To close out our day’s discussion of race and racism and the “N-word” — be sure not to deprive yourself of Frank Rich’s latest crazed rant on the subject, ludicrous even by his appallingly low standards of argument and those of the New York Times‘s editorial page in general — this trip in the Wayback Machine courtesy of the late, great Bob Fosse, screenwriter Julian Barry, Dustin Hoffman in his Oscar-nominated role and, of course, the troubled, tragic comic genius, Lenny Bruce himself.
Remember when the Left was all in favor of free speech, no matter how offensive, in the belief that clarity emerged from conflict, that sunlight was the best disinfectant, and that brotherhood was possible only after we cleared away the barriers that divided us, instead of re-erecting them in the name of such contemporary shibboleths as “diversity?” Believe it or not, there was such a time.
Ladies and gentlemen, Lenny Bruce in a classic routine. Good luck getting this movie made today, or including this famous scene in it. WARNING: the “N-word” and other pungent ethnic insults, dead ahead. Don’t click if you get the vapors easily:
[youtube SOnkv76rNL4 nolink]
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