[Sway]

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Well, the first episode of the new season just aired, and I figure I've made this show a hit with at least a few people here, so I'm starting a thread for it.

Penn & Teller: Bullshit! (subsqeuently referred to as "Bullshit") is something of an investigative show with a lot of comedy, magic, swearing, and nudity thrown in for good measure. It stars the dynamic duo of Penn Jillette and Teller, the popular magic act who just so happen to be quite outspoken on all sorts of issues.

Penn and Teller investigate what they call "bullshit," including PETA, hippie science, the paranormal, psychics, even recycling and 12-step programs. With lots of resources to research and fact-check every last detail, creative experiments, and informative interviews, this show is both smart and extremely entertaining, and if you haven't checked it out yet, I have two episodes available on PETA and on conspiracy theories. Keep that on the DL.

This season Penn and Teller call bullshit on:

The Boy Scouts
Astrology
Capital punishment
Sexual celibacy/abstinence-only sex education
Cryptozoology
The treatment of Ground Zero in New York
Numbers (surveys and polling)
Pets being like people
Prostitution
Reparations
Two-party political dominance

So check it out by tuning in at 10 PM EST on Showtime or finding some sort of... I don't know, "peer" to share the episode with you in some way. You won't regret it and then you can be in the fan club too!

[Lord Shmeckie]

FUCK! I MISSED THE PREMEIRE!

Thankfully, it replays in a half hour.

[Sway]

Watch up to the end of the credits for a hilarious piece of footage.

[Lord Shmeckie]

I caught the last fifteen minutes (I got confused by my guide thingie). Everything in it seemed like every party invloved, including P&T, were way overreacting (not including Penn's language, but the pointless points, like if gays could do scout things).

Good points were made, though. I do agree that the scouts should either be a private organization, or accept everyone and keep the federal money coming. Law is law. But how does Bush manage to pop up in virtually every left-winger's rant on any subject? When his name came up thanks to that gay scout guy, I burst out laughing. Someone stepping down from an honorary position seems like the last thing anyone with a working cerebrum should be putting on the table.

And on a side-note, why the hell are gay groups still using rainbows? What in god's name do rainbows have to deal with fucking men?!

Oh, and the thing at the end was funny as shit.

[AlmightyNam]

See, I don't mind them bullshitting conspiracy theorys and peta, but, I can't see them pulling off abstinence-only eduation without yelling at people just because of what morals they have.

Sure, its pretty bad to assert your own morals into a school lesson, but, with so much media pressure for leading a sexually promiscuous life, it seems like(at least in my highschool expirience) that the sex education in public schools aren't doing anything to discourage that type of behavior, and is almost encouraging it. Like, the word abstinence was probably spoken twice in the whole curriculum, and was never actually defined. On the other hand, we had whole tests and quizzes on the different types of contraceptives and their uses, with the advantages and disadvantages of each.

But, I guess they're talking about the other extreme, which is probably just as bad, I dunno. I guess I'll reserve judgement till I see it.

[Sway]

I'm pretty much positive Shmeckie gets it, but let me just preemtively state some necessary information to help others just relax about the show, because it's frequently controversial.

Penn and Teller are rather staunch Libertarians if that gives you an idea of where they're coming from. Not every show is a layup, like calling bullshit on communicating with the dead or something. There are some shows with a lot of gray areas depending on your morals. They have strong views and they stick to them, and fuck you if it offends is their stance. I believe the quote on the show was "We're biased as all fuck, but we're honest." So the fun of the show is mostly in the presentation and investigation.

Family Values, The Bible, and Big Brother will likely piss off strong conservatives, and Environmental Hysteria, Gun Control, and Endangered Species will likely piss off strong liberals. That's the way it is. You don't have to agree with everything. For instance, in this last show, I thought the test between gays vs. straights for who can do scout stuff better was completely worthless. I'm also against stronger gun control, but their arguments in the Gun Control show were mostly terrible. Don't get too caught up in the political stuff.

And if I know this show, Nam, P&T will make a very good argument for teaching more than abstinence that you'll have to at least consider for a moment.

[Selatein]

Hmmm. Interesting. Shame I don't get Showtime.

Now, at any rate, I did watch the Peta episode (about to watch the other one now), and I must say, thank god that someone is pointing PETA out. They're a bunch of fucking morons.

Although I do have to agree with the one guy about violence or non-violence being tactics. However, that doesn't exclude them from ethical problems.

Now, I really have to laugh about the whole thing at the end with how "rights movements do not fail" and how they keep "growing". Now, of course, not only does this "rights movement" just through out many social norms (as opposed to a few), and keep us from what evolution has taught us to do, they're just way too extremist. Oh, and the whole fact, you know, in successful rights movements, members of the group that they were trying to free were of course, actually trying to earn their own freedom. Most animals do not. I have cats that will not leave the house. I know of dogs that get nervous when their owners aren't around. Now, I agree that some lab situations are bad, but I don't really care, 'cause if I won't have to worry about cancer in 50 years, I'll be glad that all those lab rats died for my sake.

Now, I do know some people who are vegetarians and\or vegan, and I can respect them, because they don't try to force their way of life on others. My Brother and his wife are Vegan, and they don't throw a fit when I eat a steak in front of them. They also own a dog. Then I have friends who just don't eat meat 'cause they never cared for it. Which is kinda weird, but, eh, they're not extremists.

Now, off to watch the other one.

EDIT:

Yea, watched the Conspiracy Theories one, and it makes sense. Not that there couldn't be some crazy ass plot, but it's not like some weak, half-baked speculation is going to uncover anything. Not that it matters, it won't change anything, so why don't people just move on?

I have seen some specials on some of the various events mentioned, and in the end, they basically say that it's inconclusive, and to believe what you want. But, if Occam's Razor tells us anything, the simplest explanation is the most viable.

[Sway]

Forgot to mention, there was a new episode on prostitution on Monday and how it should be legalized. Anybody else catch it?

[Lord Shmeckie]

Fuckin' missed it. G'ah, I always forget to watch new shows...

Mondays at 10... Mondays at 10... Mondays at 10...

[Selatein]

Aw, damn, I wanna see that one, 'cause I do believe that prostitution should be legal. I wanna know their reasons.

[Lord Shmeckie]

I'd like to see their reasoning, too. Personally, I've always been on the fence about prostitution. Both sides (excluding the "sex = sin" crowd) make good points.

[Selatein]

It comes down to two things for me:

1. Safer for those in prostitution, both the prostitutes and the clients. Prostitutes would be able to get out of it a lot easier, seeing how they would not have to have a pimp, and the clients could see regular STD reports.

2. It becomes taxable income.


The downside? People have to deal with the fact that some people like to fuck. Which doesn't bother me, anyways.

[???????]

Lord Shmeckie, on Apr 12 2006, 05:13 PM, said:

Both sides (excluding the "sex = sin" crowd) make good points.

I thought that people only thought sex was a sin if you had it before marriage.

[Selatein]

Well, yea, but even then, there are those who dislike it because it is "dirty" and "sub-human".

Although, seriously, people who can't deal with fornication need to learn how to deal with it...

[???????]

Heh, the people who view sex as "subhuman" or "dirty" need to realize that without sex, they wouldn't even be here to even think like that.

Also, people who keep protesting against fornication need to realize that if it doesn't affect them in any way, they shouldn't care. If it's your belief that fornication is wrong, that's you, but that's no need to harass other people about it.

The only reasons I can say fornication is bad (religion aside) are the risks of pregnancy, STDs, and looking like sexual deviants. Sure, you can have sex with whomever you want, wherever you want, whenever you want, but don't whine when you get an STD or when pregnancy occors.

This post has been edited by ???????: 13 April 2006 - 01:31 AM

[Sway]

Well, to quickly summarize, they basically interviewed a few hookers who said they didn't feel like slaves and they enjoyed ther jobs and shit like that, they visited a brothel in Nevada to show how clean and up-to-code it was, with weekly STD tests and required condoms and clean sheets between customers and all that. Then they showed how prostitution is really only a dangerous profession if it's illegal, since hookers can't really go to the cops with their problems and they have to deal with pimps and all that. I don't really care either way, but it all sounds like good reasoning to me, even if I've heard it before. Obviously their show was a lot more compelling and convincing than my short summary.

[Lord Shmeckie]

Wow, the Death Penalty one sure did suck. I dunno which was worse; the fact that the pro-death penalty arguments they took on were the flimsiest of the bunch, or the fact that they pulled the emotion card by calling everyone supporting the death penalty murderers.

No, wait, it was the last one. Made me bust out laughing.

The whole argument was flimsy at best, swiss cheese-esque at... well... slightly less.

The cryptozoology one looks interesting, though.

[Sway]

I thought it was a good episode, but then again I agree with their position and you disagree.

[Lord Shmeckie]

Either way, the "you're all murderers" thing was ridiculous. There's no denying that.

[Sway]

Well I'm not ready to call a state-sanctioned execution murder either, but depending on your value system, I can't really say it's ridiculous to call killing another human being murder, if that's what you want to call it.