The Jeff Booth Show

Internet Radio with Pictures

Show Transcripts

April 26th, 2009

You can contact us at:

Jeff@eroticuniversity.com

(818) 613-9248

If my voice sounds a little funny, it is because I am just coming off a bad cold. And if my show does not sound funny enough this week, blame it on that as well.

On this week’s show we have a roundup of sex and politics in the news, and a roundup of sex and entertainment in the news. Our Sevestigation looks at journalists’s Monk-like behavior and just how extreme extremism is on both sides of the abortion debate. Finally, we have an interview with Thomas Ward, who plays the Bill Cosby character in the upcoming Not the Cosby Show XXX. He is not a porn star, but a stand-up comedian. I talked with him at the XRCO show, and it was quite noisy, so he led me off to the dressing room, which was co-ed, and full of porn stars changing clothes. Sadly, it was too noisy there so he led me off into an empty corridor- much quieter, but also no clothes changing porn stars.

Sexvestigation

Tim Rutten does it. So do most journalists. He just did it in this week’s op-ed on the controversy over the nomination of Kathleen Sebelius for secretary of Health and Human Services. Sebelius is despised by anti-abortion conservatives because, well, for the same reason they despise a lot of people- she doesn’t believe exactly as they do. She just vetoed another crazy Kansas anti-abortion bill, that, like so many others before it, her advisors advised her was unconstitutional. Now we know that saying something is unconstitutional doesn’t even get an eye blink from right-wing conservatives these days.

So they are furious at her, and Republicans have so far held up her nomination in the Senate. They can’t stand Sebelius because as a Catholic, she believes abortion is wrong, but as a politician, she does not believe she has the right to force her religious views on others. Heretic.

But what galls me about Rutten’s piece is this sentence: “Politics in Kansas has long been poisoned by extremism on both sides of the abortion question” Really, Tim? The entire rest of your article goes on to detail just how extreme the anti-abortion extremists are. You discuss how Archbishop Joseph E. Naumann forbade the governor from receiving communion because she vetoed an earlier bill that would have allowed third parties to sue women to prevent them from having an abortion. The bill was both unconstitutional and crazy. And the bill she just vetoed was essentially designed to make it easier to prosecute Kansas Dr.George Tiller, who was just acquitted on Kansas’ previous attempt to put him in jail because he was one of the few doctors in the country willing to do legal late term abortions to protect the life and health of the mother. The new bill would have allowed prosecutors to override a doctor’s judgment, and would have allowed the husband to sue the doctor if he disagreed with his wife getting an abortion. Pretty damn extreme.

So what exactly is a pro-choice extremist? Do they believe they have the right to decide for women and force them to have abortions? Do they murder anti-abortion protestors? Do they firebomb churches in protest?  Advocating the right of people to choose for themselves is not an extremist position. Pro-choice advocates don’t do extremist acts.

In Kansas, anti-choice activists do. It’s the home of Operation Rescue, one of the most violent and confrontational of the anti-abortion groups. They are extremists. One of them shot and wounded Dr. Tiller. In an article on Wikipedia on anti-abortion violence, they list the following tactics used by anti-abortion extremists- destruction of property, in the form of vandalism, arson, and bombings, and crimes against people, including kidnapping, stalking, assault, chemical attacks, attempted murder, and murder. They have also sent fake Anthrax letters to clinics- over 650 times. Since 1977 in the U.S. and Canada there have been 41 bombings, 173 arsons, 91 attempted bombings or arsons, 619 bomb threats, 1630 incidents of trespassing, 1264 incidents of vandalism, and 100 attacks with butyric acid.

Let’s compare that with similar acts of violence on the other side. Do you hear crickets chirping?

Journalist are obsessive compulsive- They are like Monk- everything has to be even no matter how irrational that might be. Kansas is a perfect example. It is home to some of the craziest anti-evolution extremists in the country. They are biblical literalists who believe the earth is just 6,000 years old and that every animal on the planet was crammed onto an Ark- and they want to teach this idiocy in the public schools and throw out the last 300 years of the scientific revolution to do it. They are scientifically illiterate. We might even call them stupid.

