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In my more apolitical days, I used to actually like Colin Quinn (and his republican-through-default-of-being-a-jackass guest, Nick DiPaolo). His ignorance of greater social issues seems to have endured through a post-9/11 American awakening. What I loved (and by "loved," I mean "was severely irritated by") about the show was that, at every juncture, he attempted to frame liberals as thought-police.
Paraphrase: "How is saying, 'nice lady' demeaning to someone? You see, I think 'nice lady' is a compliment. It's the *liberals* who've ruined our culture by turning innocent compliments into harassment."
And context doesn't matter? If I was to walk up to Colin and begin a normal conversation with him, but end every sentence saying "smart guy," I think he might take offense.
His intolerance is thinly masked by the framing of his question. "Why are we a wimpy culture that whines and whines about nothing? It must be the liberals." This reaction is typical of an individual who wants only to think in black and white - the two extremes of anything.
I'm sure he's a tough-as-nails Brooklynite who thinks everyone should have a carapace like his, but the world is oftentimes much more complex than a belligerent, semi-articulate man's fantasy.
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