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5 Social Issues George Carlin Made Relevant

He was hilarious and way ahead of his time

S.A. Ozbourne
12 min readFeb 8, 2021
George Carlin doing stand-up (Source: Wikipedia)

“In America, anyone can become president. That’s the problem.”

George Carlin was ahead of his time. Being woke, leading the charge in cancel culture, fighting censorship, and supporting those who are vulnerable and don’t have a voice. Going after racists, sexists, fascists, and aiming to bring those who try to restrict freedom to justice. These current events and social issues that are relevant today were being fought before people like Greta Thunberg, Malala, David Hogg, and AOC were even born.

Using comedy, George Denis Patrick Carlin brought important and critical issues of injustice into the living rooms of everyday people. Unlike politicians, protesters, or activists who are sometimes overwhelming and too in your face for the average Joe, Carlin was able to use stand-up comedy to make people laugh while they realized how cruel and unfair society was.

George Carlin (Source: Wikipedia)

Who Was George Carlin

Born in New York in 1937, he was a child of separated parents and lived with his mother. His father was an Irish immigrant and alcoholic, while his mother was a secretary who raised Carlin and his brother on her own.

Before comedy, he was in the Air Force where he was court-martialed three times. He was also a radio DJ before being fired and entering comedy. His life was riddled with addictions to alcohol, marijuana, LSD, cocaine, and other drugs. He was born into a Catholic home but rejected religion and was weary of members and leaders of the faith.

He also had a long history of heart problems and suffered three heart attacks and heart failure. He died in 2008 of heart failure at age 71. Here are just ten social issues that Carlin tackled in his comedy and brought to light.

Abortion

Why, why, why, why is it that most of the people who are against abortion are people you wouldn’t want to fuck in the first…

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S.A. Ozbourne
S.A. Ozbourne

Written by S.A. Ozbourne

Canadian in Japan. Teacher, Crime writer, video editor, and pet lover. Follow my journey via my monthly newsletter: https://bit.ly/team-ozsome-subscribe

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