I recently read an article in which Norm MacDonald, famous for his Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live, was blasted for his performance at the University of Iowa’s Hancher Auditorium.

MacDonald’s performance was held in order to raise money for the athletic department.

Iowa Athletic Director Bob Bowlsby issued an apology on behalf of the athletic department for having MacDonald perform because his performance was vulgar.

MacDonald included many sexual jokes, including jokes made in reference to women having sex with pigs.

Now, I understand that not all material is suitable for all audiences.

Maybe I’m way out of line here, but I think Bowlsby should be apologizing not for MacDonald’s performance, but for his obvious lack of knowledge and preparation for a performer like MacDonald.

I am a MacDonald fan. I have seen his previous standups and have viewed his performances on late-night talk shows.

I would have known that MacDonald may not have been the proper choice for a fundraiser with children in attendance.

Hell, why didn’t Bowlsby just have Andrew “Dice” Clay perform?

Had Bowlsby done his homework instead of thinking dollar signs, he could have avoided what he considered to be an embarrassment.

And who is to say that MacDonald’s performance was vulgar?

I assume that Bowlsby is an older gentleman who may not share some of the same views or may not share the same sense of humor that MacDonald does.

I mean, what is vulgar?

Is it vulgar to talk about sex?

Is it vulgar to talk about theoretical sexual pairings?

Who decides what is vulgar? I would agree that it would be vulgar if Norm MacDonald was on stage attempting to actually persuade the women in the crowd to have sex with pigs.

I assume that wasn’t the case.

If Bowlsby wants to see vulgar, tell him to take a walk through the dorms on Saturday night at 2 a.m. Tell him to take a stroll through the cold-air sleeping quarters at any fraternity on the Iowa campus some Friday night. Would he issue an apology for his athletes if they tell a racial or sexual joke?

Would he publicly speak out against his athletes?

I don’t think he would unless a public statement he considers to be offensive were made by an Iowa athlete.

That is what makes MacDonald so wonderful. He says what we all think in the sickest, twisted part of our minds. He says it so we don’t have to.

My final question for Mr. Bowlsby is a tough one for him.

If the crowd had loved MacDonald’s standup, would he have issued an apology because he felt the material was vulgar and off- color?

I mean, if every joke MacDonald let fly sent the crowd into a laughing frenzy, would Bowlsby have issued a public statement attacking MacDonald’s act? Or would he have smiled, laughed along and shook the hands of all those who donated the funds for the athletic department?

Fickleness? The “in” crowd? Greed? You be the judge.

We’ll talk later

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Chad Calek is a junior in mass communications from Persia.