What is the Root of all Evil?

In 2008 and 2009, Comedy Central produced a show that I didn't watch until it this summer because it was available on "watch it now" on Netflix. That show was called "Lewis Black's Root of all Evil." Lewis Black stood as judge over two opposing sides that argued for two elements that could be the root of all evil.

What kinds of elements are we talking about? Well the first episode pit Oprah against the Catholic Church. In other episodes you can see the debate between weed and beer, Dick Cheny and Paris Hilton, or American Idol and High School. The debates are run by familiar faces on Comedy Central. Stand up comedians who are also often seen on comedy specials and celebrity roasts.

The trail starts with opening statements followed by a brief history of each of the combatants. Next comes the presentation of the case against each possible root. Then Black holds his inquisition where he grills the prosecutors. This is followed by the "Ripple of Evil" where the prosecutors describe what will happen to the world if their evil is left to its own devices. After the closing statements, Black passes sentence on whichever of the two is the true root of all evil.

Is this show worth watching? Absolutely. While the prosecutors may not be top comedy names, the arguments are strong, and funny. In the first episode of Oprah vs. the Catholic Church, Black asks one of the prosecutors, "What would happen if Oprah became the Pope?" The prosecutor's response? "She'd become the Poprah."

Do yourself a favor and check out this show. It will help you to get some piece of mind from all of the horrible evil that are out there in the world.

"The Bedwetter-Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee" an autobiography by Sarah Silverman

I thought it might be interesting to do some book reviews as part of this blog as well. What better book to start with than an autobiography called The Bedwetter? This is an autobiography by Sarah Silverman one of the most unusual and most sarcastic celebrities I have seen on the large or small screen.

My first real encounter with Sarah was here comedy special "Jesus is Magic." Before I watched this special, I thought I knew about sarcasm, but I quickly learned how little I actually knew. Throughout the show, I would find myself uncertain if she was joking or serious. I had the same experience with her part on the documentary "The Aristocrats." During her telling of the joke she made comments about being raped and abused, but there was a part of me that wasn't sure it wasn't just part of the joke. Sarah brings that same kind of humor to the story of her life so far.

The first half of the book deals with Sarah's childhood including being a bed wetter up until her high school years. We get to meet her foul-mouth father who encouraged his daughter to swear and seek the laughs that came from those swear words. As the book progresses, we also get glimpses of her high school years, entering the world of stand up comedy, losing her virginity, and her time as a writer for Saturday Night Live. This time has my favorite story when she stabs fellow writer Al Franken in the head with a pencil on a strange whim. The second half of the book looks at her career to the date the book is finish, including working on her own Comedy Central show titled, The Sarah Silverman Program.

Sarah breaks many conventions of the autobiography in this book. She writes her own introduction, and makes a pretty big deal about the process of writing it. She also spends a good bit of time writing about how the book came to exist. She even shares several conversations with her editor about the creation of the book. What really got my attention, though, was the "Advance Praise for the Bedwetter" on the back of the book.

"She's a lady and it's a black shirt." --Alec, age 3.
"I want juice." --Diego, age 2-1/2
"At recess Brody Watkins pulled my hair and I told the teacher and she yelled at him and he cried."--Emily, age 6
"Y tu mama tambien."--Luis, age 4.
"Book."--Bea, age 2

So my opinion is that you should go out and read this book. This opinion is offered, however, with a little bit of condition. I know that Sarah Silverman's style of comedy is not for everyone. She is not afraid to go for the cheap joke by writing a song about poop or speak freely about her sexual experiences, so if you would rather avoid these kinds of topics, this is not the book for you. Look her up on Youtube, or watch The Sarah Silverman Program on Netflix.  After you get done, you'll probably want to head to the book store to buy The Bedwetter.