By Michael Kelman Portney

Nothing unsettles the status quo like a good laugh at its expense. Irreverence has always been a tool for freedom, rebellion, and truth. And few wielded it better than George Carlin.

Irreverence isn’t about cheap insults or reckless destruction. It’s a scalpel, not a sledgehammer. At its best, it exposes the flaws, hypocrisies, and absurdities of systems we’re told to respect without question. To be irreverent is to say, “Why should I bow to this? Who benefits if I do?”

Take George Carlin. In his famous The American Dream rant, he doesn’t just deliver comedy; he performs surgery. With razor-sharp wit, he cuts through the comforting myth of the “American Dream” and lays bare its darker truths: corporate greed, political corruption, and the illusion of freedom.

Carlin doesn’t just mock; he educates. He transforms the audience’s laughter into uncomfortable reflection. That’s the power of irreverence: it forces you to reconsider what you thought you knew.

We live in a world where conformity is celebrated, gatekeeping is rampant, and dissent is punished. Irreverence is a counterweight to this suffocating control. It’s the courage to laugh when everyone else is gasping.

Carlin’s rant feels as relevant today as it did decades ago. His critique of unchecked capitalism, blind patriotism, and systemic oppression cuts deeper in an era of wealth inequality and performative politics.

The world needs more Carlin—not just comedians, but thinkers, writers, and creators willing to challenge the sacred cows of their time. Irreverence is how we clear out the old to make way for something better.

At MisinformationSucks.com, irreverence isn’t a gimmick; it’s the lifeblood of everything I write. It’s how I tackle topics like Trump’s America, the hypocrisy of the therapeutic ketamine industry, or the cultural weirdness of Portland. Like Carlin, I aim to provoke thought, not just anger or laughter.

When I call out systems or sacred ideas, it’s not because I hate them—it’s because I love the potential of what could exist in their place. Irreverence is my way of saying: We can do better.

Critics often dismiss irreverence as juvenile or unproductive. They’re wrong. True irreverence isn’t nihilistic—it’s visionary. It points out what’s broken so we can fix it. Carlin didn’t just joke about the flaws of the American Dream; he dared us to imagine a world without them.

If we’re going to celebrate irreverence, we need to do it right. Don’t just laugh—think. Don’t just mock—create. Irreverence isn’t about tearing down for the sake of chaos; it’s about building something better from the rubble.

Carlin once said, “I think it’s the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and deliberately cross it.” That’s the essence of irreverence: testing boundaries, challenging norms, and refusing to let fear dictate your voice.

So go ahead—question everything. Laugh at what doesn’t make sense. Celebrate irreverence, not because it’s easy, but because it’s necessary.

Welcome to MisinformationSucks.com: where we laugh in the face of power and dare to imagine a better world.