You should dig a little further into this. You'll find that the site the Special Olympics has set up for this links directly to a right wing site that not only complains about the use of the "R-word", but also wants to stop the use of fat jokes, fart jokes and profanity in general. The religious right is using kids with disabilities as their wedge issue, but it only takes a couple clicks to find the real right wing propaganda that lurks behind this (the site the Special Olympics links to has 100 anti-abortion stories in it top-most category). Check out my Current com article on this called "Religious Right Behind Tropic Thunder Protest"

Here's what bother's me: I think the boycott may bring undo attention too. But, I am glad the use of the word brings people with disabilities to stand up for themselves. I am a *famous* poet and professor with cerebral palsy. I have no intellectual disabilities at all, yet I cannot count the times I've been called 'retarded' by people with clearly less education and success. Most blogs won't allow to post the words fag or nigger -- why retarded?

"I am glad the use of the word brings people with disabilities to stand up for themselves"
Um, in what way?
Did the mentally impaired vote for right-wing activists to represent them?
Guess what - it's the liberals who know how to make and take a joke that tend to pay for social infrastructure, like homes and programs to aid the mentally impaired, regardless of political motive.
Retarded is also a medical term. The "N" word which you obviously enjoyed employing, is a derogatory epithet, as is fag, unless you're an English smoker.
Glad I could help clear that up for you, hopefully having made it difficult for you to use random issues to defend racism in the future.

To GreenScreenCinema: Your assertions about the author of the www.r-word.org site intrigued me, so I dug a little deeper. About which religious, right-wing conservative organization are you talking? The site is created by the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation for the Benefit of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities. The President of the Foundation is Senator Ted Kennedy, he doesn't seem a bastion of right-wing thought to me? I also looked at most of the supporting organization links. While I am not familiar with all of them, most of the them seem to be disability advocacy organizations? Please either share all your information and point out the organization to which you are referring, or don't use vague arguments to undermine this valid position with regard to the use of the word "retard."

My son is retarded and it's not the word retard that's the problem it's the downright offensive portrayal of the character Jack that is. lol mentally disabled hyuk hyuk - oh grow up you prick, what are you, 6?

I'll be politically correct here: F****** i***ts.

They're bringing more attention to the whole thing this way. Thanks to the complaints this movie will gross another half mill or so.

Not that I mind because I think it's hilarious.

Helen, it isn't a satire on mentally challenged children, it is a satire on the trend in Hollywood to portray a mentally challenged person because it usually results in an award of some sort. Hanks for Forrest Gump, Penn for I Am Sam.

Heck, I remember in High School One Act if a rival school was doing the Helen Keller story your play was totally screwed.

It is SATIRE. Please please please please PLEASE understand that.

Offensive or not, my right to say it should not be hindered because a group of inept activists think so. I think the best way to deal with it is to get over it.

Those that take offense to anything at all are the most offensive people of all. Why does such a simple thing bother some people? Over sensitive much? Get a life and leave what others do alone. If it doesn't physically harm you in anyway, it shouldn't bother you what someone you do't even know, says. The unexamined life is not worth living. You have no life if you have time to butt into someone else' life. Look at yourself before you try to correct others. All of you that whine, b**** and moan about others are just plain retarded.

I think we should all lighten up a little. Take it easy...

Dude, Tropic Thunder totally ROCKED! Excellent movie and if the retards dont like it, well thats just too bad!

RD
www.decrypt.net.tc

I don't hear the retards complaining, if they are then they aren't making any sense.

It's not surprising that nobody is calling this what it is... a PR stunt by the studio. ACLU etc. not a peep about the black face portrayal, but, ooh someone said 'retard' and they mocked Hollywood for rewarding actors who play mentally disabled people. This whole 'gag' was done over a year ago, and SIGNIFICANTLY funnier, and far more offensive on an episode of "Extras" on HBO. Where were all these offended people then? Couldn't be found. Now that a movies bottom line is attached, "Hey we object to the portrayal.." blah blah.. it's PR for a mediocre retread (while still funny) of a movie and old jokes.

This only fuels the studios to create more pseudo divisions between people. They learned it from Washington, and are using it exceptionally.

The term retard means what it means to a person that same as the term ni**er. Now you notice that i did not type the whole word. To me its a offensive word. the reason why retard isnt is i had a sister who had CP to the point where she could not walk or talk. She was called retard more times then i could count. On a side note she had no mental problems what so ever and they figured her IQ to be 127. My youngest daughter had a form of Autism called PDD-NOS and she has been called retarded before. The term does not offend me as i will not allow it to have any power over my family or me. These people that hold the protests more then likely would not see this film anyhow and they just are sensitive. I am very happy that the film has not edited anything as that would be worse then the protests. As much as it troubles the offended people they need to understand that the film has a right to say what they want as much as there is a right to protest it.

The creators of the movie should have said that the use of the world retard and the fake movie poster was an attempt to satire the movie industry's poor abilities to properly represent the mentally disabled in all fairness.

Or some other bulls******* along those lines.

