Last nite Comedy Central ran snippets from the recently filmed and shown Carlos Mencia: No Strings Attached special. I've previously tivo'd that airing and never had the time to make it completely through watching the full performance, but each time I catch pieces of it I wind up laughing until I'm ready to cry, and at the same time, having to hold back some sad thoughts about the truths that Mencia is spouting off in his performance.
If you get Comedy Central, and even if you don't, you should catch the performance when you can. It'll come out on DVD eventually (probably about 3 - 6 months out), but just about everything in the performance will still be highly relevant when it does.
During the performance, one of the most touching and profound segments is a bit about Carlos Mencia going to Six Flags and waiting for hours to get a ride on one of the roller coasters. He complains about his legs being tired and cramping up from standing so long, waiting for his turn to get on the ride. Things that happen to many of us in the course of our lives, so we can easily sympathize. The story gets hilarious and insightful at the same time when he describes looking at the coaster as he gets to the front of the line, seeing one empty seat, and then being told to 'hold up.' Hold up?! What are you talking about -- there's a seat left, it's my turn is the thought (and comment from Mencia during his telling of the story). At that point, the ride operators open a little gate and start to let in someone in a wheel chair, much to the chagrin of Mencia. The story he tells of harrassing the poor guy in the wheel chair is far from politically correct, and yet perhaps it should be considered absolutely correct.
Mencia uses that story to talk about seeing the person in the wheelchair as a person, and how simply being in the wheel chair and being 'differently abled' (or handicapped) shouldn't mean that someone should expect or even accept favorable treatment. If a person wants to be treated equally, then that should be the case, but equal treatment does not mean you take advantage of special breaks along the way. Mencia's comment and point is that you have to choose one or the other - special treatment because you are different and need and want assistance, or treatment just like anyone else. Each comes with it's own consequences though. If you are treated differently, then expect people to stare or whisper, or look away or feel pity. Those are events and emotions that bound to happen and anyone that uses their status as a differently abled individual should expect those reactions and not be entitled to being upset or indignant about them. On the other hand, if someone that is differently abled is treated like everyone else, and seen as a whole person, they forfeit the right to cutting in lines, and to expectations of reserved parking spaces close to businesses, or other benefits granted to them by the designated status.
There are several other politically incorrect, but highly insightful rants in the performance. One that especially should hit home is a rant about women demanding equal rights in the work place. Mencia correctly points out that what is really being asked for is equal pay, with special rights. For example, the work place has to be sensitive to the female workers that may be there. Males can't walk around the work place making obscene comments, telling dirty jokes, discussing sexual conquests or wanna be conquests and things like that. If they do, they face charges of creating a hostile workplace, and would be scheduled very quickly for sensitivity training. The point that Carlos Mencia makes about all of this is that what has happened is not equality, but instead a form of politically correct special treatment. Equality would mean that the work place wouldn't grant special treatment for any class of individual, and wouldn't demand sensitivity for any class of individual. Equality would only mean equal pay for equal work.
In anycase, there's a lot of food for thought in the performance, as well as in Mencia's weekly series (when it's in season), the excellent 'Mind of Mencia' show on Comedy Central. Not at all politically correct, but certainly insightful and thought provoking.
