(OFF) OMG USA improving???

[Mike Holmes]

On 15/12/2011 09:58, Jonathan Smith wrote:

> It *was* great publicity for Clarkson-- the 'controversy' may even have
> been intended. In context or not, as a friend of Cameron, the remark likely
> reflected his opinions, although I don't mean he actually wanted to shoot
> anybody.

There are two Jeremy Clarksons. One is the guy on Top Gear and the 
column writer in the comics. That Jeremy Clarkson would line up the 
entire membership of Greenpeace against a wall and shoot them from a 
sports car moving at 160mph (he'd also shoot anyone who wants to measure 
this in kph).

That Jeremy Clarkson is a character played by a chap also called Jeremy 
Clarkson. The normal downside of one's stage name being the same as 
one's real namee is that it confuses people. However the peculiar nature 
of Clarkson's act and target market actually requires some such 
confusion because part of the joke is that people aren't permitted to 
know whether or not the real Jeremy Clarkson thinks the same way as his 
stage character. Thus he can say "Let's shoot all the public workers" 
while winking at those who believe they're in the know, but aren't quite 
sure. The joke would fail were people sure and, because he uses 
variations of the joke again and again as part of his brand of 
entertainment, he must maintain doubt by, as it were, speaking in 
character when not in fact in character.

As it happens I know someone who knows the man, and he's pretty OCD 
about recycling.

> As you say, misjudging controversial remarks does go with the job.

Yup. The media will have moved on by the weekend if they haven't already.

FoFP

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