George Carlin, the legendary comedian and activist, is most likely one of the most controversial and outspoken entertainers of his time, but as far as the government is concerned, he may also have been a terrorist.
Carlin certainly wasn’t a criminal or a violent individual in any way whatsoever, but during his routines he said things that struck at the root of the problems in our society, things he clearly wasn’t allowed to speak of, much like many of us today. He went into great detail about corruption in government and business, corporate crime and more.
During the 1978 Supreme Court case, FCC v Pacifica Foundation, the government cited Carlin’s work as an example of profanity. They used his “Seven Dirty Words” segment to show the type of language that was being used in records and broadcasts. But the government’s interest in his work did not stop there.
Just after his 1969 appearance on the Jackie Gleason show, George Carlin caught the attention of the FBI because he made jokes about then-FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover. According to the government, Carlin had “referred to the Bureau and the Director in a satirical vein.”
They said his act was “considered to be in very poor taste” and “it was obvious that he was using the prestige of the Bureau and Mr. Hoover to enhance his performance.”
After George Carlin appeared on the show, the staff of Jackie Gleason received a number of anonymous letters — allegedly from fans but possibly from the FBI — condemning Carlin for speaking about the government in the critical way that he did. It has been proven that the FBI has indeed sent threatening letters to public figures in the past, pretending to be concerned colleagues or a member of the public, including to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
You can watch Carlin’s opinion on American politicians in the video below.
Anyone that speaks out against the injustices of the world, whether they are a dangerous terrorist or a harmless comedian, will definitely receive unwanted attention from government. Cases like this one are not isolated. Government has done this in the past and used mainstream media to cover things up, always blaming someone else for their own mistakes.
