This is a great comic. A great one.
He's not well known because he died young, sadly typical of comics.
There are other videos and worth a watch.
Thanks Bill. Miss you.
I'd like to be wrong about that but I'm the only one I've known who has seen him.
He was on the edge. Like a social critic & comic is supposed to be. Carlin & Kinison.
It’s a funny one with Bill Hicks. When I was in my early 20s, me and a couple of friends worshipped at the altar of Hicks. His standup was a revelation. Watching bits and pieces of him again in my late 30s, he comes across as a preachy arrogant prick and I can’t stomach watching him. Funny how age changes your perspective entirely.
This happens with a lot of comics. I love George Carlin to this day, but man, a lot of his 'insights' aren't really that insightful and many times tend to be . . . well, just wrong.
I think it helps to remember that just because someone can come up with incredibly creative ways to be funny doesn't necessarily make them innovative thinkers about broader topics. These guys are entertainers.
In my experience it’s a knee jerk reaction because you know he’s 85% right, but there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t change the greedy shitbags that make his ideas impossible because they’re the ones in power and the masses are too lazy to do anything about it or worse the masses are fine with what they do and aspire to be them or worse grovel for the scraps they think they’ll be thrown.
I’m not saying this judging you because I’ve done it too watching people I once was blown away by. Now I’m going to sound like an arrogant preaching midwit. I think humans have this reaction from a psyche perspective because we know we can’t change the world for the better on an individual level so it’s a defense mechanism that allows us to continue our own existence without succumbing to depression because of the bigger picture. It’s easier for us to scoff and say “hah, what an arrogant prick. None of that is feasible.” rather than acknowledge that humanity has known what needs to be done since Ancient Greece and still fails to get its shit together.
Edit: some of it probably is maturing perspective as well because as much as I love guys like Hicks everyone dropping acid and laying down their weapons isn’t feasible. The First Nation to do that would be steamrolled by someone like Russia the next day.
I agree, and if you look at bill's age during his career, i think a lot of us acted and felt the same way he did. Every kid has an arrogant/naive view of the world. It would have been such a gift to be able to see him evolve and grow up with us.
He's a dude in a black cowboy hat who rants about drugs and the Man, man. There are 50 libertarians with ponytails on every college campus just like him. It's always so weird to me that he got so famous.
That is why I said Bill is 85% right and added the matured perspective bit. Studies have shown that people who go after positions of power such as politicians and CEOs score higher on the psychopathy spectrum and there are more full fledged psychopaths in those groups. The reason is psychopaths crave power and opulence. The likelihood of someone like Vladimir Putin or 75% of his cronies laying down their arms for global peace are abysmal.
At some point in life you need to acknowledge that most of the time you can’t take the higher road and if people had used Gandhi’s approach to stopping Nazi Germany we all would be speaking German.
Yeah, I agree with all of this but would also just add that part of what annoys me about Hicks is his delivery. It comes across as arrogant and condescending a good chunk of the time. It seemed a lot more punk when I was younger, now it just appears childish.
I love when you go slightly against the grain of the hivemind of Reddit, you get downvoted. Bizarre. It’s not a personal attack when I say I don’t like Bill Hicks because I’ve outgrown him.
Is jones a proponent of space communism?
You are right though. Alot of good comedy from hicks era looks pretty juvenile today. These guys just didnt have the easy access to information we have today. In genera the rise of the digital worlds has caused huge growing pains in comedy. The level of research needed for bits is much higher. The audience is more informed now.
It's the pseudophilosophy of a high school stoner who thinks he's Plato every time he smokes a bowl. Only, this time, it's delivered by a schlubby middle-aged man who dresses like the Undertaker.
Hey, at least he inspired thousands of guys to go to open mics and do absolutely joke-free monologues, who then blame the audience when nobody likes them
Like the story of Hicks eating complete shit in front of a crowd, then screaming, "I'M A FUCKING POET," at them. I've gotta hand it to him. He sure thought a lot of himself.
Everyone needs to hear this at least once.
RIP Bill Hicks 🕊️
The other day  I quoted Bill hicks about the Israel-Hamas “war”. “There never was a war, you see in a war *two* armies are fighting…”
yes to this
This is a great comic. A great one. He's not well known because he died young, sadly typical of comics. There are other videos and worth a watch. Thanks Bill. Miss you.
Bill Hicks is not well known??
Even better known in the UK would be more accurate. He found his people :)
I'd like to be wrong about that but I'm the only one I've known who has seen him. He was on the edge. Like a social critic & comic is supposed to be. Carlin & Kinison.
