People Give Shits About FDR

Last night on “The Daily Show,” the audience nearly turned on “resident expert” John Hodgman when he cracked a joke about FDR’s polio. Check it out at 2:50:

Hodgman Jokes About FDR’s Polio

TheDailyShow.com wasn’t letting me embed the clip properly, so I had to caveman link it. Anyway, I think it’s pretty amazing polio—specifically Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s polio—is still a verboten humor topic with some people in this country. Granted, America wasn’t declared 100% polio-free until 1994, but come on. Salk dropped that vaccine back in ’52, and Roosevelt croaked almost ten years before that! I’ve encountered New York City firefighters with less reservations about 9/11 jokes.

BESIDES, Hodgman’s gag was really at the expense of Hoover. Did I miss a memo? Is Herbie H. the new savior of the Left or something? Maybe people are just over John Hodgman already. The whole smug fake fact thing wears thin pretty quickly with most folk (look at Sniglets; Rich Hall never talks about that shit anymore). Part of it has to be that suit. Hodge has been rockin’ the same drab brown retro mess ever since he came on the scene.

Johnny Baby, get some new threads! You’re starting to remind us of the hobos you make fun of.

Ironically, Justin Long, the Mac to Hodgman’s PC in those annoying Apple ads, is a direct descendant of FDR. His real name is Kermit Nelson Rooselvelt; he changed it and took up acting after he realized he’d never meet the height requirement to be a U.S. Senator.

I’m kidding, of course. See, I can make up funny untrue facts. Someone give me a book deal already.