In a shocking display of commitment to free speech, the Federal Communications Commission announced yesterday that it may revoke the broadcasting license of a major television network after a comedian made a joke that bruised the feelings of several Very Important People in Washington. The FCC Commissioner, standing in front of an American flag the size of Rhode Island, declared: “We are a government that treasures free speech. That’s why, if anyone says something we don’t like, we will crush them with the full weight of our regulatory power. It’s called responsible freedom. ” The network in question had aired a late-night monologue in which the comedian suggested that politicians might be more interested in campaign donors than in ordinary citizens. This shocking claim — which was obviously meant as a joke — was immediately classified as “a national security risk.” Free speech advocates pointed out the irony, noting that the same administration has repeatedly claimed to be “the most...
Dear Dr. Satire, Q: Why do babies need four polio shots when there’s no polio anymore? A: Oh, what a shameful question! Don’t you realize how much culture we lost when polio disappeared? Whole hospital wings filled with iron lungs — gone! The sleek chrome cylinders, the rhythmic wheeze like a mechanical lullaby… it was practically a symphony of suffering. And the wheelchairs! Stylish, timeless, and available in every hospital hallway. Now, thanks to vaccines, kids just run around all… healthy. Boring. The reason babies get four polio shots isn’t to protect them — heavens, no! It’s clearly a government conspiracy to rob future generations of that rich “shared cultural experience” of mass paralysis. Imagine: your child will never know the joy of balancing on crutches at recess, or the thrill of being whisked away to a polio ward while doctors shout things like, “Quick, crank the lung!” We do four shots because three just isn’t nostalgic enough. It’s like a tribute band — you need mult...