So apparently Lankhof has a conscience. Here's what he wrote today:
The joke's on us
By BILL LANKHOF
All is not well in Newfoundland. And, I think it's my fault.
In a column yesterday, Brad Gushue's victory at the Canadian Olympic curling trials was examined with satirical wit -- or, at least that was the intention. Seems Newfoundlanders are not in any mood for either the satire or the wit.
In short, they feel insulted. According to the e-mails, yours truly deserves to be fired. According to the phone calls I am "a racist" or "a bigot" or just a plain "ignorant son of a bitch." And, as one Newfoundlander noted, "You make my stomach turn."
Thank you for noticing. Oops. There I go again. Being satirical and sarcastic. It's what this column is supposed to be about. According to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, satire is "Cynical observation of others; sarcastic, humorously critical." Unlike others, this column isn't supposed to be taken 100% literally, or seriously.
And, having acquaintances from the eastern shores of our fair land I was under the impression that if anyone could laugh at themselves, it was Newfoundlanders. Apparently not. Yesterday, the St. John's Telegram called asking about running the article that had offended.
The St. John's affiliate from CTV telephoned asking for an apology. I wonder if Andy Donato had this kind of thing happen when he painted Joe Clark with mittens?
The local CBC called and suggested I had some explaining to do. They had an e-mail. Oh, horrors.
Look people, I don't hate Newfoundlanders or think they all beat baby seals; I don't dislike Brad Gushue and I don't believe Easterners all down salted cod with Screech for breakfast. And no, it's not their fault the Titanic sank off their shores.
There is nothing in my columns that readers don't see every week on the CBC's This Hour Has 22 Minutes. And, while I'm no Shaun Majumder, the tenor (if not the quality of humour) of my columns is no different than anything written for his show -- and most of that stuff is written by Easterners.
I don't see them apologizing at the end of their shows for taking news and trying to get a giggle out of it.
Satire by its very nature engenders different responses from different readers or viewers.
I have, over the years, pilloried every team, every sport and just about every race. I've made jokes about my own Dutch heritage: You know, like the reason we wear wooden shoes is to keep the woodpeckers off our heads.
If you take everything in my columns seriously, then someone is going to walk away angry every day. There are two ways that satire can be taken -- you can laugh at it, or you can get angry. I suggest the former is better for everyone.
Someone once described satire as being nothing more than educated insolence.
It is what I do. Sometimes I do it well. Sometimes, well ... the phone never stops ringing and I'm not sure if that's good or bad.
So, I will tease Mapleholics for holding a parade down Yonge Street every time the Leafs win more than two in a row. I will suggest Tie Domi's knuckles are dragging when he behaves like a neanderthal. I will kid J.P. Ricciardi about the Jays being the Oakland A's farm team and giggle that Jason Allison is so slow he's the only guy in the NHL who could get called for delay of game on a breakaway.
It's sports. It's supposed to be fun. Remember?
There was the time the Raptors had a player named Vincenzo Esposito from Europe and it was suggested by some smarty-pants columnist that while it really was sweet of him to go around and introduce himself to all the opposing players before the game, the only thing the guy could throw up was a brick.
That didn't mean I believed all Italians were good for was being a construction worker. It meant I was being satirical. They do it on Air Farce every week. Right there on the CBC.
I will not apologize for anything that I have written but I do feel badly for people who feel they have been insulted. While it was not the intent, I can understand it. I obviously struck a nerve, which is generally what I try to do with my column.
But I do think people should understand that sport, in most instances, isn't life and death. These are games we are writing about and I don't feel that it has to be taken and treated seriously 100% of the time.
In this case, your complaints have been noted.
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Aimee
