Fans of the skeptical posters may note that the quote I've chosen this time isn't overtly skeptical. Nor is the man pictured in this poster necessarily a skeptic. Rather George Carlin was the greatest comedian I've ever heard, and the only celebrity who's death truly saddened me. I'm not a celebrity guy, and even those famous folks who's work I enjoy typically don't demand any further interest beyond the work itself. My choice of Carlin as a subject for this piece was borne out of the quote itself, and how it made me reflect on the man who said it.

While I discovered Carlin later in life, (and only a few years before his eventual death, as it turned out) after hearing his first record I immediately began devouring every bit of material with his name on it. Not one bit of it disappointed me. Beyond his comedic prowess, Carlin had many gifts. One simply has to listen to 'Advertising Lullaby' to get a sense of the incredible memory he possessed. His intellect and ability to express himself combined to produce a formidable foe to anyone foolish enough to advocate for bullshit.

Like many of the greats, his comedy was less about yuks and more about social criticism. An eternal watchdog of culture, Carlin seemed capable of providing perpective on whatever was currently going on in society in ways that often seemed prophetic. His allusions to the then largely undiscussed erosion of the middle class in America, and how it would bring about the downfall of the nation's economy, certainly appear to fit that bill now.

While I've been an atheist since I was quite young, Carlin was one of the first public figures I encountered that would aggressively address such issues. He had a way of mocking religion that, while I wouldn't engage in it myself at this point in my life, at the time made me feel like it might finally be ok to admit my beliefs* to to those other than the closest of friends. That was the beginning of the process anyway; I didn't get all the way there until many years later when I read Richard Dawkins' book, 'The God Delusion'. At that point I felt it was time to represent my thoughts on God at least as openly as religious people do theirs. In fact, Dawkins quotes Curious George in the book:

"Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man living in the sky who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever 'til the end of time!

But He loves you."

Again, I don't reprint that quote to critique religion myself at this time, but rather to represent how succinctly Carlin could make a point with his comedy. Whether the subject was religion, politics, art, or human relationships; his was obviously a mind set free by it's own power, a mind incapable of being shackled by even the most entrenched of bad ideas.

Would I have called George Carlin a skeptic? Perhaps not. While he obviously came equipped with a great bullshit detector, he also exhibited a tendency towards paranoia from time to time. Furthermore, he didn't seem to trust medical science very much. While some of his ideas about what causes the problems of the world were probably misplaced, one must keep in mind the following: Carlin didn't do particle physics or chemistry, but rather focused his considerable powers on something far more difficult to quantify; that being society. And he did all that while being DAMN funny. He's a person I valued as much for his passion and talent as his intellect. The quote above may seem ordinary when presented in a crappy poster, but you just have to hear the man say it in it's proper comedic context for it's brilliance to be seen.

When I heard this quote the other day, it reminded me of a minor beef I have with the skeptical movement as of late. One of the unfortunate realities of skepticism is that those who engage in it just can't help but to point out flawed logic wherever they see it. This leads to a lot of infighting amongst critical thinkers, as if there was some some sort of award that's passed out to the person who's made the fewest mistakes in their discourse. While such discussion is always defended as 'good practice' to sharpen one's mind and prepare for the proponents of pseudoscience, often it smells of intellectual dick measuring.

While I'm not sure how many skeptics would take issue with some of the things Carlin said, to me it doesn't matter. His ability to notice the subtle ways that society was evolving before him presented us with a unique stream of data. His voice was a treasure to those of us that listened, and one that will be sorely missed.

To a person such as myself, who doesn't make heros of people often, George Carlin is certainly amongst them.