Steve Colbert and Rosa Parks

[wit>trope]

I recently had the honor and joy of hearing Steve Colbert -- his show is called the Colbert Report or something, just like Jon Stewart's The Daily Show. I like Colbert much better though. He made a joke about Rosa Parks (I must have caught it on a rerun) that I thought was very funny but even though it was meant as a joke, I wondered if there were not some valid points in what he said. What do you think?

"Yesterday was full of loss for America, the greatest of which was beloved civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks. Which brings us to tonight's Word: overrated. ... Now, I know this isn't going to win me any popularity contests, but am I the only person who remembers that Rosa Parks got famous for breaking the rules? ... Look, there were other options. How about renting a car? If so many people were upset, why not start your own bus company? Let the free market do what it does best: bring justice to the disenfranchised."

"... So tonight, let me be the first -- the Rosa Parks, if you will -- of saying to those malcontents out there that the best way to change the system is to wait till it changes."

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/tv/246001_tv27.html

This quote unfortunately leaves out a lot of the jokes and some of the "substance". IIRC, this was actually an interview between Colbert and a black guy, a mayor I think -- and the joke went on to be a joke about slavery (the black guy said to Colbert -- then why not have slavery? since it was more efficient -- and Colbert said that slavery has its "downsides" and that the black guy should be careful about what he says lest people get the wrong idea -- it was really funny ... unfortunately I can't find the full transcript online)

Anyway, do you think Colbert, taken seriously (not as a joke) has a point? I mean if there was discrimination on public buses that they didn't like, they could have started a private bus company that didn't discriminate right? Just like there's private buses -- lots and lots of them -- today (I don't know if they had any back then)

 

[A'AbarachAmadan]

Steve Colbert is absolutely awesome. It plays here immediately following the Daily Show, which I now just consider a warm-up for the really funny show. He hits everything and everybody with ideas so ridiculous one can't help but laugh.