The Housewife and The Politician

The online petition and the calls for apology by an affronted country are enough to express outrage over the racial slur made by the television series Desperate Housewives. I need not join the fray. But when my cousin swore she heard a local politician say 'Teri Tatcher' on air, I just couldn't let it pass without giving my two cents' worth. Here goes...

First, the housewife. I, who am located at the extreme end of the political spectrum, was personally insulted by the tasteless remark. And that's because I happen to be a Filipino. Imagine then the insult Filipino doctors might have felt considering that the remark pertained to them.

For those who say that we're overreacting and that the remark was just probably a joke - nice try, fellows. Sure, I can take a joke, even if the joke's bordering on insult, provided that the person who delivers it is a true blooded Filipino. Teri Hatcher's character in the series is not a Filipino; hence, insulting a nation to which she does not belong hardly qualifies as a joke.

Let's look at it from the series' perspective: This doctor informs Hatcher's character that she's undergoing menopausal stage. Hatcher's character might have found this insulting given the stereotype and her ignorance on the concept of 'menopause'. So she insults the doctor back with a remark where she thought it'll probably hurt him the most - his education. The intention then of the character was not to make the doctor laugh. There was a clear intent to insult the doctor. Call me dense, but I cannot locate the joke there.

The scriptwriter had an array of retorts laid out before him but he went right ahead and used that which would insult a nation over a trivial thing as menopause, a process every woman goes through.

The network handling the series had already issued an apology and I fully quote the article:

"The producers of Desperate Housewives and ABC Studios offer our sincere apologies for any offence caused by the brief reference in the season premiere," a statement said. "There was no intent to disparage the integrity of any aspect of the medical community in the Philippines. As leaders in broadcast diversity, we are committed to presenting sensitive and respectful images of all communities featured in our programmes."

Thanks for even mentioning The Philippines in your series but if you have nothing nice to say about it, then leave our country alone (Chris Crocker mode on)!

Now, the local politician. He used to be an actor. Actor-politicians aren't new in my country. They breed, this particular specie. Anyway, he represents a beautiful Southern province. He doesn't really strike me as intelligent, but whatever my opinion on his intelligence is worth, it's probably less to the good people of this province. This gentleman rose from the ranks - councilor, a few positions more, then Congressman. He is probably a very efficient public servant for the people in this province to elect him as their representative.

So, what seems to be my problem with him? Well, he has already earned my displeasure for a statement he made on a certain issue (not the Desperate Housewives thingy). It's more of his meddling on an issue that's beyond his jurisdiction than his remark that annoyed me, really. Now, he gives his opinion regarding the racial slur and I'm cool with that. He's just doing what politicians do best - jumping into the bandwagon. But I'm thinking, 'what the heck?' The more people voice their outrage on this Housewives remark, the better. However, his saying the wrong name on air really irked me: 'Teri Tatcher'? C'mon! Ok, Congressman, repeat after me: Teri Hatcher.

Word to the wise: Be more knowledgeable of the facts of the issue you're commenting on; otherwise, just shut up.

I rest my case.