Sunday, February 16, 2014

Gateway To Enlightenment

Penn & Teller are the subject of a "Gateway To Geekery" written by Matt Wild at the AV Club.  I'm not sure how you enter into their world, as they've done a lot--TV, theatre, books, movies, etc.--but are at heart a magic act.  In fact, any time you move away from their stage show I think you move away from who they are.

However, since it's not easy for people to go to Vegas to see their show, the column suggest you start with early episodes of their cable show Bullshit!.  Okay, though their debunking, as famous as it's become, is only a small part of what they do.

But there's something bothering Wild. He doesn't always approve of the team's politics.  In fact, Wild warns us away from later episodes.

Well-deserved takedowns of aliens and creationism gave way to mean-spirited and puzzling attacks on environmentalism, reparations, college, and handicapped parking.

So mocking psychics and faith healers is fine, but don't you dare suggest that secondhand smoke isn't that bad, or Wal-Mart has its positive side.  That's mean-spirited.

If you want to find out about Penn & Teller, I don't know how much to need to watch Bullshit!, as popular as it was, but I would recommend it to Matt Wild again--maybe he could discover why it's not so puzzling that some people disagree with him.

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