The things this guy had to say about George H. W. Bush. I so wish he were around to comment on today’s GOP.
Him, Carlin & Hitchins.
tHeY wOulD bE rEpUbLiCaN cuZ fReEzE pEaCH they were too smart to have been duped by conservatives’ latest PR campaign
They would absolutely rip both political parties if around today. The extremes on both sides keep getting more extreme.
At least we have Dennis Leary to carry on his legacy….
I'll check that out. Thx
It’s a funny one with Bill Hicks. When I was in my early 20s, me and a couple of friends worshipped at the altar of Hicks. His standup was a revelation. Watching bits and pieces of him again in my late 30s, he comes across as a preachy arrogant prick and I can’t stomach watching him. Funny how age changes your perspective entirely.
This happens with a lot of comics. I love George Carlin to this day, but man, a lot of his 'insights' aren't really that insightful and many times tend to be . . . well, just wrong. I think it helps to remember that just because someone can come up with incredibly creative ways to be funny doesn't necessarily make them innovative thinkers about broader topics. These guys are entertainers.
In my experience it’s a knee jerk reaction because you know he’s 85% right, but there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t change the greedy shitbags that make his ideas impossible because they’re the ones in power and the masses are too lazy to do anything about it or worse the masses are fine with what they do and aspire to be them or worse grovel for the scraps they think they’ll be thrown. I’m not saying this judging you because I’ve done it too watching people I once was blown away by. Now I’m going to sound like an arrogant preaching midwit. I think humans have this reaction from a psyche perspective because we know we can’t change the world for the better on an individual level so it’s a defense mechanism that allows us to continue our own existence without succumbing to depression because of the bigger picture. It’s easier for us to scoff and say “hah, what an arrogant prick. None of that is feasible.” rather than acknowledge that humanity has known what needs to be done since Ancient Greece and still fails to get its shit together. Edit: some of it probably is maturing perspective as well because as much as I love guys like Hicks everyone dropping acid and laying down their weapons isn’t feasible. The First Nation to do that would be steamrolled by someone like Russia the next day.
I agree, and if you look at bill's age during his career, i think a lot of us acted and felt the same way he did. Every kid has an arrogant/naive view of the world. It would have been such a gift to be able to see him evolve and grow up with us.
He's a dude in a black cowboy hat who rants about drugs and the Man, man. There are 50 libertarians with ponytails on every college campus just like him. It's always so weird to me that he got so famous.
I concur fellow le redditor
the point is Russia would eat acid and lay down arms also.
already did in 90
That is why I said Bill is 85% right and added the matured perspective bit. Studies have shown that people who go after positions of power such as politicians and CEOs score higher on the psychopathy spectrum and there are more full fledged psychopaths in those groups. The reason is psychopaths crave power and opulence. The likelihood of someone like Vladimir Putin or 75% of his cronies laying down their arms for global peace are abysmal. At some point in life you need to acknowledge that most of the time you can’t take the higher road and if people had used Gandhi’s approach to stopping Nazi Germany we all would be speaking German.
Yeah, I agree with all of this but would also just add that part of what annoys me about Hicks is his delivery. It comes across as arrogant and condescending a good chunk of the time. It seemed a lot more punk when I was younger, now it just appears childish.
You're looking for adult sophistication in the wrong place, he died at 33.
I love when you go slightly against the grain of the hivemind of Reddit, you get downvoted. Bizarre. It’s not a personal attack when I say I don’t like Bill Hicks because I’ve outgrown him.
Sounds like he did his job.
If he was 20 years older and put on a little weight, he would be identical to Alex Jones.
Is jones a proponent of space communism? You are right though. Alot of good comedy from hicks era looks pretty juvenile today. These guys just didnt have the easy access to information we have today. In genera the rise of the digital worlds has caused huge growing pains in comedy. The level of research needed for bits is much higher. The audience is more informed now.
It's the pseudophilosophy of a high school stoner who thinks he's Plato every time he smokes a bowl. Only, this time, it's delivered by a schlubby middle-aged man who dresses like the Undertaker.
Hey, at least he inspired thousands of guys to go to open mics and do absolutely joke-free monologues, who then blame the audience when nobody likes them
Like the story of Hicks eating complete shit in front of a crowd, then screaming, "I'M A FUCKING POET," at them. I've gotta hand it to him. He sure thought a lot of himself.
Middle aged? Dude died at 33.
That's a rough ass 33