Many On Twitter Call Joan Rivers' Death A Karmic Payback
Joan Rivers, even after death, continues to undergo some of the biggest controversies, some of which she claims the media "blowed out of proportion". Slipping into an unconscious state on Aug. 28 drew tweets from thousands declaring that she deserved her illness because of her remarks on Palestine last month. "Karma at work there. Without a doubt," one person tweeted after her death via Variety. The hashtag #karma peaked for some time on Thursday.
She had sparked the controversy earlier in August, when there was a video post showing her commenting on the Gaza conflict, according to Daily Mail. The Palestinian vote for Hamas was making them get what they deserved, she had said. "You're dead, you deserve to be dead - you started it." She went on to add: "Don't you dare make me feel sad about that." She called the ones who were killed as being people with "very low IQs."
Her statement triggered a social frenzy, but this daughter of Jewish-Russian parents never apologized or clarified that she was sorry. Her comedian friend, Anthony Jeselnik tweeted that she had once remarked that she would never apologise for a joke.
Joan Rivers once told me she would die before she'd ever apologize for a joke. I'm glad she made it.
— Anthony Jeselnik (@anthonyjeselnik) September 4, 2014
However, the point, that seemed to be lost in this comment declaring that Palestinians deserved to die, of course, was that it didn't seem to be a joke, even a poor joke. It looked dead serious. Many have still not forgiven her, as the Twitter comments have proved. Oh the other hand, the worrying part for many is that even though people have abstained from criticising her, they did not seem remotely perturbed or upset, either. Her comments did not even eek any kind of reaction or condemnation from respected leaders, celebrities, organisations, or even establishment members, according to Daily Mail. Joan Rivers never apologised for her statement, in fact, instead of owning up her mistake, she defensively cast the blame on the media for hyping it.
Explaining her stand on her Facebook page, she clarified that she was "both saddened and disappointed" that what she said about the tragedy of civilian casualties was "totally taken out of context." She also pointed out that "war is hell and unfortunately civilians are victims of political conflicts." Explaining that the U.S. still feels the guilt of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, she accused the media of blowing her words out of context, instead of giving her intentions behind the statement. As she is "praying for peace," she expressed that she was tired of the attacks of people who merely want to sell newspapers and gain rating through a "non-existent" scandal. Her half-apology did not cut any ice with many people. Clarifying that Joan was clearly not joking, being sarcastic or ironic, but dead serious, Katie Halper, wrote in Rawstory: "Her comments were offensive, but for what? They were shocking in their cruelty. But did they challenge anyone's ideas or prejudices or go against the status quo? No. They confirmed and perpetuated them."
Hence, the Twitterati seems to be having the last word.