Quote ="The Daily Mail" TV watchdog Ofcom has rejected complaints that comedian Ricky Gervais's use of the word 'mong' during a stand-up show was offensive. The Office star and controversial comedian claimed that Britain's Got Talent singer Susan Boyle looked like a 'mong' during his 'Science' live show on Channel 4 last year. During a tirade about the Scots singer in October, Gervais said: 'She would not be where she is today if it wasn’t for the fact that she looked like such a f*****g mong.''" Source: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z1kJbixFiW Personally I think that the Daily Mail and Mencap (they've also complained about this) have got the complete wrong end of the stick. Both organisations are sensationalising a single word out of a whole dialogue of words. I could really understand if Ricky went out of his way to torment the person involved but he hasn't. The way I see it is that The Daily Mail and Mencap seem to be going out of they way to torment Ricky. Hopefully both Mencap and The Daily Mail get their comeuppance one day for misrepresenting what gets said to suit their own vested interests. There's a clear line between genuine discrimination and comedy. Ricky didn't cross that line in my eyes. I'm just grateful that we've got a strong comedian who uses comedy to really show up very vile organisations. He put it perfectly for me when he explained why the Daily Mail doesn't like him to someone asking on twitter '[iI'm a rich, famous, new money, cocky, educated, unapologetic, liberal, atheist with a platform?[/i'. Keep up the good work Ricky!

Quote ="The Daily Mail" TV watchdog Ofcom has rejected complaints that comedian Ricky Gervais's use of the word 'mong' during a stand-up show was offensive. The Office star and controversial comedian claimed that Britain's Got Talent singer Susan Boyle looked like a 'mong' during his 'Science' live show on Channel 4 last year. During a tirade about the Scots singer in October, Gervais said: 'She would not be where she is today if it wasn’t for the fact that she looked like such a f*****g mong.''" Source: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z1kJbixFiW Personally I think that the Daily Mail and Mencap (they've also complained about this) have got the complete wrong end of the stick. Both organisations are sensationalising a single word out of a whole dialogue of words. I could really understand if Ricky went out of his way to torment the person involved but he hasn't. The way I see it is that The Daily Mail and Mencap seem to be going out of they way to torment Ricky. Hopefully both Mencap and The Daily Mail get their comeuppance one day for misrepresenting what gets said to suit their own vested interests. There's a clear line between genuine discrimination and comedy. Ricky didn't cross that line in my eyes. I'm just grateful that we've got a strong comedian who uses comedy to really show up very vile organisations. He put it perfectly for me when he explained why the Daily Mail doesn't like him to someone asking on twitter '[iI'm a rich, famous, new money, cocky, educated, unapologetic, liberal, atheist with a platform?[/i'. Keep up the good work Ricky!

Personally I hope it harms his career.

He's made a whole series of programmes and films playing one person - himself - and that one person isn't particularly funny.
It's not often I agree with the Wail, but yes I do think he was out of order.

Unless the words "one day aspires to become a" appear in the middle, then "Ricky Jervais" and "comedian" should never appear in the same sentence

I think he actually gets away with murder in the world of the Politikally Korrekt where people are told what they can say and how they're meant to think and behave. So good on him in some ways. He says a lot of things that if you or I said, we'd get in trouble. Imagine saying I got Schindler's List as I thought it was a porno. What would people think of me at work? But him? Everyone laughs. It's amazing the psychology of people when they are told to expect "funny".

I'll put my hand up and admit that when someone says something really stupid I still put my tongue into my bottom lip and do a "Joey".

Can't believe people actually go on the Daily Mail website to get their news, utter gutter press, yet the 'articles' always end up on here!

Why do people insist on taking offence on other peoples behalf ? Seriously go into a pub and talk about Susan Boyle and you will hear much worse. FWIW I reckon the point he's making is right, albeit in a way that might offend some, people can't say anything without there being some bloody enquiry or overreaction. Shame on whoever reads the Mail, in fact I've just been on the link and there is a story at the top about two Harry Potter actors who don't speak a lot... wtf is this? Trash.

Why?

Politikal Korrektness is why. But yeah, I agree about what members of the general public might say. Who on earth has the right to tell us how to react to anything?