On the opposite side is the vast majority of learned scientists who have spent their lives studying this stuff, and people educated in science with the ability to do rational thinking. The two sides are not even remotely equal, but the press presents them equally as if they were. And so it goes. In Kansas, ignorance is just the flip-side of knowledge, and both points of view, according to the press, are equally valid- and equally extreme.  

Poor Sarah Palin. The once beloved governor of Alaska has been reduced to being part of a family that seems like perpetually potential Jerry Springer show guests. And now the Alaska Legislature has rejected her choice for state attorney general. He is Wayne Anthony Ross, known more for his radical right-wing extremist views than his legal expertise. Unfortunately, he may have alienated a few too many people with his comments. In testimony during his confirmation hearing, Ross, also the founder of Alaska Right to Life, was quoted saying “If a guy can’t rape his wife…who’s he gonna rape?” and “There wouldn’t be an issue with domestic violence if women would learn to keep their mouths shut.” Of course, this is consistent with Sarah Palin’s belief that rape victims should pay for their own rape kits. He definitely alienated the gay community, if there is such a thing in Alaska, with comments where he called them immoral, perverted and degenerates. His support for a KKK art project lost any black support. That left only white heterosexual males and Sarah, which you would have thought might be enough there. But it wasn’t.

The number of nuns has dropped dramatically in this country, so to deal with the problem the Pope has launched an investigation of The Leadership Conference of Women Religious for not adhering closely enough to his views on homosexuals. He hates the homosexuals. Adult men having sex with other adult men. Icky.  Oh, he also does not like their discussions about admitting women into the priesthood. He has decided that is a forbidden topic of discussion. So it seems the Pope thinks that bitch slapping the sisters is the perfect way to help get more women into the sisterhood and keep them there. He sounds more like a pimp than a Pope.

The self-described morose and almost pathologically incurious Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas spoke recently. He actually does not speak very often, whether lecturing or with his confounding refusal to ask questions in court. SO whenever he speaks, you sort of expect it to be important. SO what was on the Justice’s mind?  He reiterated his distaste for the separation of church and state with “Or how can you not reminisce about a childhood where you began each day with the Pledge of Allegiance as little kids lined up in the schoolyard and then marched in two by two with a flag and a crucifix in each classroom?” And what did he complain about? Rights. He thinks Americans have too many rights. There’s a whole pesky bill of them. The event he was speaking at was actually devoted to the Bill of Rights. But he was not there to praise it. He was there to complain about it. He said “Today there is much focus on our rights. Indeed, I think there is a proliferation of rights.” He then said that what we should have is a Bill of Obligations and a Bill of Responsibilities. It is true that his entire career has been devoted to denigrating individual rights. He often grumbles about how hard his job is and how depressed he gets, and in his speech he said ““This job is easy for people who’ve never done it. What I have found in this job is they know more about it than I do, especially if they have the title ‘law professor.’ That is probably one of the most accurate things the supremely unqualified Thomas has ever said.

A number of prominent conservatives have been losing their minds because a Homeland Security report started by the Bush administration concluded that far right extremists could become a serious threat. This makes sense, since the second worst U.S terrorist attack was perpetrated by far right extremists, and the far right extremists in the anti-abortion community have a long history of shooting people and blowing up and burning down clinics. And the most recent case is the failed right wing radio talk show host in Pennsylvania, who shot and killed three police officers because he thought his guns would be taken away. While there are far-left extremists in the environmental and animal activist movements, they don’t have the record for killing and massive destruction the far right extremists do. SO the report should hardly be a surprise. But televangelist Pat Robertson thinks the report is just gay. And not in the way kids have been using gay as a pejorative, but literally gay. On the 700 Club, Robertson, who denies that there are violent right wing extremists at the same time he calls for the assassination of foreign leaders, said this: “It shows somebody down in the bowels of that organization is either a convinced left winger or somebody whose sexual orientation is somewhat in question.” I just don’t know how to explain Robertson’s obsession with bowels and gays. Well, actually, maybe I do.

