"Maybe I missed the point, but the Feinstein jokes felt like insults about how old and decrepit she was. And, most importantly, they wouldn’t have printed in 2003 because they’re not that funny!
Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s look at political jokes that mock people who are of sound mind and can take the criticism."
The "joke" is that she was not of sound mind, but had an immense amount of power. I think the point of that article is that an elected official is incapable of doing her job and is controlled by unaccountable, unelected aides. That being said, I didn't find them very clever either, since they seemed to focus on the weakness that comes with age, rather than the people taking advantage of it.
I think that's fair. I'm also thinking of the Strom Thurmond jokes from many years ago, which made fun of him for being old but felt more creative and silly.
"Maybe I missed the point, but the Feinstein jokes felt like insults about how old and decrepit she was. And, most importantly, they wouldn’t have printed in 2003 because they’re not that funny!
Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s look at political jokes that mock people who are of sound mind and can take the criticism."
The "joke" is that she was not of sound mind, but had an immense amount of power. I think the point of that article is that an elected official is incapable of doing her job and is controlled by unaccountable, unelected aides. That being said, I didn't find them very clever either, since they seemed to focus on the weakness that comes with age, rather than the people taking advantage of it.
I think that's fair. I'm also thinking of the Strom Thurmond jokes from many years ago, which made fun of him for being old but felt more creative and silly.
I think SNL did what the Onion aimed for, but much better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5wfPlgKFh8
The joke is that Reagan's ludicrously competent in private while maintaining a public persona of a friendly confused grandpa manipulated by his staff.
I remember that sketch well as a longtime Phil Hartman fan! That's a great comparison.