#StandWithPhilRobertson #DuckDynasty @AETV #FreeSpeech

Josh Duggar â€@joshduggar 14h

Phil Robertson's anatomical comparisons were crude, but that isn't the real controversy here. Religious intolerance shouldn't be tolerated.

Josh Duggar â€@joshduggar 14h

“We never, ever judge someone on who’s going to heaven, hell. That’s the Almighty’s job. We just love ’em." - Phil Robertson

I'm honestly surprised that so many DD supporters have no problem with their "upright Christian" role models using such crude language. If a non-Christian used the same type of graphic language, One Million Moms would be organizing a boycott against them. Are they implying that Christians get a free pass to say awful, dehumanizing things about human anatomy as long as it's to bash gay people express their religious views?

[moodygirl86]

When I suggested the big reason that Phil was suspended was because he offended a part of A&E's audience, which would result in a loss of viewership and money from merchandise tie-ins for the show, I got yelled at for not believing that Phil should be able to say whatever he wants without any offense or consequences of any kind. Hey, I could walk into my boss's office and tell him to go eff himself, but that doesn't mean I would walk out of there with my job. Do these psychotic little darlings not understand how reality works?

I agree with your analogy. Just because somebody has the legal right to do/say stuff doesn't mean people have to like it. I had the same argument with an employment agency last year after they sent me to an office where the manager got rid of me after three days, giving the totally erroneous reason that I'd made two admin errors, although nobody said anything to my face, and I'd be happy to bet you a grand I wasn't the only temp who made a mistake or two. Anyway, I sent a letter of complaint to the agency explaining why I felt I had been singled out unfairly, and their response was that this manager hadn't done anything wrong. Well, I agree that he hasn't if by that they meant he hadn't broken any laws, but that wasn't the point. Ethically, he had been unfair in using my alleged "slowness to pick up the work" as his reason for getting rid when he hadn't said anything to me at the time. I asked them if by that logic it would be all right to send a rude letter to a customer of the company telling them to stop wasting our time with petty complaints and get a hobby? Funnily enough, I was told not to be so ridiculous and that this manager had been extremely fair to me. Well, obviously this is a new definition of "fair" that I wasn't previously aware of. I see the same flaws in the "freedom of speech" argument.

[docmom]

When I suggested the big reason that Phil was suspended was because he offended a part of A&E's audience, which would result in a loss of viewership and money from merchandise tie-ins for the show, I got yelled at for not believing that Phil should be able to say whatever he wants without any offense or consequences of any kind. Hey, I could walk into my boss's office and tell him to go eff himself, but that doesn't mean I would walk out of there with my job. Do these psychotic little darlings not understand how reality works?

I wonder if they would get the analogy if, say, Josh Duggar all of a sudden became a proponent of marriage equality and gay rights and was subsequently fired? He has every right to say that (and wouldn't it be great if he did), but as his views wouldn't match those of his employer, they would have the right to fire him (and no fundie would be disagreeing).

[louisa05]

They would not get any analogy. Martin Bashir was forced out of his job at MSNBC for comments about Sarah Palin and they were thrilled. Yet Palin herself is screaming persecution over this. They don't get how hypocritical they are about stuff like this and they never will.

And a headline at Slate put it best in regard to the Constitutional argument the fundies are pulling: "You do not have a First Amendment right to a tv show".

[lilwriter85]

Plenty of crazy going on in my Facebook feed, too. When I suggested the big reason that Phil was suspended was because he offended a part of A&E's audience, which would result in a loss of viewership and money from merchandise tie-ins for the show, I got yelled at for not believing that Phil should be able to say whatever he wants without any offense or consequences of any kind. Hey, I could walk into my boss's office and tell him to go eff himself, but that doesn't mean I would walk out of there with my job. Do these psychotic little darlings not understand how reality works?

I think a lot of the Phil defenders probably don't realize how the TV business works. TV networks and execs are also wanting to avoid controversy which hurts their businesses. At this point, there were probably people are pro-gay who watched Duck Dynasty for the lovable redneck aspect or people who grew up similar to Phil and Si. But Phil's comments have probably turned off those viewers. I've never bought any products tied to reality shows. But if I had a gun to my head and had to choose between buying a Kardashian product or a DD product. I would go with the Kardashian product. The Kardashians piss me off for other reasons, but they seem to avoid saying and doing certain things to keep some of their fans.

The ongoing defending of Phil is going bother me a bit, but I'm a bit happy because my state New Mexico just legalized gay marriage and I'm sure some of Phil's NM fans are pissed.

[BoomerLynn]

Plenty of crazy going on in my Facebook feed, too. When I suggested the big reason that Phil was suspended was because he offended a part of A&E's audience, which would result in a loss of viewership and money from merchandise tie-ins for the show, I got yelled at for not believing that Phil should be able to say whatever he wants without any offense or consequences of any kind. Hey, I could walk into my boss's office and tell him to go eff himself, but that doesn't mean I would walk out of there with my job. Do these psychotic little darlings not understand how reality works?

I'm seeing the free speech arguments on my facebook feed now too. And on comments under articles about his suspension. These people do not seem to understand that the 1st Amendment is protection from prosecution by the government for freely expressing your views. It means that Phil cannot be arrested and thrown in jail for his comments. It does not mean that he cannot be fired for poorly representing his employer. He has the right to spew whatever vile comments he likes, and A&E has the right to deny him the platform to do so.

I also think that he was suspended not so much for his views, but how he chose to express those views. He said some pretty vulgar things in that interview. If he would have simply said something like "I personally believe homosexuality is a sin, however only God can judge the sins of others" he would not have been suspended. And apparently he only cares about that one law in Leviticus, otherwise he would also be ranting about all of the mixed fabric shirts with his family's pictures on them on the clothing racks at Wal-Mart. :roll:

[FreeJosie]

Aaaaand Smuggar has predictably weighed in. Hastag #standwithPhilRobertson

:violin:

Stand with racism and homophobia - yeah, sounds like Josh.

I'm surprised to see how much support this Phil Roberston tool is getting, not only from fundies. "But his show is so funnnnnyyyyyyy!" Yeah, that makes it OK. :roll:

[thoughtful]

And apparently he only cares about that one law in Leviticus, otherwise he would also be ranting about all of the mixed fabric shirts with his family's pictures on them on the clothing racks at Wal-Mart. :roll:

[MamaJunebug]

Having pretty much moved into asexuality at this point in my life, I read Phil's unfortunate comments with a wonderful sense of irony. It *all* seems silly and - this is just MHO - icky at this point. To see a man my age wax philosophic on "a man's anus" vs. "a vagina" made my gaydar ping, my hypocrite-dar ring, and my "doth-protest-too-much"-dar sing. It was a nice, funny, musical read - and I'm so glad A&E booted him.

However, I do think that their promises are flimsy. He's already been taped for at least one episode (he's playing with some granddaughters - it was part of the season previews after the overlong Xmas episode last week). Interesting to see how they roll that.

Meanwhile, I'm listening to Lutheran radio online and the current talk guys mentioned DD. I can almost pre-write their script, I guarantee you; if they say anything ridiculous, I'll let you know. I may be asexual, but I'm still not entirely aLutheran, so I REALLY hope they don't embarrass me!!!!