This morning on the way to work I heard on the radio about George Carlin’s passing over the weekend. I live in Delaware and don’t get out much, so I have, of course, never met George, but I have an odd sort of personal connection with him: I was at a friend’s house watching a Carlin HBO special the night I got the call that my own grandfather had died. From that day on whenever I saw George I jumped that mental hyperlink to thoughts of my grandfather, even though the two were not alike at all (and in fact, were my grandfather exposed to Carlin’s humor, he would most likely scowl and leave the room).
George kept us all a little healthier by being brave enough to point out our own collective stupidity. George’s life was proof that humor can change the world.
I’m sure fifty thousand other bloggers will be linking to these clips or to the famous ‘Seven words’ that made their way to the Supreme Court, but I feel obligated to join in with a few of my favorite Carlin bits: