Larry David Was Right To Call Out Socialist Absurdity, but I Wish He Were Funnier

I think I know what “rizz” is, but I’m not exactly sure. I know not to say “on fleek” anymore. That phrase died out about 10 years ago. I can use “lowkey” coherently in a conversation. But I’m not quite sure what people do on Snapchat. I’m not old yet. But I’m not that young anymore. Dancing on the bleeding edge of culture? Me? I’m certainly trying. Pulling it off well? Not a chance.Which brings me to Larry David. At the age of 79, Mr. David is nearly twice my age. Once he was the brilliant avatar of comedic culture, spitting in the face of staid single camera, laugh track shows by writing deliberately unattractive characters who faced off against the mundane insults of life.He co-created one of television’s most groundbreaking shows, “Seinfeld.” Yet it’s a show that today has nearly zero cultural footprint among anyone under 30. Over the last 20 years, his public persona has been subsumed into his selfishly argumentative and temperamental character from “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”And after reading his well-deserved roast of the Democratic Socialists of America in Air Mail, I can’t be the only one who thought it was pretty lame. If you didn’t see it, earlier this week Mr. David sent up the Democratic Socialists of America. In an essay headlined “The View from Here: A comedian’s modest proposals for the Democratic Socialists of America,” his suggestions included opening homes and borders to strangers, encouraging police officers to resolve domestic disputes at farmers markets, and expanding workplace entitlements to incorporate mandatory siestas and bereavement leave for dead pets.Time stands still for no man. The culture keeps moving while the awards gather dust. Reading those hoary, vaudevillian, early Woody Allen-esque jokes in Mr. David’s comedic article was about as humorous as watching my Jewish grandfather try open mic night. And he’s been dead 17 years. What went wrong? This is the best Larry David can do? THE Larry David? Was Jay Leno not available? Was Henny Youngman waiting in the wings? “Take my DSA — please!” I agree with Mr. David on every ounce of his intent. The Democratic Socialists of America are a group of ridiculous morons who are as worthy of parody as they are dangerous to the republic.I’m proud that a liberal Democrat has chosen the path of iconoclasm in an era where a “Free Palestine” t-shirt goes down better in Beverly Hills than a kombucha. Mr. David is an expert at skewering sacred cows. There’s no better fit for the man who built an entertainment empire around being the Cassandra of Minor Insults.But shouldn’t there have been something more substantive here? The “comic” pretense of the article is that Mr. David dons his keffiyeh, joins his local DSA chapter, and sets about taking the organization’s proposals both seriously and literally.Everyone who wants to defund the police should leave their doors unlocked. People who make offensive jokes should be sent to re-education camps. Jews shall be renamed the “bagel people” and vacate Palestine for the Pacific Rim. Oh, stop, my sides are hurting from laughter.If the joke is that the DSA’s positions are so politically unpalatable, they are beyond parody (which is a valid line of argument), congratulations, Mr. David. That thrust was cutting-edge two years ago.It’s all so embarrassing to see a man who was so adept at hitting the target for so long whiff in such an extraordinarily clichéd way. So embarrassing that any DSA pretense of offense has to be for clicks or collective outrage.Even the headline belies how much stronger Mr. David’s column could have been. Mr. David’s could have been. The phrase “a comedian’s modest proposals” is a clear callback to “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift. The brutally satirical 1729 essay urged starving Irish families to sell their young to wealthy English elites for food, forcing British society to confront the oppression of Irish families by sheer virtue of rank absurdity.Larry David’s column in Air Mail. ScreenshotStarting from a premise like that, Mr. David’s essay could have gone anywhere. The genius of Larry David, whether writing for “Seinfeld” or as both the creator and lead actor of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” was that his character zeroed in on the minute absurdities of life that passed us by without notice. That were so ingrained in our social norms that they were invisible, like old stains that somehow acquired the color of the carpet.But the evil of the DSA is so evident, its danger so present, we don’t need someone to thread a needle no one else can see. People were assaulted outside synagogues. New York’s Mayor has an enemies list of the wealthy. Town halls are burning in France. The revolution the DSA wants is already being televised. Be careful with that joke, Alex, it’s an antique. And so is that one.“Most of Mr. David’s volleys succeed on the ‘it’s funny because it’s true’ principle,” wrote Jack Butler in the Wall Street Journal Wednesday. Sure — but we already knew that. Who is there to truly hurl the comic brickbats the DSA deserves?At what age do you go from being a tastemaker to a taster? From hip and edgy to dull and safe? From extra bold to decaf? Maybe it has to do with age and time, two afflictions that will eventually win against all of us, including me. Maybe it’s the gunfighter syndrome — you can’t be the fastest forever.Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I’m very glad Mr. David spoke up. I appreciate his contribution to the political discourse, and I am sure he will stand strong against a lot of mean social media feedback and disinvites from dog birthday parties.There’s an old Borscht Belt joke: “This soup is terrible! And the portions are too small!” Now that’s the kind of antediluvian joke Mr. David could appreciate.His article was both terrible — and it didn’t go far enough.

Larry David Was Right To Call Out Socialist Absurdity, but I Wish He Were Funnier

Larry David Was Right To Call Out Socialist Absurdity, but I Wish He Were Funnier

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