All this film was doing was showing the trend of "many" Oscar winning actors, they do goofy films, drama, then try to to a heart jerker for the Oscar.
It is poking fun of Hollywood, not the mentally disabled. Anyone with 1/2 a brain can see that! oops

It bothers me that a lot of you try to ague this isn't poking fun at retarded people at all. They definitely used an extreme case of retard for shock humor. Just as you would use an extremely loud fart. Do I have a problem with that? No. And I think most of these douche bags need to grow a pair. I've been called and treated much worse in my days. If someone made a satire of my life that made others laugh, more power to them. I'll just go on doing what I do.

I am absolutely flabbergasted and quite disappointed in the direction modern, intellectual society is taking. The degree of entitlement today has gotten to the point of being an epidemic. People observe something that may offend them; “HOW DARE THEY!? I shouldn’t have to be exposed to this kind of thing that upsets me. I shouldn’t have to be made to feel bad by what I see and hear. I HAVE RIGHTS!” This kind of sloppy self-important behavior is getting out of control. Everything NEEDS a disclaimer because someone, somewhere might get their little feelings hurt and seek revenge. I am not saying to not be offended, be offended! Be angry, it’s allowed, but it’s personal and should be kept that way. I am also not saying that everything needs to be allowed, use reason people; fart jokes vs. dead kittens, ignorance is truly grouping everything together. We are better and smarter than to cut everything black and white. What should not be tolerated is all the attention that is lavished on these issues. Oh you were offended by something I did, so sorry you feel that way…… the end. No pomp and circumstance, no media attention, no other conversation, no apologies or acknowledgement even. You feel that way? Awesome; feel it, get over it. The End.

@ Helen
You say it was the portrayal of Jack that was offensive, but the whole point was that Tugg was a horrible actor trying a complicated role beyond his ability. The portrayal of Jack (and thus mentally disabled folk) was supposed to be a failure.

And the movie also used it to look at the historic use of the mentally disabled in Hollywood (coming out of an actor in blackface no less).

Who is trying to control our speech now??? Ultra Libs always say Conservatives are trying to control them but that is not the case here. You can speak your mind in this country but only if you agree with the left

Remember you can never go full retard.

For f***'s sake. So they used the word retard, big whoop! There was a time when this was a legitimate term to describe a "disabled" person. Man I hate the way the world is going, and how easily offended some people are over nothing.

R-tard

From the dictionary:

re·tard·ed /rɪˈtɑrdɪd/

Pronunciation[ri-tahr-did]

–adjective

1. characterized by retardation: a retarded child.
–noun
2. (used with a plural verb) mentally retarded persons collectively (usually prec. by the): new schools for the retarded.

This is Mary Harris! Please, for the love of God, stop writting such s***** content under the use of my name! Maybe you should rehire that a** hole Michael Moore, at least then you won't employ a bunch of p****** using my name!

Sincerely,

Mother Jones

Seriously, I'm rolling in my grave here.

it was a jibe at hollywood, not at mentally impared people you overzealous, ill informed F!ck Tard

hahaha

I call people retard all the time. I'm glad they finally put it in a movie.

All these retards need to stop complaining.

The Movie Sux Anyways, don't go and see it. All Ben Stiller movies SUX, why is he still acting anyways???

Wow, people really don't understand that to get a joke you may actually have to sit through the entire delivery and punchline. It's funny because it is inappropriate. The fact that I was watching a man in blackface give a rather convincing speech (with cited works) about what is considered "too far" in Hollywood made it comic genius. I am a severe stutterer who also has asperger's syndrome, yet I still found the credo "never go full retard" one of the funniest things included in a movie in recent history. I mean I can't even say it without stuttering horribly and making it sound even more hilarious. Now, if a person who has endured nearly 30 years of being mocked and who, by way of a developmental disorder, is supposed to have trouble "getting" jokes can laugh until he's hoarse, then what's YOUR problem?

way to miss the point of the joke, retards.

triple LOL.

if only super sensitive people realized how funny it is when they get all self righteous...

@ the liberal censorship comment: any true liberal embraces freedom of speech.

People really need to grow a set.

What I saw was a terrific job of writing portraying a totally cynical, hypocritical character (played by Stiller) who didn't mind going for an Academy Award but still felt contempt for the role and the mentality of Jack -- a total jerk (Stiller's character), in other words.

The same sense of pushing for an overdrive character was with Downey Jr.'s character trying to be jivey when he wasn't in front of the camera (and yet still talking about "retards"); but his character was put in his place by the use of an actual Black character (and actor) to prove the same point.

Anyway, that's what I got, whatever else someone else may feel.

Come off it people it is a comedy, it is all a joke. We can't take everything seriously otherwise the world would be one boring place. there are many words out their to describe people, and not all are liked. Get over it, words like retard have been used for decades now and will continue to be. none of your stories will stop it. Enjoy the movie and look at the term 'retard' as light hearted humour.

or you could bad mouth me. :p

there is only one word to describe this controversy.

RETARDED.

It's Called the freedom of speech.

Robert Downey Jr. cracks me up... he's got a knack for not taking himself too seriously

has anyone found a copy of the original simplejackmovie.com site? Id like to see it but I cant find a cached copy or anything anywhere....