We have a botched joke of our own. I agree with her that speech totalitarianism exists and that it is illegitimate. But, my goodness, did she have to take a page from the John Kerry book of joke-telling?!
"But, my goodness, did she have to take a page from the John Kerry book of joke-telling?!"
Traitor Kerry wasn't telling a joke, nor was he attempting humor of any kind.
Ann was, and although some didn't appreciate what she said, it wasn't "botched".
Our country sure sucks...oops, is word "sucks" still an appropriate word?
Big difference. Kerry's "joke" a soggy, leaden unfunny mess. Ann's joke was funny, tied into an incredibly absurd piece of current pop-culture news, and, (probably accidentally) exposed a bunch of "conservative" bloggers as humorless schoolmarms tut-tutting over a long-lost (and mostly imagined) "civlility in political discourse".
If you want to see political incivility, go read the "blogs" of the 1770's -- broadsheets and newspapers of the time, that make Ann's remark look tame.
Time to grow a sense of humor, and a pair, people.