There is an irony there though by you saying:
[ipeople can't say anything without there being some bloody enquiry or overreaction.[/i

yet you go on to tell us how bad people are and they should feel shame because they read a newspaper:
[iShame on whoever reads the Mail[/i

Everyone clearly has some sort of overreaction. Even to something like a newspaper.

Point taken, this is generally an aspect of my personality I am actively trying to curb! I hate to think I judge people and usually feel quite guilty for coming across as snobbish when it comes to other peoples tastes, It just makes my blood boil that people actually care about these people, when there are people dying on the streets. Of course people may like the escapism of this celebrity media circus that is constantly shoved in our faces from any angle possible. Like I said I am trying to 'get over it' or whatever but every now and then I get quite annoyed by this sort of thing being commonplace in society, although I am probably in the minority, could cut this long story short and just say 'Keep your opinions to yourself' however that would just be boring especially on the internet! Might sound daft, but hey ho.

The talentless always seek to be "non politically correct" to generate humour, Jeremy Clarkson, Frankie Boyle and Ricky Gervais all fit that category. They remind me of the irritating posh toffs I knew at uni that would sit at the back of the bus into town roaring with laughter at their rape jokes.

If you find a comedian funny or not is one thing but groups kicking up a stink about something a comedian says is a bit pathetic in my eyes.

It's their job in some respects to offend.

But then its equally as pathetic when people complain about other groups kicking up a stink.

When a comedian tells a bad taste joke there will always be a 'group' that it offends, and others won't really understand it, they are entitled to take offence.

For instance after every celebrity dies there are always jokes being put on Twitter, going round texts, within hours of their death, mostly from young males. But I noticed after Gary Speed died there was immediate condemnation from that same market of these types of sick jokes when they started to emerge about Speed. Because the average young British male likes football and was more bothered about Speed, so took offence at those jokes when they would have thought it was funny if it was Jade Goody, Amy Winehouse or whoever.

I also remember seeing the irony when a guy posted a Tsunami joke on the day it happened, on another forum I read, and his avatar was the Liver bird with "Justice for the 96". I wonder if he would take offence if he heard a Hillsborough joke....22 years after it happened?

Ditto about curbing from me too TFC.

We all are judgemental. We all criticise something or other. We all have prejudices. And we all believe that ours is right. The art is to try and suspend judgement. It's bleedin' hard that last one.

Damo, are you saying that Mencap is a vile organisation?

Thats pretty much my viewpoint, he's apparently a comedian, I haven't found anything he's done on TV yet to be funny (no not even The Office), so he fell off my radar ages ago.

Comedy has to offend in many instances, its how it works.

I don't like Gervais or his sneery kind of humour, so I switch him off when he's on TV.
I don't like the [iDaily Mail[/i or its self-centred harrumphing up its own arris, so I don't buy it.
I had never even heard the word "Mong" before this story broke (maybe I live in a different bubble) but I gather that it is a derogatory term for people with Down's Syndrome.
From that, I have to assume that Gervais is a prat, unless there's something that I've missed.

But I'll keep an eye on this thread because there may be more about this word that I don't know.
e.g. Can anyone give me an example of when it is considered OK to use the word?

Don't worry mate, you're not alone, you're 'mong friends

If you are ever in Ulan Bator you would be fine using this term.

Yes.

Like many charities of different causes in recent years, they have abused their client base by jumping on the ‘work trial’ gravy train. In return for donation buckets in Co-Ops up and down this country, Mencap have provided Co-Op a steady stream of free labour.

I don’t know how much the public puts in these donation buckets, but I can guess that they put enough in that would pay a disabled person to work at Co-Op on the minimum wage via Mencap. Mencap could easily afford to subsidise a disabled person to work for life at Co-Op. However Mencap instead launder the donations into the wages of their marketing staff who will probably continue to think up of many more ways to fill their own pockets at the expense of their client base.

Now I believe that disabled people should not have to go through an unpaid work trial when people are given jobs in these supermarkets for merely just knowing somebody who works there. For example my cousins didn’t have to go on a work trial at a supermarket where their dad was a managing director. I have no problem with this ‘who you know as opposed to what you know’ culture that we have in this country because I think it has genuine intentions of providing someone a job who needs one. But this culture needs to be extended to disable people because they are facing unreasonable barriers to gaining employment. On top of their disabilities, they have to attended long winded interviews in the shape of an unpaid work trial which I feel is a disgrace. Especially when people have got jobs off the back of an short interview with an employer.