Of course, RNC Chairman Michael Steele sees a conspiracy in the report. The ardent anti-abortionist, at least this week, claimed on Fox News that anti-abortion rallies were being spied on. He also implied that the Feds should instead be at the borders hunting down Mexicans. Considering the violent history of the anti-abortion movement- yeah, we should be keeping an eye on them. But Steele had no evidence- it was just coming from his gut. That has worked so well for him so far.

Its beginning to look like Rudy Giuliani wants to be governor of New York. So he is working to rebrand himself. The new brand? Rudy- family values guy. And to launch himself on this new path he has decided to attack the current governor David Paterson's stance supporting gay marriage. And yes, this is the same Rudy who lived with a gay couple after being kicked out by his wife for cheating on her with another woman. And yes, that very same happily together for a long time gay couple, Howard  and Mark, who so graciously gave him a place to stay, plan to be wed in Connecticut in May. Rudy once told the happy couple that he’d marry them himself if gay marriage ever became legal in New York. I guess he forgot to mention that if his political ambition dictated it, he’d gladly throw them under a bus and become a leader in trying to prevent gay marriage from ever being legal in New York. Rudy is the family values guy who married his cousin, had numerous affairs, and was married three different times. Now he is stating very clearly that he supports only traditional marriage, which is strictly between a woman, a man, and his current mistress.

We talked two weeks ago about Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons and his apparent bid to become America’s sleaziest governor. Now he is back in the news for his statement that he will veto a bill to provide domestic partnership rights in Nevada. A bill that would help out quite a few people in Nevada, like Siegfried and Roy for example. He said he would not sign the bill because he simply does not believe in domestic partnership rights. Some of the other things he apparently does not believe in: marital fidelity, staying married, leaving women sexually unaccosted in parking garages, using his own cell phone to send hundreds of text messages to the woman he is accused of having an affair with when a perfectly good government paid for phone is available, and recognizing his own unbelievable sleaziness and hypocrisy.

And finally, does Massachusetts State Rep Kathi-Anne Reinstein hate the disabled and old people? Seems like. At least, she wants to curtail what they can do sexually- namely appear in adult films or photos. She introduced legislation that would punish the manufacture of adult materials starring persons over 60 or disabled persons with prison terms between ten and twenty years, plus fines ranging from $10,000 to $50,000. And why is this such a tremendous threat to society? Sure, I get that she is horrified at the thought of her parents having sex, but what’s with the disabled? Yes, the severely mentally disabled probably shouldn’t be doing porn, but I think you could already run into legal trouble making something like that. And considering the horrendous toll taken on our brave members of the military, Kathi-Anne apparently wants to tell many of them who came home with disabling injuries while fighting for their country that they can’t appear in porn? That seems downright un-American. In one of the truest statements a politician has ever uttered, she called this legislation a “no-brainer.” Thank-you Kathi-Anne. I couldn’t make up stuff funnier than what comes out of your mouth.

Entertainment

There is a new documentary out called American Swing, which about Plato’s Retreat. This was the famed 70’s swing club in New York. Swinging in the 70’s and especially on the east coast was very different from what it is today. There was more emphasis on the orgiastic anonymous sex, as it was modeled on the gay bathhouses. Plato’s founder Larry Levenson thought he could avoid paying taxes by calling the club non-profit. He went to jail for tax fraud. The documentary presents this as a relic from the past- and in a way, that is true. Swinging has become big business, more social, and less anonymous. I think it is fair to see that thanks to the Internet and the proliferation of clubs, there are far mre couples involved in swinging now than in the 70s.

