Mike Judge is the Man!

Mike Judge, the creator of the animated TV series King of the Hill, has now created another animated show called The Goode Family. It premiered two days ago on ABC. Instead of being an over-the-top caricature of rednecks, it's an over-the-top caricature of sanctimonious, politically correct liberals -- especially environmentalists. It's about time somebody had the balls to create a show like this.

Cracking jokes about rednecks and red state culture is not controversial; it's practically required in blue Hollywood. But poking fun at environmentalists, especially from within Hollywood's own ranks... now that's controversial.

I find it interesting that the introduction of The Goode Family has coincided with the economic reality of the recession taking its toll on pricey businesses such as Starbucks Coffee and Whole Foods Market, which cater to the elitist, pretentious liberal crowd. (And witness the correspondingly sharp explosion in popularity of low-brow McCafe. I stopped by a McDonald's the other day, and everyone in line ahead of me was ordering a McCafe drink.) It seems as though the expansion of the pricey businesses in previous years was partly a biproduct of bubble-illusion, much like the real estate bubble in which it was embedded, and now that the economic house of cards is crashing down, people are beginning to recognize the reality that not everyone can afford the liberal brand of moral superiority.

If you haven't seen The Goode Family yet, go watch it on Hulu. The first episode is hilarious. Let's hear it for Mike Judge for having the courage to create a network TV show with its cross-hairs fixed on Blue State America for a change!