Disabled people are been shat on all round and most people in society don’t even know it. For some it’s just easier to label disabled people lazy as opposed to having a look at the bigger picture.

Worse of all these super markets string disabled people along for weeks and then tell them their no good after that. It’s just an excuse to replace that person who’s completed their work trial.

Yes people do get work off the back off these work trials. But only so Mencap marketing staff can sensationalise the few that do get work at the expense of those who don't in order to fill their own pockets by promising that they'll able to help more into work with more donations.

Other charity's that are rumoured to be like this are Mind and Scope.

Indeed!

Why dont you have a look at this link and see what they actually do?
[urlhttp://www.leedsmencap.org.uk/[/url

Their sole aim is not to spoon feed you a job.
[urlhttp://www.mencap.org.uk/news/latest-news[/url
[urlhttp://www.leedsmencap.org.uk/Home/personal-stories[/url

[urlhttp://www.scope.org.uk/services[/url

Indeed it's not. But that doesn't take away the bad experience I've had and many other people have had at the hands of these so called charity's. Feel free to defend them all you want. But in the meantime there's people out they who are struggling with their lives and there's nobody they to help them me included.

Quote ="El Barbudo"I don't like Gervais or his sneery kind of humour, so I switch him off when he's on TV. I don't like the [iDaily Mail[/i or its self-centred harrumphing up its own arris, so I don't buy it. I had never even heard the word "Mong" before this story broke (maybe I live in a different bubble) but I gather that it is a derogatory term for people with Down's Syndrome. From that, I have to assume that Gervais is a prat, unless there's something that I've missed. But I'll keep an eye on this thread because there may be more about this word that I don't know. e.g. Can anyone give me an example of when it is considered OK to use the word?'" www.chortle.co.uk/news/2012/01/2 ... r_mong_gag Although he said that, ‘When she first came on the telly, I went, “Is that a mong?”,’ he insisted: ‘I don't mean she has Down’s Syndrome, by the way. No! No that would be offensive. That word doesn't mean that any more.’ And they claimed the joke was not directed at Susan Boyle as having a disability but ‘...at those who refuse to acknowledge that the meanings of words can adapt over time’.

Quote ="El Barbudo"I don't like Gervais or his sneery kind of humour, so I switch him off when he's on TV. I don't like the [iDaily Mail[/i or its self-centred harrumphing up its own arris, so I don't buy it. I had never even heard the word "Mong" before this story broke (maybe I live in a different bubble) but I gather that it is a derogatory term for people with Down's Syndrome. From that, I have to assume that Gervais is a prat, unless there's something that I've missed. But I'll keep an eye on this thread because there may be more about this word that I don't know. e.g. Can anyone give me an example of when it is considered OK to use the word?'" www.chortle.co.uk/news/2012/01/2 ... r_mong_gag Although he said that, ‘When she first came on the telly, I went, “Is that a mong?”,’ he insisted: ‘I don't mean she has Down’s Syndrome, by the way. No! No that would be offensive. That word doesn't mean that any more.’ And they claimed the joke was not directed at Susan Boyle as having a disability but ‘...at those who refuse to acknowledge that the meanings of words can adapt over time’.

popwatch.ew.com/2012/01/20/hitle ... y-gervais/

popwatch.ew.com/2012/01/20/hitle ... y-gervais/

Some people will find mong funny. Some won't.

One thing you can be sure of is that the "thought nazis" of the world will be trying to prove how offensive things are, to tell us what's right and what's wrong so that if we dare laugh, we can be riddled with shame and guilt.

You can laugh at it.
You can be offended by it.

I don't think any word should be off limits, or that anything should be considered "too offensive" for a comedian to say. If we are going to have free speech, we can't be selective about when that applies. The only possible exception to this should be where there is clear evidence of a person inciting violence. "Mong" isn't a word I'd use myself, or one I find particularly funny, but if Gervais wants to use it in his act, it's up to his audience to decide whether they continue watching his show or not.