The ultra-PC school names him grad speaker.
The University of California–Berkeley has announced that polarizing TV host Bill Maher will be its winter graduation speaker.
“The host of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, comedian Maher is known for his political commentary and satire,” writes The Daily Californian, the official student newspaper.
Other things Maher is famous for include calling Sarah Palin a “t**t” and a “c**t” (comments that offended even the liberal National Organization of Women), saying Christians are schizophrenics, and comparing “retarded children” to his dogs.
At first glance, the liberal Maher might seem an appropriate choice for liberal Berkeley. But on second thought, the often offensive Maher seems an odd selection for a student body so obsessed with political correctness.
Last fall, Berkeley students were so outraged over the fact that a fraternity had hosted a fiesta-themed party that the student government called for mandatory sensitivity training and a ban on culturally themed parties. The year before, they condemned a haunted-house charity event because it featured a hanging zombie. Because, you know, Halloween or not, hanging things is always racist. And the Californian is full of student editorials that declare seemingly innocuous things (like Disney movies and compliments from men) to be so destructively misogynistic that they can actually keep women from achieving their full potential.
It remains to be seen how these students will react to the selection. But it might not be so bad. After all, calling a woman a c**t is nowhere near as offensive as telling her you like her hair. And as long as he doesn’t delve into any of the really abhorrent stuff – like wearing a moustache and sombrero to a party — he might do just fine.
— Katherine Timpf is a reporter at National Review Online.