Porn stars and beauty queens both get accused of not being very bright. To be fair, I think this is because they both tend to be very young, and few of us are brilliant at that young an age. I was, but that’s beside the point. Generally at 20 you are going to say some dumb things. But still, even by those standards, Miss California is not particularly bright. At the Miss USA pageant, when asked what her stance on gay marriage was, Carrie Prejean said “"We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage," Well, actually, you can only choose it in three states. And what’s with trying to rename heterosexual marriage to opposite marriage? I think we already have opposite marriage. Its called divorce. That’s as opposite as marriage gets. Then Prejean said. "And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised.". The questioner was gay gossipy blogger and Miss USA judge Perez Hilton, and he was offended. He later called her a bitch and a cunt. I think the bitchy cunt Perez Hilton was a little out of line there. But still, she should have at least given a thought to who watches these beauty pageants- women and gay men. Diplomatic she wasn’t. And the part about it simply being the way she was raised- as if being raised to hate Jews for example would be a good justification- it turns out that she has a sister in the military that she does not believe is gay but is a pro-gay activist. Makes you wonder if perhaps her sister just decided it was not worth having a heart to heart with her. And it sort of negates her whole well that’s just the way I was raised explanation- since her sister was raised the same way one assumes. And it makes her sentence “in my country and in my family” sort of poignant- this country is divided about gay marriage and so is her family. She won first runner up, but her comments on gay marriage probably cost her the crown. And not to be a bitch about it, but I’m kinda glad about it.

Billionaire Richard Branson could have told Denni Parkinson to just get off his back. But he didn’t. Instead he let the nude supermodel hold on for dear life to his back while he kite surfed. It was all at the request of photographer Stephane Gautronneau, who wanted to get some shots of his supermodel girlfriend in the nude. Richard Branson’s wife and adult children watched from the shore. Yu can see the pictures on the Huffington Post. And what was that about the rich being different from you and I? Well, actually, I am sure Kris would be quite happy for me to have a nude Supermodel on my back,  but she would be shocked at the idea of having our adult children watch with her from the shore, since we are both unaware of having any.

I have conflicting feelings about the whole Susan Boyle thing. She was the singer who wowed everyone when she appeared on Britain’s Got Talent. The shock came from such a lovely voice coming from such a frumpy and frankly remarkably unattractive woman. And yes, I know we should judge her based on her talent. Before she sang, that entire audience judged her by her looks and her lower class way of speaking. We are so used to attractive singers. Or at least those who make some effort. With her uncombed hair, bushy eyebrows, lack of any makeup, frumpy clothing, and overweight appearance- Boyle seems to completely disdain any notion of female maintenance. She is 47, but looks ten years older. She is unmarried, unemployed, and lives with her cat. Within 30 seconds, though, the audience was on its feet cheering her. I doubt there were many women who did not shed a tear watching the YouTube clip. I’ve listened to several other songs from her, and her voice is remarkable. It is just hard to believe it is coming from her- like the experience of watching Jim Nabors break into song when doing his Gomer Pyle character. If you just listen to her, she sounds 20 years younger, more worldly and sophisticated, and beautiful. She has said she is not interested in a makeover- what’s wrong with just being Susan Boyle? "I wouldn't like to change anything. I'm perfect the way I am." And she’s right. In a perfect world. But in a perfect word we’d all be attractive and our hair would just fall into place. As it turns out, she did not stick to her guns long. She had a makeover. She died her hair, had it styled, and got better clothes. And she does look better. Even just a little makeup does wonders. I remember the first adult awards show I worked on way back in my early 20s and many of the women coming in looked remarkably plain. Once they had hair and makeup done, it was an amazing transformation. Is it shallow or is it just normal that we want beautiful music to come from beautiful people? As far as we have pushed the culture of celebrity and beauty, Susan Boyle pushed back in the opposite direction. And as much as I think we go overboard in pushing unrealistic expectations of beauty, Boyle became a sensation partly by pushing back in the opposite direction. She’ll never be a great beauty, but damn can she sing. But still, in our culture, that is not entirely enough.

Last week we did a humorous piece about the noxious Gathering Storm anti-gay commercial. Now from the Funny or Die site, which also brought us the great Proposition 8 the Musical, comes A Gathering Gay Storm. It stars Alicia Silverstone, Lance Bass, and George Takei, amongst many others. Gathering Storm looks like it will be the most parodied commercial of all time.

Who is Getting Naked Now? It’s Jessica Biel, who is currently dating Justin Timberlake. She stars in Powder Blue, the story of a stripper who comes to L.A. to make it big. You know- another completely original Hollywood plot. SO what is it- you get kids you do a Disney movie. You get a hot boyfriend so you play a stripper? Her beauty and her exposed breast were not enough, though. Originally scheduled for a May 8th release, I just learned it is going straight to video.