The National Football League is — as long as it flows from left to right, as Ed Morrissey notes at Hot Air. Hank Williams was dropped — we don’t know yet if it’s just for yesterday’s edition of Monday Night Football or permanently — by ESPN for comparing the president to Hitler. But for this year’s Super Bowl halftime entertainer, such comparisons are just another day at the office. Or at least they were until January of 2009:
I don’t think Williams was misunderstood at all; he was pretty blunt about it, and claiming that people didn’t catch some alleged nuance is just laughable. But should that mean that anyone who makes Hitler comparisons to contemporary political leaders should be barred from NFL performances? If so, then the NFL might need to reconsider its latest entertainment decision:
Will Madonna take the field at halftime during the Super Bowl come February?
Madge is reportedly in talks to headline the 2012 halftime show at Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis, which would mark her debut on the massively watched pro football telecast — that according to a sports blog citing a source “close to the event.” …
Recent halftime performers have included the Black Eyed Peas, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty. Madonna would in theory have a blank canvas to showcase her catalog of work, from the “Like a Virgin” days to her most recent, electric-hop record, “Hard Candy.”
Yeah, that’s just what the Super Bowl needs — another middle-aged pop star well past her prime giving us a “Sweating to the Oldies” set. But Jammie Wearing Fool recalls when Madonna was positively LaRouchian herself, in 2008:
Madonna kicked off her Sticky & Sweet Tour in the U.K. Saturday, and stirred up a beehive of controversy by comparing Republican presidential nominee John McCain to Adolf Hitler in a video montage during the show.
During the song “Get Stupid,” Madonna flashed images of McCain alongside photos of Hitler and brutal Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, as well as images of destruction and global warming, according to British paper The Times.
By contrast, in the next segment of the performance, she used the image of Democratic nominee Barack Obama alongside pictures of John Lennon, Mahatma Ghandi and Al Gore.
Frankly, I’d watch football if both of these two performed, or if neither of them did. I really couldn’t care less if Williams performs before every Monday Night Football game or if Madonna breaks out the bustier for a halftime gig at the Super Bowl. I’ll be getting the veggie tray and drinks during halftime anyway. What I do care about is a double standard when it comes to political expression by entertainers that penalizes conservatives while giving progressives a pass.
As I said to my wife last night, we need to pay particular attention to the food we serve at halftime during our Super Bowl party, since everyone will be in kitchen while Madge is on.
For a look back at an era where the NFL (mostly) kept politics out of the game we watched on TV, click here.
I stopped watching football about 8 years ago when my son was born, but started back up this year because my son is now playing tackle football. Now I remember why I stopped. I still watched the Super bowl if it was a good game, but the half time shows left a lot to be desired. I remember the half time show featuring the famous wardrobe malfunction. The Super Bowl is broadcasted all over the world and I was never so embarrassed to be an American as I was at the end of that show. It was absolutely horrible and didn’t speak at all well for our country.
Now, I will definitely not watch ESPN anymore and encourage others to boycott as well. I couldn’t believe it when Rush Limbaugh was fired, but I had already stopped watching the NFL anyway.
If you really like football get involved with youth and high school football. College is also very entertaining. These liberal networks need to stop insulting half the country.
Wow, who’da thought? My liberal relatives are finally agreeing with Laura Ingraham: “Shut up and sing!”
Hank Williams, Jr. has genuine talent.
Madonna’s only talent is for self-promotion and hype.
I’d rather see Hank doing the half-time show.
And here’s our take on ESPN.
Olbermann.
The NFL is still on TV? Whodda known?? I thought they closed down right after the NBA became a waste of time.
Veggie Tray? At halftime? You know who else would’ve gone for the veggie tray instead of a proper NFL meat tray?
HITLER!
And what about “Madonna”‘s insults to the Catholic religion? Mocking the Blessed Mother with her “Immaculate Collection” (meant as a joke on Immaculate Conception), making a video showing a cross burning, etc.? Perfectly acceptable to dump on Catholicism, apparently.
We usually change the channel during half-time.
If they are only going to allow performers who never compared a president to hitler, after the bush years they are going to have a very short list to choose from.
It was silly of Hank Williams, Jr., to compare President Obama to Adolf Hitler. Obama doesn’t have a mustache. Given his jutting jaw when looking at the teleprompter, his crony corporatism and his desire to make light rail run on time, it’s obvious to anyone that the proper comparison should have been Benito Mussolini.
“…compare President Obama to Adolf Hitler…“-ClydeS
YOU may have made that comparison. Hank Williams Jr. didn’t.
I suggest you turn off your TV and take a basic English class. Try to pass it. Pay particular attention to metaphors and similes.
Then, come back and try again. See you in a year or five.
just say no to the nfl. the vast majority of their games are played in taxpayer funded stadiums, taxpayer funded police protection and traffic control, for playoffs and the dummie bowl federal security which We The People pay for without any payback. they have constantly brought in performers who are anti American and freedom. the last super bowl flybuy of military aircraft was over a F’n dome! they didn’t pay a dime for it, enough!
no thank you I have a brain and a life and the nfl is not part of it.
So, Godwin’s law finally comes to the NFL. It figures that they wouldn’t see the double standard. A lot of that has been happening since January of 2009.
Please stop calling people in their 50s “middle aged.”
Wasn’t Slash available? Yeah, so he is doing a show in Denver, then in Russia an hour after that, but I bet he could squeeze it in.
Keith Olbermann was on NBC’s Sunday night pregame show for three years. I guess the numerous examples of him comparing the previous administration to the leaders of the Third Reich just don’t matter.
I don’t watch millionaires play ball games, so I couldn’t care less who sings at half time. About 10 years ago I realized that the best part of the superbowl was the commercials, and that really sealed it for me.
SB Halftime hows have been lame as of late. The half time show should be as raucous as football itself rather than pre- recorded 1/2% disco wash-outs like The Black Eyed Peas or a Madonna. The Stones, Tom Petty, much better stuff. Big City acts don’t reflect the origins of football.
The sports media is as left leaning as any other MSM.
madonna, tramp-stamp has-been…the nfl has been moving further left each year, being pulled there by the likes of espn. when the black eyed peas were chosen for the haltime show, the nfl had automatically scheduled an extended bathroom visit for me. thanks, nfl!
If you were to hold up a picture of the sticky and sweet tour in front of these people, they would hide behind the first amendment. Lefties are so far gone that they are incapable of embarrassment.
What got me about the Bocephus thing is why did everyone automatically assume that Obama was Hitler in the analogy?
Because secretly they think he is.
i was a college cheerleader many years ago.
i am not a prude, however, the outfits the cheerleaders wear and the dance moves are actually embarassing to watch.
with so many millions of Americans out of work, it’s hard to watch multi-millionaires running around on the field, half-time people included, as their limos and mansions await them.
meanwhile, the tickets get higher and the half-time shows are horrible and you have to pay at home just to watch!
I dont think hank was the nfl…but espn…so i dont see the connection…but who knows
gotta see if i still have that tape of “In Living Color”‘s halftime show
funny and might be the right length
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